Gender wage gaps in Australian workplaces: Are policy responses working?

Chang, J; Connell, J; Burgess, J; Travaglione, A

Gender wage gaps in Australian workplaces: Are policy responses working?

Chang, J Connell, J

Burgess, J Travaglione, A

Permalink

Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, 2014, 33 (8), pp. 764 - 775
Issue Date:: 2014-01-01

Closed Access

	Filename	Description	Size
	EDI-10-2013-0080.pdf	Published Version	205.85 kB	Adobe PDF	View/Open

Copyright Clearance Process

Recently Added
In Progress
Closed Access

This item is closed access and not available.

Full metadata record

Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Chang, J	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Connell, J https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9604-6756	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Burgess, J	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Travaglione, A	en_US
dc.date.issued	2014-01-01	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, 2014, 33 (8), pp. 764 - 775	en_US
dc.identifier.issn	2040-7149	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/34236
dc.description.abstract	© Emerald Group Publishing Limited. Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to focus on the implications of the gender wage gap in Australia, before considering policy responses and their effectiveness at both the government and workplace levels.Design/methodology/approach - The method concerns an extensive literature review and an examination of secondary data and reports relating to workplace gender equality and data. Findings -While the gender wage gap in most OECD countries has decreased over time, in Australia the gap has increased, with the largest contributory factor identified as gender discrimination. Consequently it is proposed that current policy responses supporting women in the workplace appear to be ineffective in closing gender wage gaps. Research limitations/implications - Further research is recommended to identify the impact of gender equality policies on hiring decisions and whether such decisions include an unwillingness to hire or promote women. As findings were based on secondary data, it is recommended that future research include workplace surveys and case studies.Practical implications - It is suggested that articles such as this one can assist in guiding public policy and workplace decisions on gender wage equality issues, in addition to providing human resource leaders with the information to make better decisions relating to gender equality.Originality/value - This paper suggests that current policy responses may not only be ineffective in closing the gender wage gap, but may even exacerbate it as employers may avoid hiring women or continue to pay them less than men, due to costs incurred when attempting to meet policy directives.	en_US
dc.relation.ispartof	Equality, Diversity and Inclusion	en_US
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1108/EDI-10-2013-0080	en_US
dc.title	Gender wage gaps in Australian workplaces: Are policy responses working?	en_US
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	8	en_US
utslib.citation.volume	33	en_US
utslib.for	1503 Business and Management	en_US
utslib.for	1608 Sociology	en_US
pubs.embargo.period	Not known	en_US
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/DVC (Research)
utslib.copyright.status	closed_access
pubs.issue	8	en_US
pubs.publication-status	Published	en_US
pubs.volume	33	en_US

Abstract:

© Emerald Group Publishing Limited. Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to focus on the implications of the gender wage gap in Australia, before considering policy responses and their effectiveness at both the government and workplace levels.Design/methodology/approach - The method concerns an extensive literature review and an examination of secondary data and reports relating to workplace gender equality and data. Findings -While the gender wage gap in most OECD countries has decreased over time, in Australia the gap has increased, with the largest contributory factor identified as gender discrimination. Consequently it is proposed that current policy responses supporting women in the workplace appear to be ineffective in closing gender wage gaps. Research limitations/implications - Further research is recommended to identify the impact of gender equality policies on hiring decisions and whether such decisions include an unwillingness to hire or promote women. As findings were based on secondary data, it is recommended that future research include workplace surveys and case studies.Practical implications - It is suggested that articles such as this one can assist in guiding public policy and workplace decisions on gender wage equality issues, in addition to providing human resource leaders with the information to make better decisions relating to gender equality.Originality/value - This paper suggests that current policy responses may not only be ineffective in closing the gender wage gap, but may even exacerbate it as employers may avoid hiring women or continue to pay them less than men, due to costs incurred when attempting to meet policy directives.

Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item:

http://hdl.handle.net/10453/34236