Promotion prospects, pay rises down for women

Only a third of women believe they are paid equally with men within their organisation.

HR tech leader HiBob has conducted research to highlight the gender disparity being felt in Australian businesses.

According to its Australian Women Professionals in the Workplace report, just 35 per cent of women believe that men and women are paid equally within their organisation, and more than a quarter (27 per cent) of women believe that men are being paid more than the women in their organisation.

Damien Andreasen, vice-president, APJ, at HiBob, said the findings come at an opportune time for businesses to act upon, given the government recently passed the Workplace Gender Equality Amendment Bill 2023. The legislation will require Australian businesses with 100 or more employees to publicly disclose their pay gap data. 

“Despite the push by the government for more pay transparency among Aussie businesses, the slow rate of progress indicates that more needs to be done to improve gender equality and equitable opportunities for growth,” Mr Andreasen said.

“It’s crucial for HR and business leaders to lead the way in closing gender pay gaps and fostering a gender diverse workforce.”

Less than 15 per cent of women surveyed said their organisation publishes pay gap information regularly, and less than one in five said their organisation publishes salary information and ranges for job descriptions.

The report also provided insight into job progression, finding only 22 per cent of women surveyed received a promotion in 2022, and 26 per cent had received a pay increment. Comparatively, in 2021, 26 per cent of women surveyed received a promotion, and 38 per cent received a pay increment.

Women surveyed said they are feeling increasingly insecure about their jobs. The report noted that 57 per cent cited the current economic downturn as a reason they’re worried about losing their job.