The Budget Lowdown: Key takeaways for Australian employers

Under Morrison’s government, gender equality in the workplace has come a long way. Women’s workforce participation is the highest on record, there are 1.1 million more women in work today than there was in 2013, the Gender Pay Gap has dropped 3.6% and at 13.8% is the second lowest rate on record, and women hold a record 50.2% of Australian board positions. Howevver, the government’s budget announcement is saying more work can be done by business to further strengthen women’s economic security.

“Women continue to drive Australia’s economic recovery” is the message as budget announcements see $2.1 billion dollars directed towards gender equality. Some of the initiatives send a clear message to businesses that Australia needs more women in all levels and sectors of the workforce, and women need to be paid more appropriately. 

This year, HR leaders will find themselves focused on the Gender Pay Gap, women’s workforce participation and women’s leadership.

HRD looks at some of the initiatives that government plans to implement and how much they’re spending on them.

• $18.5 million for the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) to further drive progress towards gender equality in Australian workplaces. There’s been a lot of work done to reduce the gap but while women in Australia earn a weekly average of $255 less than their male counterparts, we’ve still got work to do. The WGEA is a statutory government agency charged with promoting and improving gender equality in Australian workplaces. They provide analysis and insights to businesses that statutorily report standardised gender equality indicators.  
• $19.4 million to fund the establishment of childcare services to support flexible work options in remote and regional areas. This will be provided through the Community Child Care Fund for up to 20 new services in areas with limited or no access to childcare.
• $1.4 million will support the expansion of the Family Friendly Workplaces initiative to 500 workplaces across Australia. Currently 50 businesses hold the Family Friendly Workplace certification. Businesses are assessed against standards which consider approaches to flexible work, parental leave, care and wellbeing and family and domestic violence.
• $346 million to introduce Enhanced Paid Parental Leave which is fairer and provides full flexibility to eligible working families. The changes support flexibility by integrating Dad and Partner Pay and Parental leave pay meaning employees can use the leave in ways that suit their specific circumstances. The government will also broaden the income test to include a household income threshold of $350,000 per year.
• $38.6 million will go into boosting the number of women in trades and women who commence in higher paying trade occupations will be provided additional support such as mentoring.
• $4.7 million to encourage women into manufacturing. The money will go towards networking events in metropolitan and regional areas and a mentorship program for women at all stages of their manufacturing career.
• $3.9 million to support more women into digitally skilled roles through a partnership with the industry this initiative will provide mentoring and coaching to facilitate mid-career transition into the tech workforce.
• $9 million to expand the successful Future Female Entrepreneurs program. Funding will continue for the Academy for Enterprising girls and the Accelerator for Enterprising Women, and a new Senior Enterprising Women program will begin. So too will a program pairing enterprising women in leadership with early-stage entrepreneurs. 
• $9.4 million to support women at critical stages in their career into leadership positions. The future Women’s Jobs Academy will be expanded. The program works with women over 45 who have the life experience to be effective leaders but not the skills or support needed to transition them into management positions. The Office for Women will also oversee a refresh of the governments BoardLinks platform to assist women making the jump to board positions.