The Government is seeking feedback by November 24 as it reviews the Workplace Gender Equality Act 2012 in order to drive equality in Australia.

The Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) is inviting submissions in response to a consultation paper stemming from the Women’s Budget Statement 2021-22, which flagged a targeted review of the Act.

The national gender pay gap is 14.2% – and it’s more than 24% in financial services and insurance – and WGEA says that while advances continue to be made on gender equality in Australian workplaces, there is more to do.

“Now is the time to have your say on the future directions of our world-leading workplace gender equality dataset,” WGEA said.

The review considers if the WGEA has appropriate power and tools to achieve the objectives of the Act, including to support employers to remove barriers to equal participation of women in the workplace and to eliminate discrimination on the basis of gender in relation to employment.

WGEA says more women work part-time (45%) than men (19%) and there remains a gender pay gap in favour of men across all industries, including female-dominated industries.

Only a small proportion of men work flexibly or take parental leave. Women make up 34% of ASX200 boards and are under-represented in senior profit and loss roles in businesses.

Submissions can be made here.