It’s a Rich Man’s World

Source: Global Justice

Money; it’s the root of all evil, or at least so they say. They also say that it doesn’t bring happiness, and yet I’m sure the men that govern this country delight in making more than their female counterparts. Unlike the male dominated governing body, the workforce in Australia is fairly evenly split;

Of the approximately 10 million employees in Australia, 50.5 per cent are women and 49.5 per cent are men. But men still tend to earn a lot more than women – an average of $1,429.80 for male employees, compared with $940.20 for female employees. That in part is due to the number of hours worked: 76.6 per cent of men work full time compared with 43.7 per cent of women (ABC News).

Ok, so those were some heavy figures and a lot to swallow in one sitting. More simply, for each dollar a man earns, Australian women earn the equivalent of 83 cents (Khadem 2016).

The resulting gender pay gap nationally stands at 16.2%, and I ask you, is that fair? Across all occupational categories there is biased pay gap favouring full-time working males over full-time working females (Australian Government 2016).

Some reasons for this are:

• A distinct lack of women in senior roles.
• Women offer more time to unpaid volunteer work.
• Discrimination on the part of employers.
• Women are more likely to hold part-time positions than men.

Per finical year, ‘men earn on average $27,000 more than women’ (Khadem 2016). While this is partly a result of the reasons mentioned above, there is a glaring need to increase industry standards. While I’m not convinced the (male) powers that be have a great interest in equal pay, they could at least offer some semblance of it.

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References

ABC News, Fact file: 11 facts about the changing face of the Australian workforce, viewed 23 September 2016, http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-03-19/fact-file3b-facts-about-the-workforce/6322238.

Australian Government 2016, What is the gender pay gap?, viewed 23 September 2016, https://www.wgea.gov.au/addressing-pay-equity/what-gender-pay-gap.

Does it have to be a rich man’s world, digital image, viewed 23 September 2016, http://groups.globaljustice.org.uk/glasgow/2014/02/26/does-it-have-to-be-a-rich-mans-world/.

Khadem, N 2016, ‘Australian women make 83¢ for every $1 a man earns: report’, Sydney Morning Herald, 24 March, viewed 23 September 2016, http://www.smh.com.au/business/workplace-relations/gender-pay-gap-20160322-gnp0vy.html.