Julian Smith/AAP
Australia has ranked equal final on a gender pay hole scorecard throughout six international locations, in response to a serious report launched at present.
It studied the gender pay hole reporting frameworks in Australia, France, South Africa, Spain, Sweden and the UK. Based mostly on 11 indicators, Australia obtained a rating of 4 out of 11, rating equal final with the UK. Spain was the highest ranked nation, scoring 8.5.
The excellent news is the analysis, detailed in our Australian-focused companion report, reveals how making a small variety of modifications may give Australia an opportunity to ramp up progress to shut the gender pay hole.
What the examine checked out
In a world examine geared toward figuring out finest observe in gender pay hole reporting methods, six international locations have been chosen on the idea of getting distinctive, probably high-impact design options. Australia was chosen on the idea of its world-leading gender equality dataset.
The analysis recognized 11 indicators of finest observe reporting, together with accountability, protection, enforcement and penalties, intersectional components (equivalent to race and ethnicity), transparency and motion plans. The six international locations have been ranked in opposition to the indications in a pay hole reporting scorecard.
The findings have been primarily based on interviews with key stakeholders from authorities, gender equality advocates and specialists, and employers and commerce unions. The report additionally used proof from educational literature, stories and publications from worldwide and country-specific organisations, and cross-country comparisons to determine strengths and weaknesses in every reporting system.
We was once a world chief
Australia was one of many pioneers when it got here to legislating for equal pay in 1969 and 1972, after which with gender equality reporting since 1986.
Launched in 2012, the Office Gender Equality Act requires employers to report knowledge by gender on remuneration, workforce composition and the recruitment, promotions and resignations of their staff. This knowledge goes to the Office Gender Equality Company.
Erik Anderson/AAP
The act was an vital step in direction of accountability and produced promising early outcomes, with the nationwide gender pay hole dropping steadily from 18.6% in 2014 to 14.1% in 2018. This implies common weekly earnings for girls working full-time have been 14.1% lower than their male counterparts.
Since then, progress has stalled. In truth, the COVID pandemic has seen the gender pay hole enhance barely, to 14.2%.
Which means that in 2021, the common girl working full-time has to work an additional 61 days annually to earn the identical as the common man.
Why was Australia ranked final?
Though Australia’s laws has generated a world-leading dataset on office gender equality, our analysis discovered that knowledge assortment and monitoring alone should not sufficient to drive widespread change.
Australia falls behind on elements of transparency and accountability for corrective motion. Which means that neither the incentives nor punishments are robust sufficient to alter organisational behaviour. This has finally stifled our progress.
Learn extra:
Time to gender parity has blown out to 135 years. This is what girls can do to shut the hole
Australia additionally ranks behind different international locations for under requiring comparatively massive, private sector organisations to report on gender equality (plans to develop to the general public sector have been introduced by the federal authorities). Australia additionally fails to seize different measures of social drawback like race or ethnicity.
Catching up with different international locations on these metrics requires re-thinking how our pay hole laws works – this can be important in driving widespread and inclusive office equality into the longer term.
Within the brief time period, we have to make our present laws work more durable to incentivise employers to scale back their gender pay hole. The upside is that accountability and transparency may be improved with minimal change.
This may start with three steps.
The first step: publish pay knowledge for particular person organisations
Though Australia calculates particular person organisations’ gender pay gaps, the 2012 act doesn’t permit these gaps to be printed. Slightly, solely aggregated knowledge for entire industries and Australia total may be launched publicly.
Publishing the pay gaps for every organisation would require minimal legislative modification.
Nevertheless it might have a serious affect. For instance, it might allow traders, customers, staff, commerce unions and activist teams to exert strain on employers to enhance their gender equality efficiency by investing in, buying from, or working for corporations with decrease pay gaps.
Step two: set a brand new minimal customary that issues
Beneath the present laws, the minister for girls can nominate minimal requirements that enormous organisations should meet to be able to fulfil gender equality reporting obligations below the 2012 act.
In the intervening time, the minimal customary is happy if an organization merely has one gender equality coverage or technique in place. However having a coverage doesn’t guarantee it’s adopted or that its targets are met.
Lukas Coch/AAP
We want a efficiency customary that issues. Tying the minimal customary to outcomes will explicitly require organisations to right pay inequalities and scale back their gender pay hole over time.
Step three: make use of sanctions
There have to be penalties if organisations don’t adjust to legal guidelines requiring them to report pay knowledge and meet the required minimal requirements.
Present laws doesn’t impose particular sanctions, however does embody the supply that non-compliant entities “might not” be eligible for presidency contracts and monetary help equivalent to Commonwealth grants.
A latest audit discovered 31 non-compliant organisations have been nonetheless awarded authorities contracts.
Making use of this provision wouldn’t be a serious burden on authorities procurement processes and would sign authorities assist for gender equality.
Unleashing the laws’s full potential
The gender pay hole reporting laws is simply a part of a broader bundle wanted to advertise gender equality — and there may be all the time extra work to be performed. However we consider these minimal modifications would have a big affect on closing Australia’s hole.
Now we have the chance to ramp up assist for the financial safety of ladies and we must always take it.
Learn extra:
Nationwide summits have their place — however what’s going to it actually take to attain equality for Australian girls?
The worldwide examine was funded by the UN Basis with further funding from the International Institute for Ladies’s Management ANU for the Australian case examine.
No further disclosures.