Location: Ireland
Reference Period: 1 July 2024 – 30 June 2025
Publication Date: 30 November 2025
- Introduction
XOCEAN is committed to fairness, transparency, and equality in how we reward our people. As an ocean data company focused on innovation, safety, and environmental stewardship, we recognise that diversity and inclusion strengthen both our culture and our performance.
This report presents XOCEAN’s Gender Pay Gap (GPG) results for the 12-month period ending 30 June 2025, prepared in accordance with the Gender Pay Gap Information Act 2021 and associated Irish regulations.
Our analysis demonstrates a balanced and equitable pay structure, with small variations reflecting the mix of roles across our operational, technical, and professional teams.
XOCEAN remains committed to continuous improvement and to promoting gender balance at all levels of the organisation.
- Methodology
The report includes 111 employees on XOCEAN’s Irish payroll as of 30 June 2025.
One employee was excluded in accordance with the Gender Pay Gap Information Act 2021 guidance, as their period of service during the reference period was less than 12 weeks.
All calculations are based on payroll data extracted from XOCEAN’s payroll system Gross-to-Net (G2N) system (“Simplepay”) for the 12-month reference period from 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2025.
The dataset includes all relevant cash remuneration and working hours for employees employed on the snapshot date, ensuring full compliance with the reporting requirements.
Hourly Pay Calculations
Hourly pay was calculated using ordinary pay only (basic pay and all fixed or variable cash allowances such as car, medical, location, shift, and overtime allowances), excluding bonuses and benefits-in-kind, in accordance with the Gender Pay Gap Information Act 2021 and guidance from the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (DCEDIY).
For each employee employed on 30 June 2025, XOCEAN totalled all ordinary pay recorded in payroll during the 12-month reference period (1 July 2024 – 30 June 2025).
Ordinary pay includes all basic salary and cash allowances, overtime, pay for leave, and any leave paid out, while bonuses and benefits-in-kind are excluded.
As XOCEAN’s workforce is primarily salaried, hourly rates were calculated using contracted working hours (weekly contracted hours × 52 weeks).
For employees who were on extended unpaid maternity, parental, or long-term sick leave exceeding five weeks during the reference period, the hourly rate was calculated based on their annual salary and contracted annual hours to ensure that the rate represents their contractual pay for work performed rather than temporary reductions in pay due to unpaid absence.
This approach ensures consistency and fairness across all employees and aligns with accepted best practice under the Gender Pay Gap Information Act 2021 and DCEDIY guidance.
All data were extracted from XOCEAN’s SimplePay Gross-to-Net (G2N) payroll system and independently validated by the Finance team to confirm completeness and accuracy.
Bonus and Benefits-in-Kind (BIK) Calculations
Bonus pay includes all annual and discretionary payments; only bonus recipients are included in the mean and median bonus gap calculations.
Benefits-in-Kind (BIK) include taxable non-cash benefits such as employer-funded medical insurance. Employees who opted for a cash allowance instead of medical insurance were excluded from the BIK calculation, as cash payments are treated as salary under the legislation.
The proportion of male and female employees receiving bonuses or BIK was calculated based on all employees employed on 30 June 2025.
Quartiles
All employees were ranked by hourly pay (ordinary pay only, excluding bonuses and benefits-in-kind) and divided into four equal quartiles — from lowest to highest hourly pay.
The proportion of men and women in each quartile was then calculated to show the distribution of genders across pay bands.
This analysis provides insight into gender representation across the organisation and reflects XOCEAN’s workforce structure.
Data Validation
All payroll data were reconciled to financial control totals and validated jointly by HR and Finance.
Supporting data and validation logs are retained securely for audit purposes.
- Results Summary – snapshot on 30 June 2025
| Measure | Result | Notes |
| Mean hourly pay gap | 3% | Male employees earn slightly higher average hourly pay. |
| Median hourly pay gap | 5% | Male employees earn slightly higher hourly pay at the midpoint. |
| Mean bonus pay gap | -18% | Female employees received higher average bonuses. |
| Median bonus pay gap | 16% | Male employees received higher median bonuses. |
| Proportion of males receiving a bonus | 96% | Near-universal bonus participation among men. |
| Proportion of females receiving a bonus | 91% | Broad bonus participation among women. |
| Proportion of males receiving BIK | 64% | Balanced access to benefits. |
| Proportion of females receiving BIK | 70% | Balanced access to benefits. |
Note: The Gender Pay Gap is calculated as (Male – Female) ÷ Male × 100. A positive percentage indicates higher average pay for men, while a negative percentage indicates higher average pay for women.
The 2025 results demonstrate a balanced pay and reward structure across XOCEAN’s workforce, with only small gender differences that primarily reflect workforce composition rather than unequal .
When considering both hourly pay and bonuses together, the overall difference in average total remuneration between male and female employees is approximately 1.8%, demonstrating strong alignment in pay outcomes across the organisation.
XOCEAN remains confident that there is no evidence of gender bias in pay progression or access to higher-paid roles, and continues to focus on improving gender balance through initiatives in recruitment, development, and career progression.
- Hourly Pay
The mean hourly pay gap (3.38%) and median hourly pay gap (4.74%) show that male employees earn slightly higher hourly pay on average and at the midpoint.
