15 February 2022
Despite comprising the majority of frontline occupations during the pandemic, women still earnt on average $25,800 a year less than men in 2020/21.
The latest snapshot of the national gender pay gap showed only a tiny narrowing – just half a percentage point – with men twice as likely as women to be in the top earnings quartile, earning $120,000 and above.
Women comprise more than 50 per cent of the total workforce but are 50% more likely than men to be in the bottom quartile, earning $60,000 and less.
Over 85% of Australian employers still pay men more than women on average. Women were earning, on average, about 77% of men's earnings last year.
And industry boards continue to be dominated by men, with less than 20 per cent of CEOs being women.
Such are the key results from the Workplace Gender Equality Agency’s (WGEA) 2020-21 employer census which covered more than four million workers over the 12 months from 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2021.
Every industry has a gap that favours men,” the WGEA report said. Women also continue to dominate the unpaid care work.
“The 2020-21 data shows that industries and occupations, as well as working patterns, continue to be highly gender segregated,’’ the WGEA said. “Women bore some of the greatest impacts during the pandemic, with high concentrations of women in industries such as retail. Front-line employees – teachers, nurses, and shop assistants – are predominantly women accounting for approximately 60% of these workforces. Women also dominate precarious employment, comprising 57% of the casual workforce.’’
In 2020-21, only 2 out of 5 of all full-time employees were women.
In Health Care and Social Assistance and Education and Training, women account for over 60% of these workforces, but these industries both have a pay gap in favour of men (14.4% and 10.5% respectively). This is partially explained by occupational segregation (including leadership) within an industry. For example, women tend to be nurses, while men tend to be in leadership or surgeon roles which are highly paid.
ANMF (SA Branch) CEO/Secretary Adj Associate Professor Elizabeth Dabars AM said the gender pay disparity was “an insult to women everywhere and exposed ongoing systemic discrimination within the workforce’’.
“Women, including nurses, midwives and carers, have played a huge role in the fight against the pandemic. It is outrageous that they continue to be so undervalued financially,’’ Ms Dabars said.
“Governments must act to right this wrong. In aged care, again predominantly staffed by women, the ANMF and other unions have brought cases before the Fair Work Commission for a 25 per cent wage rise for this woefully underpaid sector.’’
The recent Royal Commission into Aged Care recommended significant wage increases for the sector, something the Morrison Government has ignored, and which aged care unions including the ANMF are currently campaigning for.
For Australian Council of Trade Unions president Michele O’Neil, the universal pay disparity working women face is unacceptable.
“Australia’s gender pay gap is a disgrace. And it’s globally shameful,” she said.
“It really hasn’t moved significantly under this Government. That’s because the Morrison Government likes to talk about listening to women, but refuses to do the things that will make a difference.”
“Australia is last on the global gender pay gap scorecard. That’s pretty extraordinary and that was looking at 11 indicators in Australia, France, South Africa, Spain, Sweden and the UK and we came at the bottom of that.
“So it really just shows that we’ve got a Government that won’t take the action that’s needed to shift this,” O’Neil told On the Job.
WEGA director Mary Woolridge admitted that the report card results were a huge disappointment and said that change was occurring “way too slow given the benefits we know gender equality brings men, women and communities, business and the economy as a whole.”
To close the gender pay gap, the union movement is calling for:
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Changes to our workplace laws that make it easier for women to win equal pay, and to reduce insecure work where women are overrepresented.
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Additional government funding to increase actual rates of pay in underpaid, feminised sectors such as nursing, Early Childhood Education and care and aged care, and ensure that NDIS funding protects the wages and job security of workers in the sector.
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Stronger workplace rights for parents and carers, including guaranteed and enforceable access to family friendly working arrangements and 52 weeks of Paid Parental Leave.
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Universal free childcare.