Finance sector holds largest gender pay gap

According to a study, titled Gender Equity Insights 2017: Inside Australia’s Gender Pay Gap – commissioned by Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC) and the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) – top-tier female managers in Australian organisations earn on average $93,000, 26.5 per cent, less per year compared to their male counterparts.

When comparing industries, the financial and insurance services sector emerged as the one with the largest full-time gender pay gap. Women employed full-time in this industry can expect to earn on average around $30,000, or 26 per cent, less each year in base salary than men in the same industry.

“This gap increases to more than $52,000, or 33 per cent, when taking into account additional remuneration, including superannuation, bonuses, and other discretionary pay," the report stated. 

WGEA director Libby Lyons said this report shows it is time to challenge the way we think about work.

“This report shows that regardless of the industry they choose to work in, women are worse off than men when working full-time,” Ms Lyons said.

“The analysis is clear: gender-balanced workplaces and gender-balanced leadership teams lower the gender pay gap.

“We must address the stereotypes dictating the work women and men ‘should’ do, if Australia is to meet the social and economic challenges in the decades ahead.”

Rebecca Cassells, the co-author of the report and BCEC principal research fellow, added that the study outcomes demonstrate the different ways women and men engage with the workforce and how their respective contributions are valued.

“Not only do female-dominated organisations tend to be lower paid, but this analysis shows that in workplaces with heavily female-dominated management teams there are large gender pay gaps in favour of men,” she said.

“It seems that where the men are few, they are more highly valued.”