The Financial Services Institute of Australia (FINSIA) has published new biannual gender research, which finds pay equity and transparency continues to plague the industry.

 

Finsia’s Chief Executive, Russell Thomas, says the issue continues to dominate the industry.

 

“At 31.3%, the gender pay gap in the financial and insurance services sector is one of the widest in Australia yet Finsia’s latest research shows that men and women continue to respond differently to the question of whether their organisations are transparent about pay parity,” Mr Thomas said.

 

The report found an alarming 72.5 per cent of women believe their organisations are not transparent about pay parity, while only 49.8 per cent of men agree.

 

The report also found that 64.2 per cent of men believe that women are fairly represented in the sector, while only 39.1 per cent of women agreed.

 

“This is another interesting finding because data about the sector indicates that only 34.1% of managers and 7.4% of CEOs in the financial services industry are women. While some organisations are performing well in this regard it’s not what the analysis of the industry as a whole tells us,” Mr Thomas said.

 

However, Mr Thomas said that there was an increasing commitment among both women and men to engage with the issue because of its impact on employment practices and the wider culture of the organisation.

 

“The facts speak for themselves.  It is important that clear and consistent reporting frames the industry’s discussion about gender diversity. The reporting regimes administered by ASX and EOWA are critical to this task. Differences in perception can only be bridged with information informing honest dialogue,” Mr Thomas said.