Improving workplace gender equality

Gender pay gaps for nearly 5,000 Australian private sector employers have been published for the first time.

The results show that:

• 30% of employers have a median gender pay gap between the target range of -5% and +5%
• 62% of median employer gender pay gaps are over 5% and in favour of men
• The rest (8%) are less than -5% and in favour of women
• Across all employers, 50% have a gender pay gap of over 9.1%.

It comes after Labor’s reforms passed the Parliament last year, a key driver for employer action to speed up progress to close the gender pay gap in the workplace.

The Minister for Women, Senator Katy Gallagher, said the publication of employer gender pay gaps is a pivotal moment for gender equality in Australia.

For all employers, the publication of their gender pay gaps and workforce composition is an opportunity to assess their performance on gender equality and take action to improve it.

There is significant variation in the gender pay gap across different industries, ranging from the Construction Industry where the mid-point employer gender pay gap is 31.8% to the Accommodation and Food Services Industry with a mid-point employer gender pay gap of 1.9%.

Who needs to complete an annual WGEA report?

All private sector businesses with 100 or more employees are required to complete their WGEA report between 1 April and 31 May of each year. The report must provide data from the previous year for the date ranges of 1 April through to 31 March.

For more information about who needs to report and how to complete the WGEA report, please click:

Even if your company has fewer than 100 employees, it is important to be proactive in identifying potential inequalities within the workplace. Conducting a payroll audit and internal salary benchmarking are important steps to take.

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Companies’ gender pay gaps are available on the Workplace Gender Equality Agency website: WGEA Data Explorer | WGEA