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Review of the Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Act 1999 Consultation Report

6 What works to achieve equal employment opportunity for women

Through the consultation process, consideration was given to the levers or drivers of change in achieving equal employment opportunity for women. This section presents these consultation findings. The section firstly outlines some measures and actions that organisations can pursue which are considered by stakeholders to be effective in improving employment outcomes for women. The section then describes the key enabling factors or drivers of change to the policies, practices and culture of organisations which have the effect of improving outcomes for women. This includes the internal and external drivers of change, some of which government can influence to generate adjustment within organisations.

6.1 Effective organisational initiatives and practices

A range of measures and initiatives that are considered to be effective responses to the barriers in women's employment were raised across the consultation activities, including changes to work processes and human resources practice.

Changes to human resources practices were frequently identified in the submissions as an effective measure for improving employment opportunities for women. Many stakeholders considered that having a policy on equal employment opportunity was important, with 27 submissions raising this issue, representing 21 percent of all submissions received. In the employee survey, 62 percent of respondents identified having a policy on equal employment opportunity as contributing to equal employment opportunity in their organisation.

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In relation to changes to work processes, the most frequently raised measure by submissions was providing access to flexible work arrangements. Nineteen submissions (15 percent) identified access to flexible work arrangements as an effective lever for change in organisations.

Three out of the five roundtables also identified that flexible work arrangements were important to achieve equality for women. The Sydney roundtable broadly agreed that there needs to be a shift away from the notion of 'part-time work', which assumes that for example, 34 hours per week is part time while 37 hours is full time, as is 70 hours per week. It also fails to take into account that a good, flexible work outcome may not actually be in flexible hours on a daily or weekly basis, it may be spread throughout the year, or it may involve working from home. The Brisbane roundtable also recognised that working from home may help individuals to balance work and family life.

Closely related to the provision of flexible work is the importance of ensuring that taking up flexible work arrangements does not result in a downgrading of the woman's role in the organisation or limit access to developmental and promotional opportunities in the future. Some participants at the Perth roundtable were less enthusiastic about the benefits of flexible work for women, and discussed concerns that flexibility was often driven by the employer and by 'male values' of flexible work. This issue was also raised in the interviews with representatives from the Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Union, who considered that some flexible work arrangements can have a negative impact on family life.

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Flexible working hours can be a doubled edged sword. We are seeing polarisation between women (and men) who work full time working longer, while part time or casual workers are working less and being underemployed. Also the 10-hour shift can have a negative impact on trying to balance work and family life. Part of the long hours culture is driven by the 24/7 hour society. Also the difficulty in finding quality part time work is a major challenge - this can be a key lever to improving outcomes for women. All of this means that we need to not see women as a single group and understand that the issues are stratified and different for different types of women workers.

(Interview, Louise Tarrant, Katherine Whitty and Elaine Hudson, Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Union)

Providing equal access to training and development opportunities was also identified as a contributor to equal employment opportunity. Eleven submissions (nine percent) identified this as important, with most of these being industry submissions. Access to training and development was identified as an effective measure for improving employment opportunities for women in four of the five roundtables. It was also strongly identified in the survey of employees, with 68 percent of respondents identifying this as a factor that contributes to equal employment opportunity for women in their organisation.

The other key measure identified in the roundtables, interviews and employee survey was transparency in providing information to staff about relative rates of pay in the organisation. The lack of transparency in pay rates within organisations was raised as a barrier to equal opportunity for women in several interviews and roundtables. The corollary of this point, also noted by participants, is that giving employees access to such data can be an effective lever for change in the organisation.

The Perth and Sydney roundtables raised concerns that the secrecy and lack of transparency around pay was a barrier to women understanding the level of inequality in the workplace. In the employee survey, access to information about pay levels was identified as an important contributor to equal employment opportunity by 51 percent of respondents.

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6.2 Internal drivers for change within organisations

Many stakeholders consulted during this review commented on the key attributes of organisations that have successfully implemented change that improves the employment status of women, and the factors or enablers that have assisted that change to occur. Many stakeholders acknowledged that often the barriers to change are cultural and attitudinal and that, when these are translated into policies, practices and behaviours arise that have a negative impact on women's employment outcomes. Therefore, several of the levers for change that were identified in the consultation process were aimed at tackling those attitudinal and cultural barriers and creating the incentives for organisations to implement change.

