SENATOR THE HON KATY GALLAGHER
MINISTER FOR FINANCE
MINISTER FOR WOMEN
MINISTER FOR THE PUBLIC SERVICE
WOMEN FRONT AND CENTRE AT JOBS AND SKILLS SUMMIT
The Albanese Government’s commitment to restore national leadership on gender equality has been endorsed at the Jobs and Skills Summit with agreement that improving women’s workforce participation is critical for Australia’s future economic prosperity and resilience.
The role of women, the opportunities from unlocking the untapped talent of Australian women to participate fully in the workforce and the need to provide respectful and safe workplaces for all, was a key theme across all sessions of the two day Summit.
The need to improve access to early education and care was a central focus at the Summit.
The Government will deliver on our $5 billion commitment in the October Budget, to make child care cheaper for more Australian parents and allow more women to work more hours if they wish to.
The Women’s Economic Equality Taskforce, to be chaired by Sam Mostyn AO, will also help to maintain momentum on the many important ideas raised at the Summit and provide advice to government on the best ways to improve women’s economic equality and security.
The first phase of gender responsive budgeting will be undertaken in the October Budget and gender analysis will be undertaken on outcomes of the Summit to ensure women remain at the centre of government decision making.
Some immediate outcomes from the Summit include:
- Requiring the Australian Public Service (APS) to lead by example by reporting to WGEA and to set targets to improve gender equity in the public service
- Requiring businesses with 500 or more employees to commit to measurable targets to improve gender equality in their workplaces and report progress to the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA)
- Requiring businesses with 100 employees or more to publicly report their gender pay gap to WGEA for the first time
- Empowering WGEA to work with peak organisations, unions and employers in targeted sectors to develop strategies and actions to increase women’s participation and reduce their gender pay gaps
- Extending WGEA data collection to include an accurate snapshot of the pay gap that exists for First Nations and culturally diverse women as well as women living with disability, in Australian workplaces.
- The Respect@Work Council will include workers have their representatives in a permanent seat at the table alongside government, business and civil society.
FRIDAY, 2 SEPTEMBER 2022
