Progress on the gender pay gap has stagnated for the first time in 2022, with new data showing women are earning on average $26,600 less than men, and 7 in 10 employers reporting gender pay gaps in favour of men.
Data from the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) released today reveals that the gender pay gap remains at 22.8 per cent, which means women are paid 77 cents for every $1 earned by men.
“At a time when Australia is experiencing a critical skills and labour shortage, WGEA’s annual Employer Census shows that too many employers have failed to step up on gender equality leaving many women no better off than they were 12 months ago,” Director of WGEA Mary Wooldridge said on the findings.
“A pay gap of 22.8% means women earn an average of $26,600 less than men, based on their gender. This failure to improve needs to be a clarion call for all employers.”
A massive 7 in 10 employers have pay gaps that favour men, with men more likely to hold managerial positions across sectors, including those which are dominated by women like heath and education.
Only 22 per cent of CEOs are women, according to the data, and just 1 in 5 governing bodies are gender-balanced. More than 1 in 5 boards have no women at all.
For women who are in key managerial positions, they took home nearly $100,000 or 24.5 per cent less than men in similar positions in the 2021-22 period.
Wooldridge said the disappointing figures should be a wake-up call to employers.
“Lasting change requires employers to make bold, creative choices that send a signal to all employees that gender equality is a core part of their business strategy and a priority for those in leadership and managerial roles,” Wooldridge said.
“Leading employers are already putting solutions in place that address challenges like workforce shortages by tailoring factory shifts around school pick-up and drop-off times or promoting – and role-modelling – flexible hours or part-time work arrangements among managers and executives.”
New voluntary reporting shows more than half (53 per cent) of employers have set some form of targets for gender equality in the workplace. Of these employers, more than half did so to increase the number of women in leadership positions.
Far fewer employers have done so to close the gender gap or pursue other initiatives like increasing the number of men who take parental leave and flexible work arrangements.
However, data shows more employers are focusing on moving to an “all roles flex” work model, with 2 in 5 employers reporting they have done so. An ‘all roles flex” approach switches workplace focus to output rather than time spent in the office.
Employers can compare how their organisations are tracking on gender equality measures using WGEA’s Data Explorer.