Austalia’s Gender Pay Gap Isn’t Improving, So, What Can We Do About It?

Mehdi Ali appears on Channel 10 to discuss his story. Image: Channel 10.

Women in Australia are earning around $26,500 less each year than men, according to the latest Workplace Gender Equality Agency report.

That number hasn’t changed over the past twelve months – with no progress being made for the first time in nine years.

The Briefing team spoke to Mary Wooldridge, Director of the Workplace Gender Equality Agency, who said having women in leadership positions was vital to the success of the company.

“We know when there are more women in senior leadership, it’s a more balanced team, then companies perform better in terms of their profitability and productivity. So, gender equality can be part of the solution,” she explained.

She said while the gap had stayed the same, there were fascinating trends when compared to previous years and similar countries.

“Interestingly, both the salaries of men and women have gone up. It’s just the relationship and the proportion between the two that has stayed the same,” she said.

“This isn’t a unique problem in Australia. Every country has this issue. While our gender pay gap has stagnated, in Canada and New Zealand, their gender pay gap in the last 12 months has increased slightly.”

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Sarah Bol