Media release

A new report shows that although progress has been made in recent years to reduce the gender pay gap in Australia, it will still take more than a quarter of a century to close it.

The Workplace Gender Equality Agency announced today that that national gender pay gap has dropped to 13.4%, a decline of 0.6 percentage points over the last six months.

The Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) announced today the list of 2020-22 WGEA Employer of Choice for Gender Equality (EOCGE) citation holders.

Data released today shows a worrying decline in employer action on gender equality prior to the impact of COVID-19.

To mark this year’s Equal Pay Day on 28 August 2020, the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) has calculated the date of each Australian state and territory’s Equal Pay Day.

The new national gender pay gap for the six months to May 2020 is 14.0%. This year, Equal Pay Day will be on 28 August 2020, marking the 59 additional days from the end of the previous financial year that women, on average, must work to earn the same as men earnt that year.

Research released by the Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC) and the Agency reveals a strong causal relationship between an increase in the number of women in key decision-making positions and subsequent improvements in company performance.

In the lead-up to the announcement of the 2020 Queen’s Birthday Order of Australia awards, community movement Honour a Woman and the Workplace Gender Equality Agency are encouraging all state and territory governments to develop and embed gender equality-focused nomination processes for the Australian Honours to ensure women receive due recognition for their essential work.

More Australian employers are taking action to promote gender equality in their organisations but the pace of change is modest and uneven according to data released today by the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA).

119 organisations have received the citation this year, which recognises employer commitment and best practice in promoting gender equality in Australian workplaces.