Gender Pay Gap Essay

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Executive summary This report explores the gender pay gap in Australia, looking at why there is a gender pay gap and how that gender pay gap might be redressed. The gender pay gap is a complex issue with multiple causes. Therefore, its complexity defies a simple policy response. What is needed to rectify the gender pay gap is a bi-partisan approach across multiple sectors and throughout the wider community. This report identifies three key policy options supported Women’s Electoral Lobby. Those are: implementing educational systems to change the culture in the community, encouraging businesses to work with the Workplace Gender Equality Agency to develop direct action plans for equal pay and the government changing internal mechanisms to support pay equity. This report concludes with the policy recommendation that the government implement educational systems to change the culture in the community as this would have the most pervasive impact to redress the gender pay gap. The Gender Pay Gap as Human Rights Issue Australia has a gender pay gap. Women in Australia do not enjoy the same opportunities or levels of remuneration as men. Recently, Australia has seen an increase in the gender pay gap which must be addressed if Australia is to realise its international human rights obligations. What is the gender pay gap? The term gender pay gap refers to the difference between the average salary of men and women. This is calculated based on the average weekly ordinary time earning for full-time employees. Since 1990 the gender pay gap in Australia has remained within a range of between 15 and 18% (House of Representative Committee, 2009). It currently sits at approximately 17% (Women’s Electoral Lobby, 2014). Wh... ... middle of paper ... ... provide to imperative for the proper use of the existing policies. It is for these reasons that this paper recommends the implementation of educational systems to change community culture as the key policy option. Empowering women through education is indeed the secondary aspect of this policy option. Most importantly, introducing appropriate information educates the wider community. If the men and women who make up businesses, government and the media have an understanding and appreciation of the gender pay gap and women’s rights more broadly it will eventually translate to the eradication of the gender pay gap. This is a long road option, but as research has shown (Watson, 2010 and Kee, 2006) the best way to redress the gender pay gap is through the elimination of engrained discrimination and the best way to eliminate discrimination is through education.

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