BBC China Editor Carrie Gracie Resigns Over Refusal To Grant Her Equal Pay For Equal Status, Quality Work

We have a super high-profile resignation at the BBC. China editor Carrie Gracie gave the BBC months to rectify her unequal pay -- the very condition under which she came to the BBC in the first place three decades ago. In an open letter just published, she outlines all the ways the BBC tried to get around this fundamental concept -- that a woman editor should have salary parity with men, and especially one as qualified as Gracie.

Because British taxpayers funds the BBC, Gracie writes: "I believe you have a right to know that it is breaking equality law and resisting pressure for a fair and transparent pay structure."

No intelligent organization would want to run the risk that Gracie would go public and resign. It IS about power when a group of men calculate that an accomplished woman with a global following won't have the nerve to walk -- and tell the whole world her story, as she slams the door behind her.

Carrie Gracie just struck a lightening bolt into this British BBC boys club with murky pay policies and dearth of fair employment principles. Anne Perkins writes Monday morning that Gracie decided to stop colluding with the BBC as an underpaid, exploited woman.

In the summer of 2017, the British government forced the BBC to publish the names of familiar radio and TV personalities earning over £150,000, along with their salaries. The results -- and obvious gender-based pay gap -- were astounding. 

This situation is no longer acceptable writes Carrie Gracie, because the BBC promotes itself as an advanced, enlightened, and egalitarian organization. In reality, it's the same boys club as the rest of the world, with a few minor exceptions. 

Her resignation letter is printed in full at The Guardian.