Consequences of non-compliance

The Workplace Gender Equality Act 2012 (the Act) specifies a relevant employer’s obligations as well as the consequences for non-compliance. If an employer does not meet all compliance requirements, WGEA may:

• name the employer in a report to the Minister that is tabled in both Houses of Parliament
• name the employer publicly by electronic or other means
• not issue the employer with a Certificate of Compliance.

For further information, refer to Reporting Compliance. 

For all compliance requirements, except those that specifically relate to designated relevant employers (DRE), failure by a subsidiary to meet its compliance requirements will result in the parent company being non-compliant. The parent company is ultimately responsible for the subsidiary and therefore, liable to be named as non-compliant. 

DREs have additional compliance requirements to meet related to Gender Equality Standards and Gender Equality Targets requirements. Failure to meet these additional compliance requirements will result in the DREs non-compliance. This will not affect the compliance status of other related entities in the organisational structure.  

For further information, refer to:

• Corporate Structures
• Reporting Compliance. 

Relevant employers that do not meet their compliance requirements will not receive a Certificate of Compliance from WGEA. 

For information on how this might affect the ability to tender for contracts, receive Commonwealth grants or other financial assistance, refer to Government tenders.

If you are a private sector relevant employer and have received a Section 19A notice, this means you did not lodge your Report by the 31 May deadline (or within an approved extension period). Under the Act, you are now considered non-compliant.

What this means for you

• You have 14 days from the date of the notice to respond.
• The purpose of this notice is to give you a final opportunity to lodge your report before the reporting program closes on 31 October.
• Lodging your report is the best way to avoid being named as non-compliant.

What you need to do

• Lodge your Report immediately.
• If you are unable to do so, provide a reasonable excuse to WGEA.
  • Inform WGEA if your organisation or corporate structure's employee count has fallen below 80 for 6 months or more of the last reporting period.
  • Inform WGEA of any changes to your organisation's contact details.
  • Inform WGEA of any changes to your organisation's structure.
  • Inform WGEA if you have ceased trading or are in liquidation or receivership.

For further information, refer to the Non-compliance notification process. 

These steps apply to private sector relevant employers.

1. Initial notice (Section 19A)

• WGEA will notify the employer of their non-compliance (section 19A notice) and request that the employer:
  • lodge their Report before program closure (31 October), or
  • provide a reasonable excuse to WGEA.
• Please note:
  • The employer is given 14 days to provide additional information explaining the circumstances and reasons for not lodging on time.
  • If the employer lodges their Report before 31 October, no further compliance action will be taken.

2. Assessment of Employer’s Response

• If the employer provides a reasonable excuse, they will remain non-compliant but will not be publicly named.
• If the employer fails to respond or does not provide a reasonable excuse, WGEA will proceed to the next step or may exercise its discretion not to name the employer.

3. Final Warning (Section 19D)

• WGEA will inform the employer of its intention to publicly name them.
• The employer has 28 days to provide written representations explaining why they should not be named.

4. Final decision

• After considering the employer’s written response, WGEA will decide whether to publicly name them.
• Then, the employer’s non-compliance status will generally be published on WGEA’s website.
   

To view the legislative authority guiding these notices, please refer to WGEA's legislation.

WGEA assesses an employer’s response and context before making a final decision on public naming.

WGEA considers the employer’s response (alongside information regarding the employer’s context, size, compliance history, etc.) in deciding whether to take compliance action in respect of a relevant employer.

Where a relevant employer is repeatedly non-compliant, WGEA is more likely to publicly name them as non-compliant. WGEA is unlikely to accept the following reasons as a reasonable excuse for non-compliance:

• the employer was busy during the lodgement period
• there were changes to the CEO or other key personnel during the lodgement period
• corporate structural changes, such as selling a subsidiary or whole group.