Call for equal parental leave

PAID parental leave should be available equally to mums and dads, according to Australia’s new workplace gender equality advocate, who is calling on employers and the government to be more flexible.

Workplace Gender Equality Agency director Mary Wooldridge says existing parental leave options are a “big driver of inequality in the workplace”, and rules that limit leave to a “primary carer” should be scrapped.

Speaking ahead of Equal Pay Day on Tuesday, after Australia’s gender pay gap increased to 14.2 per cent, Ms Wooldridge said parental leave was one of several issues to be confronted to “shift the dial”.

The gender pay gap is currently expected to take 26 years to close, and Ms Wooldridge said gender stereotypes and discrimination were still rife in Australian workplaces.

But in her first interview since taking on the role, she said the pandemic was a major chance to permanently enable flexible working arrangements and reduce inequality.

The agency measures the pay gap among companies with more than 100 staff, covering four million workers. Among those who work fulltime, the pay gap is now 20.1 per cent – meaning men on average earn $25,534 more than women.

Ms Wooldridge said she was focused on “highly masculinised” industries including construction, which had driven the increase in the pay gap.

She said one of the highest pay gaps was in mining, despite women being paid more in it than in any other industry, while workers in “highly feminised”, industries including healthcare and social services, were predominantly lowpaid.