On average, Australian women earn 78 cents for every dollar a man makes, looking at the comprehensive numbers.
The latest Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) report released on March 4th shows that while the gender wage gap in Australia is shrinking at a slower pace, five Australian companies are closing the gap.
On average, Australian women earn just 78 cents for every dollar a man makes, earning a gap of $28,425 in annual salary.
This sum makes it difficult for many women to achieve the same financial security as men.
The report reveals that 56% of employers have reduced gender pay gaps over the past year, suggesting that change is possible but slow.
The national average gender pay gap is 21.8%, but the median total compensation gap is excellent at 8.9%, a 0.2% decrease from last year.
WGEA CEO Mary Wooldridge acknowledged the challenge but provided a note of optimism.
Related Stories
“That’s a huge difference, but we see positive signs,” she said.
She also analyzed gender pay gaps and highlighted a significant increase in employers consulting with employees to understand the underlying causes.
“It is promising that a significant increase in employers is working to understand what they understand gender pay gaps beyond unequal wages,” Wooldridge said.
Gender disparities pay wages across the industry
Men are more likely to be in the most earning roles, while women are concentrated in the lowest income quartiles in 17 of the 19 industries.
A significant 25% of employers in women-controlled industries report gender pay gaps above the national midpoint of 12.1%.
Many employers in sectors such as healthcare, education and retail mean that many of the highest wage gaps are industries where women are overrepresented. In these sectors, women often play a lower wage role, but relatively many men take on higher wage positions.
For example, in healthcare, employers with gender pay gaps above 12.1% are usually found in pathology, dentistry, and health services.
Meanwhile, sectors such as elderly care and childcare report small gaps.
Conversely, 6% of employers in the female-dominated sector pay women more than men. These employers are often small organizations with low overall wages, usually found in healthcare, social support and education.
Virgin, Qantas pays the gap
For the second year in a row, WGEA, some of Australia’s largest companies, reports that 72% of employers still pay men more than women.
Virgin Australia leads in a gender pay gap of 45.2%, with Qantas closely followed by 41.2%.
Other major companies such as Healius Ltd, Premier Investments and Sonic Healthcare report a gap of around 36%, with Macquarie Group at 30.3%.
In the banking sector, the average gap between Commonwealth Bank and Westpac is 22.4%, with National Australia Bank at 19% and ANZ at 18.8%.
However, major companies like Woolworths, Coles, Wesfarmers and BHP are making improvements, with gender salaries gaps below the national average of 21.8%.
Woolworths holds a 10.5% gap, while Coles Group is 6.1%.
Previously challenged data
Senator Malcolm Roberts, a country’s country, previously questioned the agency’s claims, claiming that their data did not compare how much they were paid by men and women who were doing the same job in the same company.
In response to the previous report, he worked on X (formerly Twitter), describing the data as “completely misleading,” adding that he didn’t take into account factors such as job choices, hours of work, overtime hours, and job risk.
He further noted that “as WGEA admitted to me, it has made fewer women illegal than men for decades.”
He also questioned the reliability of the WGEA, saying, “Since 78% of the WGEA’s workforce is women, we should not give anyone lectures on gender equality while achieving ourselves.”
Similarly, Senator Matt Canavan previously argued that such reports merely breed res and divisions.
“Gender pay reports are useless data because they don’t even correct basic differences like working hours,” he said in 2024.
Impact of legislative measures
The WGEA report updated its demand for stronger legislative measures to address gender pay gaps.
“The latest WGEA data reminds us that women continue to be undervalued and underpaid in our society,” said Sen. Larissa Waters, Greens leader.
She urged the government to act quickly, especially with the imminent federal elections.
Australian Trade Union Council President Michelle O’Neal joined the criticism and pointed to a recent announcement by opposition leader Peter Dutton that he would limit civil servant work if elected to parliament.
O’Neill said these policies disproportionately affect women who often interact with caregiving responsibilities and work.
“Government policies have a direct impact on gender pay gaps,” she said.
