The gender pay gap ‘widens with every promotion’ in tech

After the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) released its latest batch of data, employers and industries have been looking at potential strategies to address these discrepancies.

HR Leader recently spoke to Ellis Taylor, director and head of partnerships at Real Time Australia, about the recent release of the gender pay gap results. Some of the overall findings from this reporting showed that nearly three in four (72 per cent) of all Australian employers pay men more, on average, than women – with men taking home $28,425 more on average per year.

Taylor touched on the prevalent gender pay gap in the tech sector and how it varies across different career stages, such as entry-level, mid-level, and senior positions.

“The gender pay gap in tech isn’t just a gap – it’s a chasm that widens with every promotion,” said Taylor.

“Entry-level women already start behind, earning just 72¢ to the male dollar. By mid-career, the gap deepens, with women in tech making an average of $15k less per year (not to mention the Employee Share Option Plan (ESOP) disparity).”

“The pay disparity only becomes more severe as senior women rise to tech leadership positions and earn up to 30 per cent less, thanks to inequities in stock, bonuses, and promotion velocity.”

According to Taylor, the tech sector “prides itself” on being innovative, claiming it should be leading the way in discovering ways to fix pay equity in the workplace – listing various approaches that could be implemented.

“Tech prides itself on innovation; therefore, [it] should be leading the way to fixing pay equity and raising the bar instead of just closing the gap. Addressing these discrepancies requires a multifaceted approach,” he said.

Reverse salary negotiation: “Nothing upsets a candidate more than being low-balled after finishing rounds of interviews and they’ve bought into your company and your culture. Instead of asking candidates what they want to earn (which can reinforce past pay inequities), companies must set and disclose a competitive salary range upfront,” Taylor said.

“This puts the onus on the hiring managers to justify why someone should earn less, rather than the candidate having to argue why they deserve more. Traditionally, the current status quo favours more ‘confident’ males in this negotiation.”

Pay transparency as a competitive advantage: “Go beyond posting salary bands by publicly releasing annual gender pay gap reports and highlighting progress. Companies that demonstrate fair pay practices will not only attract top female talent but also create pressure on competitors to do the same,” Taylor said.

Flip the script on promotions: “Women are often held back by outdated promotion criteria that favour ‘potential’ in men but ‘proven performance’ in women. Businesses need to flip the mode and ask managers to justify why a high-performing woman is not being promoted rather than the other way around.”

Bias training: “Providing unconscious bias training for hiring managers and decision-makers is essential in helping mitigate biases that contribute to pay disparities,” Taylor said.

Taylor doesn’t mince words when speaking on the prevalence of the gender pay gap in the tech sector, saying: “The gender gap in tech isn’t just a problem; it’s a self-perpetuating cycle of inequity.”