Productivity Commission report shows little improvement in Victoria Police’s gender diversity
Despite efforts for greater gender balance Victoria Police still has one of the lowest ratios of female officers in the country. So what’s going wrong?
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Fewer than a third of Victoria Police officers are women, the worst ratio of any state except Western Australia, despite efforts to improve the force’s gender balance.
New data from the Productivity Commission shows 32.9 per cent of Victoria Police staff are women, below the national average of 34.1 per cent.
The proportion of women in the force increased slightly from 30.2 per cent in 2013, despite a landmark Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission investigation that exposed widespread sexual harassment and spurred major reforms.
The Productivity Commission’s government services report, due to be released today, also reveals:
MORE than a quarter of Victorians feel unsafe alone at night on public transport and walking in their suburbs — the worst rate of any state;
HALF of Victorians think illegal drugs are a problem in their area; and
IN the past six months, 56.4 per cent of Victorians admitted to driving at least 10km/h over the speed limit, while 7.7 per cent said they drove while over the blood alcohol limit and 4.8 per cent drove without a seatbelt.
The report showed Victoria Police had 19,641 operational staff in 2018-19, more than any other state, after a massive recruitment drive. But a focus on increasing the number of women had not substantially changed the gender profile.
VEOHRC last year released its third and final report on Victoria Police’s culture, which revealed one in four women had been sexually harassed at police stations across the state in the past three years.
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But five years after VEOHRC was asked to investigate the force’s culture by former chief commissioner Ken Lay, half of Victoria Police doubted their senior leaders were taking the problem seriously.
Victoria Police subsequently accepted several far-reaching new strategies to promote women, including giving recruits more time to meet physical standards, enabling more flexible work, allowing lactation breaks and encouraging men to take parental leave.
The force also committed to only employing, promoting and retaining leaders who “demonstrate a commitment to gender equity”.
Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton has committed to achieving equal numbers of men and women in Victoria Police by the end of the decade.
Originally published as Productivity Commission report shows little improvement in Victoria Police’s gender diversity