Overall, the major internal drivers for change that were identified included linking equal employment opportunity to overall business strategy, fostering a strong commitment at the Board and CEO level, developing a solid understanding of the dimensions of inequality in the organisation, demonstrating that the benefits of initiatives outweigh the costs, undertaking consultation with employees, and undertaking robust strategic planning and establishing accountability mechanisms to ensure that actions and measures are implemented. Each of these drivers is described further below.

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6.2.1 Business competitiveness

One effective internal driver for change that stakeholders identified is to create strategic connections between the achievement of employment equality for women and the business success of the organisation.

Of all reporting organisations surveyed, a significant proportion responded that their organisation has initiatives aimed at equal employment opportunity for women because it makes good economic sense to the organisation (23 percent ranked it first or second as a reason).

In the individual interviews and the roundtables, several industry leaders identified the importance of having a gender balance in the organisation that is linked to its core business strategy as a major driver of change. This included ensuring the composition of the leadership team reflects the organisation's customer base, in order to ensure its strategic directions were positioned well. Other industry leaders referred to the importance of diversity in an organisation as a driver of innovation and responsiveness to change, both of which are essential attributes if businesses are to adapt and maintain their competitive advantage in the marketplace. In addition, the need to maximise the talent pool from which staff are drawn was identified as essential to business success.

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In terms of business competitiveness I believe that IBM has an excellent way of arguing for EEO as vital to its business success, which include the following three main reasons: (1) EEO is about attracting and retaining the best talent from the widest talent pool possible- this aspect of the business case is clear. (I am less convinced there are intrinsic characteristics of women that make them more successful in business or work but I do believe that it is important to ensure the selection of talent is from a broader pool than just men.); (2) To be successful businesses and organisations need to have employees that reflect their customer base. This means that organisations need to be more diverse than they currently are. This enables business to identify customer needs and social changes which are essential from a marketing and strategy point of view; and (3) Businesses and organisations need to be able to change, innovate and adapt. Homogenous organisations are more resistant to change and lack flexibility and creativity.

(Interview, Catherine Harris AO)

Increased competition has also been a contributing factor. As organisations compete for scarce talent the realisation that such talent is often held by women increases.

(Submission, Griffith University)

Obstacles that impede further progress towards equal employment opportunity within organisations include...;Failure to create meaningful diversity objectives which link to business plans and objectives; Failure to integrate measurable diversity outcomes into individual, team and business scorecards; and Inadequate or inaccurate diversity metrics and an inability / unwillingness to proactively respond to these.

(Submission, Industry)

Diverse teams at Board and senior executive levels create a more open and questioning culture. They are more likely to avoid 'group think' and have a more sophisticated approach to risk management.

(Submission, Community organisation)

Those organisations with the greatest success tend to have deeply integrated diversity with the cultural values and are working towards hardwiring diversity into recruitment, promotion, remuneration, development programs, succession planning and the broader business strategy.

(Submission, Katie Spearritt and Diane Ryall)

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6.2.2 Commitment

Many stakeholders who contributed to the review referred to the importance of cultural change in senior and middle management to achieve better employment outcomes for women, including that there was strong support at senior levels of the organisation for effecting change that improved the position of women in the organisation. A total of 16 submissions identified this as an effective lever for change, with most of these submissions coming from industry and expert individuals (66 percent).

Company leadership is vital to achieving the goals of the legislation.

(Submission, Woolworths)

At the stakeholder roundtables, commitment at the top levels of an organisation was identified as an enabler of change in three of the five roundtables. Similarly, the personal commitment of the Board and the CEO to equal employment opportunity was identified in several stakeholder interviews with industry leaders as a vital factor for driving and achieving positive changes for women in organisations.

I think that while all those [reporting] requirements may be in place, the focus should be on trying to generate and foster the real commitment to the issue by people at the CEO level, as without that the effectiveness of the legislation and agency will be limited.

