More than 60% of big companies have outsized gender pay gaps
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The news: Australia’s Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) has published company level data for the first time, revealing wide gender pay gaps at some of the country’s largest employers.
The numbers: Of the nearly 5000 employers included in the survey, 62% had a median gender pay gap of more than 5% favouring men. A further 30% were in the target range, or below 5% in the pay gap between men and women.
Half had a gender pay gap bigger than 9.1%. Average pay gaps by company, which are likely to skew higher for some businesses due to executives and senior managers on significant pay packets, has not yet been released.
Date released late last year found an average gender pay gap across Australia of 21.7%, equivalent to women earning $26,393 less than men annually.
The context: WGEA considers pay gaps within the plus or minus 5% range to be neutral, meaning they do not favour either gender. However, the data showed gender pay gaps differ widely across industry types.
Male-dominated industries have the largest gender pay gaps, with 90% or more employers in mining, electricity, water and waste services, and financial and insurance services industries having a gender pay gap favouring men.
Australian airlines Qantas, Jetstar and Virgin reported a median pay gap of 37%, 43.7% and 41.7% respectively. Banks also reported significant pay gaps in favour of men, with median pay gap of 29.9% at CBA, 28.5% at Westpac and 18.8% at NAB.
What they said: “The time for talk and excuses is over. Change takes action and employers need to double down on ensuring all employees are fairly represented and equally valued and rewarded in their workplace,” WGEA CEO Mary Wooldridge said.
The source: WGEA data
