Latest gender pay gap data finds men earn $27,000 a year more than women

Latest gender pay gap data finds men earn $27,000 a year more than women in Australia. New data covering four million employees in Australia reveals there has been some progress towards workplace gender equality but stubborn gender pay gaps persist across all industries, occupations and management categories.

The second year of data collected by the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) covers 12,229 employers and represents over 40% of employees in Australia.

Top Reasons for the Gender Pay Gap

• An overall gender pay gap* of 24.0% on average full-time total remuneration (including bonuses, allowances and superannuation), representing a difference of $27,254 a year. The overall pay gap in favour of men has declined slightly since 2013-14.

• The top levels of management remain heavily male-dominated, with just 15.4% of CEO positions and 27.4% of key management personnel (KMP) positions held by women. Across all management categories, the proportion of women managers has grown from 35.9% to 36.5% since last year.

• Women work part-time at three times the rate of men. While women make up nearly half (48.8%) of the workforce covered by our dataset, full-time women only comprise one in five employees (20.3%). Just 6.3% of management roles overall are part-time, contributing to the lack of women in senior roles.

While the data confirms stubborn gender pay gaps and under-representation of women in management and leadership roles, it also reveals measurable progress on employer action in support of workplace gender equality.

The percentage of employers with a gender equality strategy has grown from 18.3% in 2013-14 to 20.6% in 2014-15. Increases were also recorded in the proportion of employers conducting gender pay gap analyses, introducing policies or strategies for flexible working and supporting employees experiencing domestic violence.

WGEA Director Libby Lyons said the data provided the first comprehensive time-series data on the status of gender equality in Australian workplaces.

“This data leads the world in providing a comprehensive picture of what’s happening for women and men across industries and all levels of the workforce,” said Ms Lyons.

“It is eye-opening to see the scale of the gender equality challenge. The data provides insights into where action is needed and a yardstick against which we can track progress. I’m encouraged to see pay gaps inching lower, women’s representation in leadership roles inching higher and leading employers start to dismantle the structural and cultural barriers to women and men’s equal participation at all levels of the workplace.”

The Agency has provided each reporting organisation with a tailored benchmark report that compares its performance on pay and management representation by gender against their industry. Ms Lyons urged all reporting organisations to download and review their benchmark report.

“While the national data gives us a snapshot of what’s happening around Australia, it’s up to each organisation to take action to build inclusive, diverse and successful businesses. Understanding their own performance on gender equality is an essential first step,” she said.

Your can download the Agency’s 2014-15 Gender equality scorecard at https://www.wgea.gov.au/sites/default/files/2014-15-WGEA_SCORECARD.pdf

You can also explore the data across 19 industries via the Agency’s new interactive data visualisation at data.wgea.gov.au