For every dollar a man earns in Australia, a woman earns 88.8 cents. It’s progress – but it’s also a reminder that equality remains unfinished business.
New figures from the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) show the national gender pay gap has fallen to 11.2 per cent – down 0.9 percentage points from last year. On the surface, that sounds like steady improvement. But the story beneath the statistic is more complex (and more structural) than a single percentage point.
The data, drawn from more than 10,500 employers and covering 5.9 million workers, is now publicly available. This means that for the third consecutive year, Australians can see how their workplace stacks up.
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Is the gender pay gap the same as equal pay?
This is the question people ask most – and understandably so.
The gender pay gap is not about men and women being paid differently for doing the same job. Equal pay for equal work has been law in Australia for decades. Instead, the pay gap measures the difference between the average earnings of all men and all women across an organisation, industry or the entire economy.
When total remuneration – including overtime and bonuses – is factored in, women earn 88.8 cents for every $1 earned by men. That gap reflects patterns across the workforce: who's more likely to get promoted, who receives bonuses, who works part-time, and who takes time out for caring responsibilities. In essence, it’s a measure of accumulated inequality, not a single payroll error.
Why does it still exist in 2026?
If equal pay is legislated, why does the gap persist?
A major reason is industry segregation. More than 53 per cent of Australian workers are employed in gender-dominated industries – this means most of us work in sectors where more than 60 per cent of employees are either men or women.
Construction and mining remain heavily male-dominated and offer some of the highest average wages in the country. Construction alone records the highest sector pay gap at 23.8 per cent, though it has narrowed slightly over the past year. Women make up just 10 per cent of the top pay quartile in construction – but account for 37 per cent of the lowest.
On the other side of the ledger are caring professions – nursing, aged care, early childhood education – industries dominated by women and historically undervalued in pay.
Which industries and companies have the biggest gaps?
The latest WGEA data provides rare transparency into individual employers. Some of Australia’s largest superannuation funds report gaps above the national average. Aware Super sits at 17.8 per cent, Hostplus at 17.2 per cent, and AustralianSuper at 14.6 per cent. REST, at 9.6 per cent, performs better than the national figure.
Australia’s four major banks also report gaps above 11.2 per cent, ranging between 17 and 21.6 per cent.
In healthcare, several specialist clinics appear among the employers with the largest gaps – often due to workforce structures where a small number of men occupy higher-paid senior roles.
Importantly, a large gap does not automatically mean unequal pay for identical roles. It often signals leadership imbalance, bonus distribution patterns or occupational clustering within a company.
Are companies required to report their gender pay gap?
Yes. Under the Workplace Gender Equality Act 2012, employers with more than 100 staff must submit annual data to WGEA.
This year, 244 organisations failed to lodge reports, including well-known brands such as 2XU and Seafolly.
With three years of public reporting now available, progress – or a lack of it – can be tracked over time. Transparency has shifted from a corporate value-add to a regulatory expectation.
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So, is Australia actually making progress?
Yes – but slowly.
The national gap is narrowing, and most employers reduced their pay gap over the past 12 months. That suggests internal policies, promotion pathways and pay audits are beginning to move the needle.
But structural inequality doesn’t unwind overnight. As long as high-paying industries remain male-dominated and caring roles remain undervalued, the gap will persist in some form.
The numbers tell us progress is possible.