(Interview)

One of the most effective levers for change within organisations is to have a CEO and Board that are supportive of equal employment opportunity for women

(Interview Amanda Mostyn, ASX)

In the survey of reporting organisations, the results reinforced the contribution that strong support from senior levels of the organisation make to improving employment outcomes for women. Twenty-seven percent of respondents stated that their organisations had equal employment opportunity initiatives for women because of a personal commitment of the Board or the CEO. In the employee survey, 48 percent of respondents identified that the commitment of senior and middle management to equal employment opportunity was a factor that contributed to improved outcomes for women in the organisation.

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6.2.3 Understanding inequality

Understanding the dimensions of inequality in the organisation has been raised as an important factor that influenced whether organisations placed priority on the issue and understood its impacts on business success and employees.

Most expert individuals in equal employment opportunity and some industry leaders that were interviewed through the consultation process emphasised the importance of understanding the dimensions of inequality in the organisation. To better understand the issues in workplaces, stakeholders stressed the importance of analysing their workplace in terms of the representation of women at different levels of the organisation, pay levels, take up of training and development initiatives, and retention and separation. This was seen as essential to address perceptions that equal employment outcomes have already been achieved or to address a sense of apathy that there is no problem that needs to be addressed.

...;.a systematic analysis and review of an organisation's workforce in order to identify barriers to women's full and equal participation...;is an essential tool for the proper formulation of forward estimates and objectives; it also enables measurement of achievements and compliance.

(Submission, Anne Summers)

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The importance of understanding organisational data was also raised as a key enabler of organisational change at most roundtables. This was seen as particularly important for pay equity, which can be complex to analyse in an organisation. The Sydney roundtable observed that organisations need better quality data on the current position of women in the workplace and the impact of encouraging equal employment opportunity for women on their bottom line. It was expressed that this type of data is currently not available in Australia. The roundtable felt that such data should be collected by organisations, and should be publicly available. The roundtable discussed the importance of organisations examining the pay equity gap carefully, as many at a Board or CEO level believe their organisation does not have a pay gap, however when a rigorous audit is undertaken, they are surprised at the results.

One interviewee, who has recently completed extensive work in New Zealand developing tools to assist pay equity audits throughout the public sector, acknowledged the importance of assisting organisations to grapple with pay data to understand inequality for women.

Organisations don't know how to make the change, they don't know how to do pay equity reviews, they don't understand the data - or they try to justify it in ways that are not legitimate, they don't do job evaluations or even have job descriptions...;.A key change is that organisations need greater assistance to build their capacity to properly assess equity issues and put in place change. These need to include tools and accompanying on-line courses (at a minimum).

(Interview, Philippa Hall)

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6.2.4 Proving the business case

As a next step to identifying and understanding the dimensions of inequality in the organisation, many stakeholders referred to the need to prove the business case in terms of the financial benefits to the organisation of implementing certain programs or initiatives. This requires an analysis of the costs and benefits of taking action to improve employment outcomes for women.

From the perspective of some industry leaders who were interviewed, proving the business case and 'running the numbers' was an essential step to demonstrating the benefits of taking actions such as recruiting more women, implementing family friendly work practices, and offering paid maternity leave.

It also works to do the numbers around all the key strategies that can make a difference - paid maternity leave, part time work, returning to work after maternity leave. In my experience it is easy to show that reducing turnover and training costs through these changes very quickly achieves a positive financial return - and then the reason for acting becomes a 'no-brainer' to the Board. Often people are very 'woolly' or lazy about doing the business case, but once you do it these measures sell themselves.

(Interview, Ann Sherry AO)

Education can be more valuable than regulation - where organisations gain an understanding of the financial and other benefits that can be reaped through their achievement of equal employment opportunity for women

(Interview, Daniel Mammone and David Gregory, Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry)

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At the Sydney roundtable, participants said that stronger information on the business case is required as financial benefits and productivity arguments exist at an organisational level and for the broader economy. This needs to be understood particularly by CEOs and Boards of Directors. Some participants thought that this can most convincingly be argued in terms of attracting and retaining talent. The Melbourne roundtable noted that equal employment outcomes are more successful when initiatives are taken as an integrated part of business strategy and the business case is recognised at the most senior levels of the organisation.

