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New gender pay gap data reveals reform works, WGEA says
Months after pay gap data exposed the salary divide at Australia’s biggest firms, the Workplace Gender Equality Agency has published a new analysis of gender equality in the public sector.
Naomi Neilson
When the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) published the gender pay gaps at Australian companies with 100 or more employees earlier this year, Katy Gallagher, the Minister for Women, said it was a “historic step towards transparency and accountability”.
The results showed 30 per cent of employers had a median pay gap between -5 per cent and +5 per cent, and 62 per cent had median pay gaps that were over 5 per cent in favour of men.
In February, Lawyers Weekly reported on the gender workplace gap at each of Australia’s major firms and discovered some of the largest gaps existed at Macpherson Kelley, Coleman Greig, and Bartier Perry.
Riana Steyn, chief executive of Bartier Perry, acknowledged “where we are is not good enough” and said the firm was committed to “achieving a better balance” among its men and women employees.
At the other end of the scale were firms Hicksons, Holding Redlich, Mason Black Lawyers, Gadens, and Dentons.
On its 0 per cent median base salary gap, Hicksons said it was a “testament to the promotion pathways, providing clarity of process, desired outcomes, and visibility of eligibility and selection criteria”.
The new data, released on Thursday (20 June), revealed there is a gender pay gap of 13.5 per cent in the public sector, but this sits about 8 percentage points lower than the private sector.
WGEA found women working in the federal public sector are paid around 86¢ for every dollar men earn, and its 13.5 per cent gap equates to a difference of $19,000 every year.
Despite men being more likely to receive bigger pay cheques, WGEA reported management positions are largely balanced, with close to half of teams reporting a gender balance in their senior positions.
CEO of WGEA Mary Wooldridge said this new information has set a baseline to inform employer action across Australian companies.
“The scorecard shows the Commonwealth public sector has benefited from clearly articulated commitments and sector-wide reforms in areas the private sector finds difficult to change, such as gender balance in management positions,” Wooldridge said.
While more still needs to be done in the public sector, Wooldridge added their employees are “taking actions” to empower more women to take up leadership roles and drive balance in management.
Naomi Neilson
Naomi Neilson is a senior journalist with a focus on court reporting for Lawyers Weekly.
You can email Naomi at:
