Service Charter

The Service Charter outlines our service standards to our reporting organisations and the general public. It provides details on how to contact us and provide feedback to us.

This Charter applies to all ongoing and non-ongoing Workplace Gender Equality Agency (the Agency, WGEA) employees.

Reporting and review

The Agency’s Annual Report will summarise adherence to our service standards in the Charter and the Charter will be formally reviewed periodically.

About the Agency

The Workplace Gender Equality Agency is an Australian Government statutory authority created by the Workplace Gender Equality Act 2012. 

The Agency is charged with promoting and improving gender equality in Australian workplaces. 

We work collaboratively with employers providing advice, practical tools and education to help improve gender equality performance. Our staff are workplace gender equality specialists and are able to provide industry-specific advice.  

We also work with employers to help them comply with the reporting requirements under the Workplace Gender Equality Act 2012. This reporting framework aims to encourage measures that improve gender equality outcomes and has been designed to reduce the regulatory burden on business.

Please read more about the Agency by visiting the page What we do. 

We have a range of channels for communication with us. The office is open between 9.00am and 5.00pm (AEST time) Monday to Friday and during the report submission period these hours are extended.  We are not open on public holidays.

Support requests

Support request to the Agency can be submitted by logging into the WGEA Portal. These requests are handled directly by our advisers, often with minimal contact required from you.

This channel is ideal for requests of support for:

• CEO changes
• Organisation changes
• Compliance reporting
• Employer of choice
• Public sector reporting
• General enquiries
• Technical issues

Live chat

During business hours from the WGEA Portal, you can instantly contact one of our advisers through the live chat function. This channel is ideal for questions or requests that require a quick and simple answer. You do not need to be logged in to use this function.

Website

From the WGEA website, you can use the contact form on the Contact Us page. This channel is for general enquiries such as:

• Help with educational resources
• Data requests
• Media requests
• Commenting on a Compliance Report

Email

You can also use email to contact us at support@wgea.gov.au with a request or enquiry. This channel is for requests or questions that are simple but may require multiple communications between you and the adviser.

We conduct ourselves in accordance with the Australian Public Service Values and are committed to upholding the Australian Public Service Code of Conduct.

Our commitment to you

• we will be honest, ethical and professional  
• We will be helpful and courteous in our dealings with you 
• We will respond to you promptly through our phone and web service 
• we aim to respond to phone enquires, support requests and emails within five business days. However, with significant demand in the peak reporting submission period, 90% of our responses will be provided within 12 business days 
• we aim to respond to data requests within ten business days 
• we will respond to requests for information in a manner that is easy to understand and is accurate in its content 
• we will be transparent about our processes 
• we will comply with our obligations to you under administrative law such as the Privacy Act and the Freedom of Information Act 
• we will provide clear and timely information or advice concerning issues relating to gender equality in workplaces, and the Workplace Gender Equality Act 2012 and how it relates to your organisation 
• we will refer you to an appropriate contact if we are unable to assist you. 

Our service standards:

If you email, write to us or submit a support request through the WGEA Portal, you can expect:

• response within 5 business days 
• if your query is complex, we will provide you with an interim response to inform you of our progress and if your query is during the peak reporting submission period, we will provide a response within 12 business days 

If you phone us, you can expect:

• a response immediately, if possible
• a response within 5 business days if we are unable to respond immediately
• if your query is complex, we will provide you with an interim response to inform you of our progress
• voicemail messages are attended to immediately if possible or within 5 business days if we are unable to respond immediately
• if your query is during the peak reporting submission period we will provide a response within 12 business days 

If you message us via live chat through the WGEA Portal, you can expect:

• a response immediately if possible
• if an immediate response on live chat is not possible, we will convert your query into a support case and we will provide a response via email or phone within three business days

if your query is complex, we will provide you with an interim response to inform you of our progress

If you use the WGEA website or WGEA Portal, you can expect:

• our contact details to be easy to find
• our content to be accessible and simple to navigate

Feedback – complaints, suggestions and compliments

Feedback includes complaints, suggestions and compliments, or any other information about our service delivery. 

If you have a complaint, please provide us with the opportunity to resolve it in the first instance, before escalating the matter.  

If providing feedback, please explain the issue clearly and if you have a suggestion as to “a fix” please provide it, as it will greatly assist us in solving your issue.  All complaints and issues raised will be handled in a fair, confidential and responsive manner. 

Please feel free to use any of the communications channels mentioned above for any feedback to us.