Australia’s gender pay gap is at its lowest ever level, but still sees women paid significantly less than men.

New data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has revealed a historic decrease in Australia's gender pay gap, which has now hit its lowest point ever at 13 per cent. 

The average annual earnings for women are still trailing behind men by $13,120 despite the 0.3 per cent improvement from the statistics released in February.

The ABS report highlights that, on average, women in Australia earn 87 cents for every dollar earned by men. 

The decline in the gender pay gap can be attributed to improvements in the income of women employed in traditionally lower-paid sectors, such as education, training, and healthcare.

Despite this encouraging progress, Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) CEO Mary Wooldridge warns against complacency. 

She says Australia cannot afford to slow its progress. 

“This momentum is a springboard for renewed action for employers to prioritise gender equality and ensure that we continue to work towards closing the gender pay gap,” she said.

The ABS findings reveal that across all industries, in every state and territory of the country, women consistently earn less than men. 

Although the gender pay gap saw an increase in 10 out of 18 industries over the past six months, certain sectors, like construction, demonstrated substantial progress with a remarkable 3.4 percentage point decrease. 

With the upcoming Equal Pay Day on August 25th, which symbolises the additional days women work to earn what men do on average, the WGEA urges employers to consider that “what's missing matters”.

Wooldridge has called for decisive action to challenge prevailing stereotypes and barriers that obstruct women's progress.

Calculating the gender pay gap is straightforward, measuring the difference between average earnings of men and women as a percentage of men's pay. 

This remains consistent, though ‘pay’ definitions can vary, encompassing base salary, bonuses, and more.

WGEA displays two gender pay gap figures due to data source differences: WGEA's Employer Census and ABS's Average Weekly Earnings Survey. All datasets consistently highlight a pay gap favouring men.

Starting in 2024, WGEA will disclose employer gender pay gaps for over 100-employee entities, using mean and median values. CEO pay impact is managed through both metrics and quartiles, ensuring accurate comparisons.

ABS's national gender pay gap calculation considers full-time weekly base salaries, excluding overtime, certain pay elements, junior, and part-time workers.

Non-binary employee data is not in the calculation yet due to small sample sizes, with WGEA striving to include them while prioritising privacy and inclusivity. Understanding these methods drives gender pay equality efforts.