14. Reporting changes 2022-23

This page contains a detailed overview of the changes to WGEA's reporting templates for employers submitting a report in 2023.

Changes to WGEA's Portal are summarised here.

Some changes have been made to WGEA’s reporting templates for reporting in 2023. These give more detailed instructions on completing them, introduce some new voluntary questions and clarify the meaning and intent of some of the questions in the questionnaire. See below for more detail.

• Reporting templates can be downloaded from the home page of each programs reporting guide from the menu on the left side of the page.

For detail on the changes to the WGEA Portal for 2023, refer to What has changed in the WGEA Portal for 2023? | WGEA

Note: The Federal Parliament recently passed a package of legislative reforms to the Workplace Gender Equality Act 2012. As a result of these reforms, some of the items noted as voluntary in the workplace profile and reporting questionnaire will become mandatory for 2024 Gender Equality Reports. For further details on how the changes will affect reporting, please refer to our webpage - WGEA reforms: A roadmap to closing the gender pay gap | WGEA

Levels to the CEO column

WGEA has removed the ‘Levels to the CEO’ column from both the Workplace Profile templates to reduce the time it takes to report. WGEA has also provided more detailed instructions in the templates, to help users complete these components of the submission.

Note: Employers in global structures with managers who previously used the ‘Levels to the CEO’ column to indicate a manager reporting overseas (who are more senior than the domestic CEO) should allocate a new manager category of ‘OSM’ in column D of the workplace profile.

Reporting multiple industry codes in one submission

The industry checking process has been improved for employers who report more than one industry code in a single submission. For each industry confirmed for a submission:

• Workplace Profile – you must ensure you use each industry code in your file(s) uploaded
• Workforce Management Statistics (more than one ABN) – you must ensure that you use each unique subdivision at least once across all of the files uploaded, you do not need to duplicate the industry worksheet tab.
• Workforce Management Statistics (single ABN) – you must duplicate the industry worksheet tab (but not any data you have entered onto the tab) for each unique subdivision reported for the ABN.

Note: The subdivision is the first two digits of an ANZSIC four digit industry code confirmed at the start of your report submission.

The key changes to the reporting questionnaire for 2023 reporting are to introduce some new voluntary questions, change a previously voluntary question to a mandatory question and make some minor changes to clarify language and the intent of a question. Key changes are outlined below. As this is a summary only and to help you prepare for reporting, we recommend you review the full questionnaire offline here: Offline Templates

Previous voluntary question now a mandatory question

The previously voluntary question about whether you have shared previous Executive Summary and Industry Benchmark reports with the governing body is mandatory for reporting in 2023.

New voluntary questions

New voluntary questions have been included which relate to:

• Target setting – a new (voluntary) response option on whether your organisation has targets in place to have a gender balanced governing body (at least 40% men and 40% women).
• Diversity data – voluntary questions asking if your organisation:
  • has a formal policy and/or formal strategy on diversity and inclusion for your organisation’s governing body and
  • collects data on certain dimensions of the identities of its employees, as well as for members of its governing body.
• Term limits for the Chair and/or Members of your organisation’s governing body.
• Sexual harassment -  a number of new voluntary questions have been included which cover:
  • a formal policy and/or strategy on the prevention and response to sexual harassment, harassment on the ground of sex or discrimination, including:
    1. whether it is a standalone policy or strategy
    2. how frequently the policy and/or strategy is reviewed and approved by the governing body or the CEO or equivalent.
    3. whether it includes certain items
  • whether training on the prevention of sexual harassment, harassment on the ground of sex or discrimination is provided to specified groups (in addition to those already included), being the governing body and other people in the workplace (e.g. contractors, consultants volunteers, interns). Also, whether training includes specific matters.
  • whether the governing body and CEO or equivalent explicitly communicate their expectations on safety, respectful and inclusive workplace conduct and, if so, when
  • whether your organisation’s workplace health and safety risk management process includes specific matters. Also, the actions/responses which have been put in place as part of your organisation’s risk management process.
  • the supports your organisation provides workers who are involved in and affected by sexual harassment.
  • the options your organisation has for workers who wish to disclose or raise concerns about incidents relating to sexual harassment or similar misconduct.
  • whether and what data your organisation collects on sexual harassment in your workplace 
  • whether your organisation reported on prevalence data publicly during the reporting period
  • whether your organisation reports on sexual harassment to the governing body and management (CEO, KMP, HOB) and how frequently. Also, whether certain items are included in these reports.

Note: Based on recent legislative reforms to the Workplace Gender Equality Act 2012, most of the new voluntary questions related to sexual harassment will become mandatory for 2024 Gender Equality Reports. For further details on how the changes will affect reporting, please refer to our webpage - WGEA reforms: A roadmap to closing the gender pay gap | WGEA .

• Other leave measures - whether your organisation provides employees paid leave for fertility treatments, menstruation / endometriosis, menopause, gender affirmation and/or other circumstances (in addition to personal/sick leave).

Amend language and clarify meaning of questions

There have been some minor amendments to language and to clarify the meaning and intent of some of the questions. The key changes include:

• In the ‘Flexible working’ section:
  • changed the terminology from 'telecommuting' to 'remote working/working from home'.
  • extended the period referred to in the voluntary question about whether there has been an overall increase in the approval of formal flexible working arrangements. It is now the period between the 2021-22 and the 2022-23 reporting periods.
• In the ‘Employee support’ section:
  • slightly amended the meaning of 'equally shared parental leave policies’.
  • clarified how to respond if your organisation specifically provides maternity leave and/or paternity leave.
  • clarified that references to ‘sexual harassment’ mean ‘sexual harassment, harassment on the ground of sex or discrimination’. We have included definitions for ‘sexual harassment’, ‘harassment on the ground of sex’ and ‘discrimination’. We have amended the reference to a formal policy and/or formal strategy to the ‘prevention and response to sexual harassment, harassment on the ground of sex or discrimination’.