New data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) shows the national gender pay gap is the lowest on record - falling to 11.5 per cent from 12 per cent in November 2023, and 14.1 per cent in May 2022.
Women’s average weekly earnings have increased $173.80 a week since May 2022.
Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, said the federal government is working to close the gender pay gap and since being elected the pay gap has fallen to all-time lows over four consecutive reporting cycles.
“We came to government with a commitment to help close the gender pay gap and that’s exactly what we’re seeing,” he said yesterday.
“That’s not a coincidence, it’s because the government has taken action like banning pay secrecy clauses, modernising the bargaining system, enforcing transparent gender pay gap reporting and delivering pay rises for aged care and child care workers.”
Federal Minister for Women, Katy Gallagher, said by closing the pay gap women are taking home more money at the end of each week.
"Whether it be by boosting the pay of early childhood educators and aged care workers by 15 per cent, backing a pay rises for minimum wage workers or banning pay secrecy clauses – Labor is doing work right across the economy to lift women’s pay,” she said.
“This progress isn’t just good for women – it’s also good for men, good for children, good for the economy and good for the community.
“As well as lowest gender pay gap on record, we now also have reached a record high for women’s workforce participation at 63.2 per cent”
Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, Murray Watt, said the government promised to get wages moving again and that has happened.
“At the same time the gap has narrowed, an extra 510,000 women are now in jobs since the government came to office, with 60 per cent of these jobs full-time.”
The ABS average weekly earnings data can be found online: Average Weekly Earnings, Australia
Information on the gender pay gap can be on the WGEA website: The ABS data gender pay gap