From the perspective of reporting organisations, only three percent stated that they undertake cost benefit analysis to assess the effectiveness of their measures to improve equal employment opportunity for women. Instead, most organisations said that they:

The submissions also reflected that there are relatively few organisations that undertake analysis of the costs and benefits of implementing initiatives to improve employment opportunities for women. Only three submissions stated that they were aware of organisations undertaking analysis of the costs and benefits of compliance with the EOWW Act, and 13 submissions responded that organisations did not undertake such analyses.

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Although it appears that most organisations do not undertake formal cost benefit analyses to inform their business case for equal employment initiatives, 48 percent of reporting organisation survey respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the benefits of implementing initiatives for equal employment opportunity outweigh the costs. Only 18 percent disagreed or strongly disagreed and 31 percent neither agreed nor disagreed.

Most employer representatives who were interviewed, and who made written submissions, said that the cost-benefit outcomes are different for small and medium sized businesses. Some employer representatives argued that the costs of equal employment opportunity measures are significant and outweigh any benefits for organisations.

6.2.5 Setting measurable targets and actions

A common theme throughout consultation activities was the view that, to achieve change, organisations need to set goals and targets and identify actions to achieve them. Setting numerical targets was seen by many stakeholders as a fundamental element of business success and the key to achieving improvements in the employment status of women. Reporting mechanisms are then required to ensure there is public accountability for achieving progress against these targets and actions.

A significant proportion of submissions referred to the need for quantitative goals and measures of organisational performance, with 21 percent (27 submissions) making this recommendation. Almost all roundtables discussed the need for quantifiable targets, with many participants strongly in support of them. The Sydney roundtable reached a consensus that a target of 40 percent representation of women at all levels of organisations should be set for the next three to five years. Most expert individuals, academics and female industry leaders that were interviewed also argued that unless numerical targets are set, there will be little progress achieved.

I am an advocate of keeping it simple - it's about recognising that in business nothing is important unless it has a number attached to it and you can measure it. It is essential to have measurable targets for performance, and then linking actions that achieve those targets which can also be measured.

(Interview, Ann Sherry AO)

The economic and business benefits of gender diversity are well-known to advocates for a greater role for women in senior corporate positions. However, they have been insufficient to drive forward real change. Corporations are very familiar with achieving outcomes based on numerical targets and in tracking whether these are being achieved.

(Submission, Community organisation)

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However, it is important to note that the support for setting measurable numerical targets or quotas as an enabler of change is contested. Several employer organisations submitted that they oppose the imposition or the requirement to develop numerical targets and report on their progress against them.

Employers support the emphasis under the current Act being based upon the attainment of equal opportunities based on merit, rather than the filling of quotas or other affirmative action measures.

(Submission, Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry)

6.2.6 Employee communication and consultation

Employee participation in the development of strategies and actions was also identified by some stakeholders as an enabler for identifying effective initiatives to achieve equal employment opportunity for women.

In particular, the submissions from trade unions placed a strong emphasis on the need for strong employee engagement as a component of any equal employment opportunity strategy and in the preparation of reports to EOWA. This included an ongoing role in supporting the effective implementation of initiatives across the organisation.

Engaging employees and unions in the reporting process ensures penetration of the educative aspect of EEO across the workplace. It also helps build a sustainable EEO reporting capacity which is not dependent on a sole practitioner.

(Submission, Australian Council of Trade Unions)

The Sydney and Perth roundtables noted the importance of employee engagement in developing, implementing and reporting on equal employment opportunity initiatives. In Sydney, it was suggested that this should be mandatory for organisations and greater guidance provided about what level of consultation in the process of preparing a workplace program and report is adequate. In Adelaide, participants spoke of the need to engage staff and seek feedback on work practices, needs and culture to inform the way the organisation responds to the needs of women. Useful mechanisms for such engagement identified included staff surveys and access to the CEO through regular forums.

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6.3 External drivers of organisational change

The consultation process also raised a range of external drivers or factors that are effective in influencing organisations to put in place changes that help to improve the employment status of women. These included economic factors, competition between organisations for talent and public recognition, financial incentives, leadership by the public sector, compulsion and public accountability for organisational performance.

