'The biggest risk to women's wages is a Dutton-led Coalition going back to the 'deliberate design feature' of slow wage growth,' says ACTU president
In the lead-up to International Women’s Day, the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) has released new analysis showing that women in full-time work have seen real wage growth, with the average woman earning $7,400 more than she would have under previous wage policies.
The Albanese government’s economic reforms have boosted wages for women by an average of $2,600 per year, according to the ACTU report.
This shift marks a departure from the wage stagnation under the Coalition government between 2013 and 2022, when wages grew by just 2.1% annually. Under the current government, that rate has now risen to 3.7%.
The ACTU credits several key policy changes for driving wage increases, particularly for women:
Backing for higher award and minimum wages, addressing cost-of-living challenges. Since nearly 60% of workers on awards are women, this has had a direct impact on female wage growth.
The Secure Jobs Better Pay reforms of 2022, which expanded collective bargaining, helping more women secure pay rises.
Recognising and addressing the undervaluation of women-dominated industries, such as aged care and early childhood education, leading to record wage increases in these sectors.
Stronger workplace rights, including flexible working arrangements and enhanced paid parental leave, allowing women to stay connected to the workforce and maintain earnings.
ACTU President Michele O’Neil highlighted the significance of these reforms, stating, “The change of government in May 2022 signalled an end to the wages stagnation of nine years under the Coalition.”
However, Australia's average gender pay gap in terms of total remuneration is at 21.8%, according to the latest data from the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA).
Despite progress, O’Neil warned that reversing these policies could harm working women. “Without these changes made by the government and action taken by unions, working women would be $7,800 worse off on average,” she said.
She also pointed to proposed changes by the Dutton-led Coalition as a risk to women’s financial security.
“The biggest risk to women’s wages is a Dutton-led Coalition going back to the ‘deliberate design feature’ of slow wage growth that then Finance Minister, Matthias Cormann, outlined.”
Policies under scrutiny include:
Rolling back casual workers’ rights
Weakening the right to disconnect from work
Restricting collective bargaining
Supporting penalty rate cuts
According to O’Neil, such moves would disproportionately harm women, many of whom work in casual, part-time, or public sector roles. “Women can’t afford more insecure work, for public sector wage caps to come back, or to lose lifts to aged care and early childhood education and care workers’ wages,” she said.
Further efforts to protect women’s wages include new laws introduced in January to tackle wage theft, ensuring workers are paid fairly. Additionally, Right to Disconnect laws have been introduced to reduce unpaid overtime, preventing women from being exploited in workplaces where expectations for extra hours are high.
As wage growth strengthens and the gender pay gap continues to shrink, O’Neil emphasized the importance of maintaining momentum. “Now wages are growing, and the gender pay gap is shrinking, it is critical these new wage settings and rights remain in place and are built upon.”
The ACTU’s findings are based on an analysis of full-time average weekly earnings for women in May 2022, compared to wage growth trends under previous Coalition governments. The report concludes that without recent changes, women would be $7,800 behind where they are today.
