The gender pay gap in Australia has improved slightly but women are still paid 18.6% lower than men

A government report revealed that the gender pay gap in Australia has shrunk slightly, but women still earn nearly a fifth of what men do. The biggest disparities are found in the mining, construction and finance industries.

The Workplace Gender Equality Agency's survey showed that 72.2% had a gender gap in favour of men, while 21.3% of employers had an equal gap between the two groups within +/-5%. The remaining employers had a gender gap in their favour.

The median wage gap in March 2024, which was 19% the previous year, was now 18.6%. About 56% of businesses reduced their pay gap.

Mary Wooldridge, Chief Executive of the Agency, said that if an employer's pay gap exceeds the +/-5% target range it means one gender will be more likely than the other to have a higher-paying role.

Macquarie Group, the largest listed company in Australia with a pay gap of 41.8% for men and Woodside, a gas producer with a 25.6% gap was amongst those with large gaps. Woodside's pay gap was down from 30.2% one year ago, while Macquarie did not have any data.

Both companies have female CEOs, but the large gaps persist.

Shemara Wikramanayake, Macquarie's CEO, said that the company did not want to force women into senior positions before they are ready.

She told the Australian Financial Review Business Summit that it would take "as long as it takes".

We won't force women into senior positions. "I think that would be counterproductive."

Woodside CEO Meg O'Neill stated that the firm's hiring has been gender-balanced for several years.

She said at the same conference that "the size of the workplace is so large... It's going take time for these women to get in the workforce and work their way up into positions of greater seniority."

Australia has passed legislation that will mandate the reporting of gender-pay gaps in companies with over 100 employees by 2023. This follows other countries such as the United Kingdom, which have already implemented mandatory reporting. Reporting by Alasdair Pa and Christine Chen, Sydney; editing by Edwina G Gibbs

(source: Reuters)