6.3.1 Economic drivers

Skill shortages are an external factor that can increase the need for employers to put in place measures that attract and retain employees and also improve employment outcomes for women, such as flexible working arrangements and paid parental leave.

Some stakeholders said that this economic driver is not strong at present and, with the advent of the global financial crisis, economic factors are possibly working against, rather than in favour of, increased employment equality for women. They did however point to demographic trends over time, which suggest that labour shortages will become a greater priority issue in the future and will require organisations to position themselves for much stronger competition in the market for attracting talented employees.

Insufficient resources (have been) dedicated to the diversity agenda (particularly during and post GFC) despite verbal commitment.

(Submission, Industry)

In the survey of reporting organisations, 15 percent of respondents ranked the need to address skill shortage issues as the first or second priority reason for having equal employment opportunity initiatives in their organisation. This reason was more frequently identified by respondents in the Agricultural and Mining industries compared to other sectors, suggesting that skills shortages may be a higher priority concern and driver of change in those industries at present.

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6.3.2 Positive competition between organisations

Generating opportunities for organisations to compete for public recognition as the top performers was identified as a key enabler of change. In the reporting organisation survey, overall, nine percent of respondents identified that they have equal opportunity measures because they are good for corporate branding. This was more commonly identified as a reason in the Accommodation and Food Services industry and the Arts and Recreation Services than other more male-dominated sectors such as Mining, Construction, and Electricity, Gas, Water and Waste Services.

Establishing competition to gain public recognition of achievements in equal employment outcomes for women was raised by industry leaders in the consultations as a powerful driver of business success which can be leveraged to achieve better outcomes for women. Mechanisms, such as awards, or publication of league tables based on the performance of organisations, were highlighted as effective ways to drive change.

The citation is something to strive for and maintain as a way of gaining a competitive advantage in the employment market and in recognition of their efforts

(Submission, Diversity Council of Australia)

A report is a public document. Therefore organizations are going to be intent upon showing themselves in the best possible light.

(Submission, James Cook University)

While there was general support for the principle of awards, many stakeholders consulted articulated the importance of ensuring that it is only the leading performers that are able to obtain them. There were concerns raised frequently regarding the credibility of the awards that are presently administered by EOWA, and calls for the assessment of applications for awards to be more robust and transparent and to involve site visits and employee consultation. These comments are detailed further in section 7 of this report.

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6.3.3 Public accountability

The flipside of providing opportunities for the recognition of outstanding performance are establishing mechanisms for ensuring accountabilities for poor performance. There was a high level of in-principle support demonstrated in the consultations for the current mechanism in the EOWW Act of naming organisations in Parliament that have demonstrated non-compliance with the reporting requirements, and/or as poor performance in achieving equal employment opportunity for women.

Until accountability is at the feet of decision makers, this issue will continue to languish and be relegated to 'someone else' or seen as a 'women's issue' as opposed to an international embarrassment that Australia makes such poor use of its educated and capable women

(Submission, Boardroom Partners).

Organisations should produce good public reports on work issues for women in their workplace, and these should be benchmarked against industry practice. This means that some of the emotional blackmail that goes on during bargaining processes can be weakened if it's clear what an industry standard is.

(Interview, Louise Tarrant, Katherine Whittty, and Elaine Hudson, Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Union)

Factors and measures that have contributed to improving employment opportunities and outcomes for women (include) ...;Publication of annual reports on EOWA's website; visible leadership by CEOs and Board Members; leadership programs for women; and diversity programs for managers to assist them in managing inclusively

(Submission, Katie Spearritt and Diane Ryall)

Remove the option for employers to submit confidential reports on the efficacy of measures taken to address equal opportunity issues affecting women in their workplace program...; require that all employers submit their reports on their workplace program in the 'Public Report Form' supplied by the EOWA

(Submission, Human Rights Law Resource Centre Ltd)

Employers no longer had to report on progress but were merely able to submit reports that stated they had equal opportunity plans in place. These reports were not made public and were not subject to any form of verification. Employers no longer risked being 'named and shamed' in Parliament. It is perhaps not surprising that women's employment and pay status has not improved since then.

