Australia’s gender pay gap and women’s representation in leadership positions have improved, according to the latest Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) report.
Released today, Australia’s Gender Equality Scorecard for 2024-25 reveals the gender pay gap has narrowed from 21.8 per cent in 2024 to 21.1 per cent this year.
This 0.7 per cent drop means for every $1 men earn, women earn, on average, 78.9 cents, which adds up to a $28,356 gender difference in a year.
Every state and territory in Australia reduced their gender pay gap this year, with Western Australia recording the largest gap (28.8 per cent) and Tasmania the smallest (10.6 per cent).
The scorecard also shows a slight improvement in women in leadership roles and on Boards.
While there was no change in the number of women as CEOs, at 22 per cent, this year the number of women in key management roles rose 2 per cent to 39 per cent, and 43 per cent of managers are women, which is a 1 per cent increase.
However, the gender pay at the top increased from 1.2 per cent to 26.per cent in the past months, as seen by CEO salaries reported by all employers to WGEA for only the second time in 2025.
Women CEOs earn $83,493 less on average than men in base salary every year. When superannuation, bonuses, overtime and additional payments are included this difference increases to $185,335.
Women hold 33 per cent of Board seats (up 1 per cent) and 21 per cent of Chair roles (up 1 per cent), but nearly a quarter of Boards still have no women.
These slight improvements in the gender pay gap and leadership representation signals employers are making progress towards meeting their employees’ expectations of fair workplaces, says WGEA CEO Mary Wooldridge.
“Reductions to the pay gap and modest improvements towards gender-balance in leadership roles are underpinned by more employers having policies and taking action that can break down gender norms about leadership and caring responsibilities, as well as improving employee safety,” said Wooldridge.
“Employers are shifting the dial towards fairness which is helping to close the gender pay gap.”
Aiming to accelerate progress, new legislative reforms include a requirement for large employers to select and commit to achieve gender equality targets from 2026.
“WGEA’s 2025 Gender Equality Scorecard also highlights opportunities for employers to improve by taking comprehensive actions based on data and evidence,” Ms Wooldridge said.
Three key areas of opportunity for employers, highlighted in the 2025 scorecard, include ensuring workplace safety, improving gender-balance in the organisation and on boards, as well as dismantling stereotypes about leadership, work and caring.
While 99 per cent of employers have a policy to prevent sexual harassment, data shows just 60 per cent of employers had their policy reviewed by the Board. About one-third of Boards receive no training in this regard and one in 4 Boards have no data about sexual harassment prevalence reported to them.
“With positive duty requirements to prevent and eliminate unlawful behaviours such as sexual harassment it’s essential Boards are actively engaged and ensuring the workplace is safe for all employees,” Wooldridge said.
When it comes to parental leave, data shows progress on men’s uptake, which has increased from 3 per cent to 20 per cent in the last year.
“Employers should review their policies to ensure men have equal access to parental leave and flexible working arrangements. This should be supported by a culture that encourages and enables both men and women to use this leave,” Wooldridge said.
The report also looks at discretionary payments, such as bonuses and overtime payments, to analyse how inequality exists between women’s and men’s average earnings. The data shows men earn 60 per cent more, on average, than women in these types of payments.
Wooldridge says “WGEA encourages all employers to undertake a comprehensive gender pay gap analysis and as part of that review performance pay structures and access to overtime, to ensure they are fair and accessible for everyone.”
“This should be an annual process, even if salaries are set by awards or market rates.”