Women's Health in the South East (WHISE) welcomes the Senate's passage of the Workplace Gender Equality Amendment (Setting Gender Equality Targets) Act 2024 as a meaningful step forward in Australia's journey toward workplace equity. This legislation opens pathways for organisations to strengthen their foundations through inclusive practices that benefit all stakeholders.
The lived reality: When structural barriers become personal stories
Beyond abstract statistics lie lived experiences that shape everyday realities across Australia:
- For a woman in middle management, the absence of targets means watching less experienced male colleagues advance while her capabilities remain underutilised, transforming a career path into a labyrinth rather than a ladder. This isn't about individual merit but about systems that consistently fail to recognise diverse leadership potential.
- For a recent graduate entering the workforce, the gender pay gap means beginning professional life with diminished economic agency—affecting housing choices, financial independence, and long-term security. What appears as a small percentage difference compounds into life-altering disparities over decades.
- For a mother returning to work, the lack of structured equity measures means facing career penalties for caregiving responsibilities that aren't similarly applied to fathers. These penalties accumulate across lifetimes, manifesting as retirement insecurity and economic vulnerability.
- For boards making critical decisions, the absence of diverse perspectives results in narrowed vision and missed opportunities—not just for women excluded from leadership, but for the entire organisation's resilience, innovation capacity, and connection to diverse markets.
- For communities, these workplace disparities ripple outward—affecting family wellbeing, reinforcing restrictive gender norms for children, and limiting the full expression of capabilities that could address our most pressing collective challenges.
When one in four boards has no women, it's not just a statistic—it's thousands of voices excluded from decisions shaping our economy. The $51.8 billion annual cost of gender inequality isn't abstract; it's lost innovation, deferred dreams, and untapped potential. Yet, companies embracing diversity see real change—workplaces where talent thrives, solutions are richer, and cultures empower authentic contributions. This isn't just about better metrics—it's about fundamentally better experiences for everyone.
From compliance to competitive advantage: Embracing the path forward
Rather than viewing these requirements as another regulatory burden, forward-thinking organisations recognise gender equity as a strategic asset that enhances decision-making, attracts talent, and builds resilience.
Building on existing strengths while acknowledging the journey ahead
While we celebrate this legislative milestone, we also recognise it as one component of a more comprehensive transformation needed across our economic landscape. For this legislation to achieve its transformative potential, we must collectively address two critical dimensions:
- Expanding the scope of engagement: With more than 2 million Australian businesses employing fewer than 500 employees, truly transformative change requires bringing these workplaces into the equity conversation. The current threshold creates important momentum with larger employers, but the next phase must develop pathways for smaller organisations to participate in this journey.
- Strengthening accountability mechanisms: Meaningful progress requires robust accountability systems with appropriate consequences for non-compliance. Transformative policy must balance support for good-faith efforts with clear signals that gender equity is non-negotiable for Australian businesses.
By acknowledging these opportunities for growth, we position the current legislation as a foundational step rather than a destination—part of an evolving commitment to workplace transformation that can accelerate change across our economy.
Collaborative implementation
WHISE CEO, Kit McMahon, notes this journey invites learning and growth—an opportunity to draw upon Australia's rich landscape of expertise in gender equity. By approaching implementation through collaboration rather than isolation, organisations can:
- Build upon existing effective practices rather than starting from zero
