Gender equality is one of the most crucial issues at stake in Australia. Women make less than men across all ages. Further research by Mary Wooldridge, a workplace equity expert, shows that this represents a hopeful new approach. The gap can be drastically reduced through targeted employer interventions at key career junctures. The gap begins in women’s twenties. Yet, by the time they reach their fifties, it opens up alarmingly wide — a professional attribution to the trend of continuing inequities.
According to Wooldridge’s report, women managers make an astounding average of $85,600 less than male managers. This income inequality is particularly seen by the widening gap as men take up managerial positions beginning at age 34. When men gradually get more access to those same leadership teams as years go by, the pay difference becomes even greater.
The Financial Impact of the Gender Pay Gap
Perhaps the most shocking takeaway from the report is the huge disparity in earnings at different ages. Over their lifetimes, women on average make approximately $1.5 million less than men. In non-managerial roles, the gap is most pronounced. Men in their fifties now earn $52,000 a year more than similarly aged women, for example, leading to a jaw-dropping 31 percent pay gap.
In Australia, managers draw an average salary of $215,000. In comparison, non-managers take home less than half that, at an average of just over $103,000. Women have lost around $475,000 by their late fifties compared to their male counterparts. This alarming trend is one of many that calls for immediate, systemic changes to toxic workplaces.
“Our report shows how key employer interventions at critical times could reduce the gender pay gap and improve women’s ability to earn and save for retirement,” – Mary Wooldridge
The Role of Caregiving and Employment Patterns
Meraiah Foley is senior lecturer in work and organisational studies at the University of Sydney. She highlights the ways in which women still carry a greater share of the unpaid care workload. Many women absorb these additional caregiving burdens by taking on more part-time work, which adds to the pay gap.
Foley is quick to point out that outdated norms around caregiving and the workplace must change. Policies that encourage shared care responsibilities among heterosexual couples can help break down these expectations. They change the discussion as to who works and who actually provides care.
“Women are often locked out of managerial roles where you know the incomes are the highest because of those caregiving roles,” – Meraiah Foley
Recommendations for Change
In her report, Wooldridge calls on employers to take action to close these gaps. She encourages businesses to make moves that protect and uplift women. She stresses the need for policies to reflect men’s needs in achieving better flexibility and parental leave.
Another proposal includes “use it or lose it” daddy quotas. This strategy further incentivizes fathers to leave work and engage directly in the caregiving role. These kinds of measures would go a long way toward creating a more equitable workplace and advancing an end to the gender pay gap.
“We’re asking employers to change the story and shape the future,” – Mary Wooldridge
