Gender pay gaps lessen for companies that audit remuneration and take action, new WGEA research shows

Australia’s persistent and pervasive gender pay gap has fallen more than five per cent over the past three years among companies committed to action, proving targets and pay audits make a tangible difference.

But closing the gender pay gap off is still “many years off” for the majority of businesses, researchers say, with many failing to acknowledge there is an issue or take action — holding back broader progress.

For years maligned for its gender issues, the top performers in the mining sector has been shown in the latest report by the Workplace Gender Equality Agency and the Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre to be among the most improved, and could be used as a case study for other industries, as well as laggards.

From next year, the pay gaps of individual businesses will be made public under new laws passed by the Federal Government last year — under expectations that will drive change, as proved overseas.

Centre director and report author Alan Duncan said further visibility was set to drive improved results — which were needed to ensure equal opportunities for women in the workforce.

“The increased level of reporting and greater transparency, greater demand from society and prospective employees that employers be committed to issues around diversity and inclusion, this is all going to contribute to greater commitments and more substance,” he said.

The gender pay gap is not the same as equal pay, which is a legal requirement. The gender pay gap shows the difference between average pay across organisations and industries. Employers must have a minimum of 100 employees to be required to report to the Workplace Gender Equality Agency.

Women continue to be underrepresented among the top 20 per cent of earners in most industries, while businesses that undertake a pay gap audit often doubled their success.

“This analysis shows that when employers pursue a deliberate strategy of long-term, meaningful change they are achieving progress to close their gender pay gaps.”

She added that industry averages could mask true progress and employer pay gaps becoming public would allow for performances hidden by industry averages to be addressed if necessary.

A focus on pay gaps at management levels had left other women behind. When action was taken, it was biased towards senior manager level, rather than entry- or mid-level, the research showed.

“It’s important policies and actions are a reflection of organisational commitment and not a response to compliance,” Professor Duncan said.

He said there had been a notable uptick in the number of mining companies that had conducted pay gap audits, which had led to the situation improving for those leading the charge, as well as improvements in other gender equitable outcomes for their female workers.

The report also showed a lack of progress in sectors like manufacturing and construction. Professor Duncan said entrenched gender norms were another barrier holding back female employment in professions like electricians to just 2 per cent of the national workforce, for example, were also at play.