These small differences are attributable to the higher representation of men in technical and off-site operational roles, which attract higher hourly rates due to skill requirements and working conditions.
Pay for equivalent roles remains consistent across genders.
- Bonus Pay
Bonus participation is high for both genders, with 90.9% of women and 96.2% of men receiving a bonus during the year.
These bonus gap variations reflect the timing and structure of discretionary awards rather than unequal access.
XOCEAN’s wide participation demonstrates that bonus opportunities are equitable and inclusive across the organisation.
- Benefits-in-Kind (BIK)
XOCEAN provides one taxable non-cash benefit, employer-funded medical insurance.
During the reference period, 70% of female employees and 64% of male employees received this benefit.
Employees who opted to receive a cash allowance instead were excluded, as cash is treated as salary, not a benefit-in-kind, under the Act.
Participation rates are similar across genders and reflect employee choice and eligibility, confirming that XOCEAN’s benefits are equally accessible to all.
- Pay Quartiles
| % in each quartile | Female | Male |
| Q1 (lowest) | 50% | 50% |
| Q2 (lower-middle) | 14% | 86% |
| Q3 (upper-middle) | 21% | 79% |
| Q4 (highest) | 30% | 70% |
Note: Employees were ranked by hourly pay (ordinary pay only, excluding bonuses and benefits-in-kind) and divided into four equal quartiles.
The quartile analysis reflects gender representation within each pay band, rather than the overall proportion of men and women across the organisation. As XOCEAN’s workforce comprises a higher proportion of men overall, male representation appears greater in most quartiles.
30% of employees in the organisation are female. The highest quartile is representative of the percentage females in the organisation which demonstrates continued progress in female participation within senior, professional, and specialist positions.
Female representation is strongest in the lowest quartile (50%), reflecting a higher concentration of women in administrative and business support functions, that do not require off-site location
Male representation increases across the middle quartiles (Q2 and Q3), consistent with the greater number of men in technical and off-site operational roles that attract higher hourly rates due to the nature of work performed.
Overall, the distribution mirrors XOCEAN’s workforce profile and shows no evidence of gender bias in access to higher-paid roles or career progression.
Part-Time Employees
XOCEAN employs a small number of part-time employees whose contracted hours vary.
Hourly and bonus information for these employees were taken from SimplePay’s Gross-to-Net (G2N) payroll data, with mean and median calculations carried out by XOCEAN in line with statutory methodology.
All calculations were validated by the Finance team.
| Measure | Result | Notes |
| Mean hourly pay gap | 5% | Male part-time employees earn slightly higher average hourly pay. |
| Median hourly pay gap | -10% | Female part-time employees earn higher hourly pay at the midpoint. |
| Mean bonus pay gap | -1% | Female part-time employees received marginally higher average bonuses. |
| Median bonus pay gap | -10% | Typical female bonus was higher. |
| Proportion of males receiving a bonus | 100% | All part-time men received a bonus. |
| Proportion of females receiving a bonus | 100% | All part-time women received a bonus. |
| Proportion of males receiving BIK | 100% | All part-time men received a benefit-in-kind. |
| Proportion of females receiving BIK | 33% | One-third of part-time women opted to receive a benefit-in-kind. |
Negative values indicate that female part-time employees earn higher hourly pay and bonuses on average and at the median. This reflects XOCEAN’s flexible working arrangements and the distribution of part-time roles across departments.
All part-time employees received a bonus during the reference period. The mean and median bonus gaps are negative, showing that female part-time employees received higher average and typical bonuses than male counterparts. These differences reflect role profiles and performance outcomes rather than gender-related factors.
Overall, the part-time results demonstrate that XOCEAN’s pay and reward structures are fair, inclusive, and aligned with those of the full-time workforce. Hourly and bonus outcomes remain consistent with XOCEAN’s commitment to equitable treatment and transparency across all working patterns.
- Summary
XOCEAN’s 2025 results show small hourly pay gaps (3% mean and 5% median), where male employees earn slightly higher hourly pay on average and at the midpoint. These differences reflect workforce composition rather than pay inequality.
Pay for equivalent roles is consistent across genders; the differences arise from the higher proportion of men in technical and operational roles that attract higher hourly rates.
These outcomes demonstrate XOCEAN’s ongoing commitment to fairness, inclusivity, and transparency in how we reward our people.
- Actions and Ongoing Commitments
XOCEAN remains focused on ensuring equality and diversity in all areas of our business.
We will continue to:
-
- Maintain gender-neutral recruitment and promotion processes.
- Provide mentoring and professional development to support women in technical and leadership roles.
- Conduct annual pay equity reviews to monitor fairness and consistency.
- Support flexible and hybrid working where possible to enable career progression for all employees.
- Encourage female participation in STEM disciplines through outreach and education initiatives.
- Compliance and Publication
This report fulfils XOCEAN’s statutory obligations under the Gender Pay Gap Information Act 2021.
It will be published on XOCEAN’s website by 30 November 2025 and will remain publicly available for at least three years.
All supporting data and validation logs are retained securely for a minimum of seven years in accordance with XOCEAN’s Data Retention Policy.