Australia’s gender equality watchdog accuses business leaders of complacency over pay gap

Australia’s gender equality watchdog has accused business leaders of complacency over the pay gap between women and men.

Libby Lyons, head of the Federal Workplace Gender Equality Agency in Hobart. Picture: Luke Bowden

Australia’s gender equality watchdog has accused business leaders of complacency after the nation’s pay gap between women and men barely budged over the past six months.

The gender pay gap only went down by 0.1 per cent to 13.9 per cent in the past six months.

As of today, full-time male employees are paid $242.90 a week more than their female equivalents.

Workplace Gender Equality Agency director Libby Lyons said the latest results showed the need for business leaders to be held to greater account and that those who did not pull their weight on closing the pay gap valued women less than men.

“The latest gender pay gap result is actually quite disappointing. It is yet another indication that progress towards gender equality in our workplaces may be slowing,” she said.

“I am concerned that a degree of complacency is creeping back into the Australian business community. The danger signs are clear. I want to see far more action and accountability from employers and business leaders; we must pick up the pace to close the gender pay gap. Going backwards is not an option.

“As a business leader, if you accept that your organisation has a gender pay gap and you take no action to close it, you are effectively telling Australian women that the work they do is of less value than that of men.”

On average, women working full-time earned $1,508.50 a week while according to the WGEA’s new data, while men working full-time earned $1,751.40.

The pay gap has only decreased 0.2 per cent from this point last year.