The Workplace Gender Equality Amendment (Closing the Gender Pay Gap) Act 2023 (Cth) (Act) recently passed through both Houses of Parliament. This marks a significant step forward in the effort to improve transparency, accountability, and accelerated action towards achieving gender equality and closing the gender pay gap in Australia.
The legislative reforms, and respective legislative instruments, [1] fulfil 6 of the 10 recommendations that were made in the 2021 Review of the Workplace Gender Equality Act 2012 (Cth) (Review) to accelerate progress.
Specifically, the changes introduce new mandatory reporting requirements for certain employers and gives the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (Agency) legislative authority to publish employer gender pay gap information in an effort to drive targeted action and encourage change within organisations.
Who do the changes apply to?
Currently, all “relevant employers” are required to report annually to the Agency against specific “gender equality indicators” (GEIs). “Relevant employers” are:
- registered higher education providers that are employers; and
- private sector employers with 100 or more employees in Australia.
From 1 January 2023, the Act will now apply to an additional “relevant employer”, being Commonwealth public sector organisations that are employers with 100 or more employees in Australia.
What are the key changes?
Below are some of the key changes implemented by the Act.
The Workplace Gender Equality (Gender Equality Standards) Instrument 2023 (Cth) and the Workplace Gender Equality (Matters in relation to Gender Equality Indicators) Instrument 2023 (Cth). These remade instruments commenced on 6 February 2023; however, the terms of their predecessors, being the Workplace Gender Equality (Matters in relation to Gender Equality Indicators) Instrument 2013 (No. 1) and the Workplace Gender Equality (Minimum Standards) Instrument 2014, will continue to apply to the current reporting period.
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Existing obligations
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New obligations
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When will it happen?
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The Agency only has authority to publish gender pay gaps at industry level – for example, for the mining, financial and insurances services, and health care industries. |
The Agency will have legislative authority to publish gender pay gaps at an employer level, and across quartiles of employees, including CEO remuneration. However, there is a one-year transition period before reporting on CEO remuneration commences. The first release of gender pay gaps by the Agency will only capture employer gender pay gaps by median and remuneration quartiles. After CEO remuneration data is included, the gender pay gaps will be published by mean, median and remuneration quartiles. |
From early 2024 (covering the 1 April 2022 – 31 March 2023 reporting period) |
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Employers are mandated to report annually to the Agency against the following GEIs specified in the Act:
Although a high volume of employers already voluntarily report to the Agency on items beyond the current GEIs, including employee age, location, and CEO remuneration, it is not mandatory for employers to provide this information to the Agency. |
As part of the matters that must be detailed in relation to GEI 1 and GEI 3, all employers will be mandated to report to the Agency (and the Agency will have authority to publish) workforce data on:
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From April 2024 |
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Employers are required to report to the Agency on “sex-based harassment” and “discrimination”. Specifically, employers must include the following matters in their report:
However, this information is not currently expressly specified as a GEI in the Act. |
“Sexual harassment, harassment on the ground of sex or discrimination” will now be specified as a GEI in the Act. The new GEIs will now be expressed in the Act as follows:
In addition, all employers will be mandated to report to the Agency (and the Agency will have authority to publish) the following information in relation to “sexual harassment or harassment on the ground of sex or discrimination”:
These new reporting requirements are included to support the implementation of the 2020 Respect@Work Report to better understand and prioritise data collection on the prevalence, nature and reporting of sexual harassment in the workplace. For KWM insights on Respect@Work, click here. |
From April 2024 |
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The minimum standards in relation to specified GEIs require employers with 500 or more employees to have a policy or strategy in place to support one of the four GEIs listed in the associated legislative instrument. |
Employers with 500 or more staff will be mandated to have in place policies or strategies to support each of the six GEIs In addition, to reflect the increased ambition of the proposals to enhance the minimum standards, the minimum standards are renamed as “gender equality standards”. |
From April 2024 |
How can your organisation prepare for the changes?
By gaining deeper insights into organisations’ gender equality policies, procedures and priorities, the changes signify a real opportunity for employers to track their ongoing performance in this space and prioritise the closing of gender pay gaps.
If your organisation is an employer impacted by these changes, the following proactive steps should be taken to ensure your organisation is ready to meet these new requirements:
- ensure your organisation, and all relevant personnel, understand the new mandatory reporting requirements;
- ensure your organisation has adequate systems in place to accurately report the data and information required. In particular, assess the adequacy of your organisation’s reporting and governance structures to ensure they can meet sexual harassment reporting obligations. This can be considered as part of your organisation’s response to the changes introduced as a consequence of the Respect@Work Report and revised legislative framework;
- take targeted action to minimise your organisation’s gender pay gaps. This may include setting gender equality targets against the data your organisation already reports to the Agency; and
- encourage and drive initiatives, policies, and programs that foster equity, diversity, and inclusion.
Reach out to a member of the KWM Employee Relations & Safety Team for assistance on navigating these changes. To find out more about promoting healthy, safe and respectful workplaces, please visit our webpage “The New Workplace: People, Law, Culture”.