(Submission, Anne Summers)

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However, several expert individuals, women's representatives and industry leaders who participated in the roundtables or who were interviewed raised concerns about the effectiveness of the way that the 'naming and shaming' mechanism is currently used, as in recent years it has focused only on organisations that refuse to submit a report and does not include those that have failed to make any improvements for women in their organisation. These concerns are outlined further in section 5 of this report.

Other stakeholders believed the effectiveness of public accountability levers applied only to large, high profile organisations that would attract media attention and were concerned about their public image, or believed their employees, customers or shareholders would be concerned about their performance in relation to employment of women.

..The 'naming' outcome is dependent upon the employer being recognised as a brand name and therefore attracting media attention.

(Submission, Equal Employment Opportunity Network of Australasia)

The principal sanction for non compliance-naming in the Parliament-is not necessarily a deterrent to those organisations that refuse to comply with Australian equal opportunity law.

(Submission, EOWA)

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6.3.4 Financial incentives

Some stakeholders identified that a strong lever for change is to offer organisations financial incentives for implementing practices that improve women's employment outcomes. A range of different financial incentives were identified in the consultations, including the provision of direct financial incentives, in the form of direct funding assistance to undertake workplace audits or to implement certain practices, and taxation rebates and subsidies. This includes industry organisations, which saw the use of financial incentives as complement to regulatory approaches and a way of reducing the cost burden of regulatory compliance.

Regulation is but one of a number of policy levers that Government has at its disposal. Other levers include incentives for employers, programmes, grants, best practice educational material, awards that recognise Employers of Choice. Other important levers include funding measures that address female participation in the workforce (ie. child care, maternity services, tax and benefits system etc).

(Submission, Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry)

Provide financial assistance to support employers to develop appropriate record keeping systems to facilitate EEO reporting requirements

(Submission, Australian Council of Trade Unions)

An effective lever for change for business is to link it to a financial outcome. Businesses are focused on protecting or improving their financial position (even incrementally).

(Interview, Dr Alex Birrell)

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6.3.5 Public sector leadership

Leadership and demonstration of leading practice by the public sector and other organisations was identified by roundtable participants and interviewees as an important lever for change. Stakeholders appeared to generally consider that the leadership of the public sector in Australia is patchy at best and, overall, could be improved.

Government should concentrate first on setting a good example, including raising the proportion of women in senior positions. The public sector is usually thought to do relatively well already on this front. This may be because alternative performance assessment criteria are valued more highly compared to those used by the private sector. ...; That said, the public sector is still a long way from achieving gender equality in either pay or in terms of access to senior positions.

(Interview, Professor Mark Wooden)

Submissions from the Australian Human Rights Commission and a number of individual women, advocated that leadership by government is required and this should involve increasing the representation of women on government boards. Currently, several State and Territory Governments have in place targets for achieving 50 percent representation on government boards (including Victoria, South Australia, ACT, and Queensland). Some also have targets in relation to the representation of women in senior leadership positions (South Australia and ACT).

It is important that the Australian Government also models better gender diversity on Boards by establishing a target of a minimum of 40% of each gender on all Australian Government Boards.

(Submission, Australian Human Rights Commission)

Federal, State and local government organisations should be covered under the Act, to increase consistency between the public and private sectors, and to encourage the public sector to be more proactive and transparent in introducing strategies to support women in the workplace.

(Submission, Individual)

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6.3.6 Compulsion

The final external lever that was often identified as important for achieving changes in behaviour and practices within organisations was regulatory requirements that are imposed by government. Most stakeholders supported the retention or strengthening of a legislative or regulatory approach in recognition that gender equality is not being achieved at present and regulation is an accepted driver of change. Related to the establishment of regulatory requirements is also the 'stick' - sanctions, penalties and enforcement to ensure compliance. Most stakeholders believed, however, that while regulation is generally a strong lever of change, the impact of existing regulatory mechanisms under the EOWW Act have, in practice, been more limited. These concerns about effectiveness are described further in section 5 of this report.

Regulation has provided additional impetus for change, however, the catalyst has largely been through private enterprises, their expansion to create job opportunities and capacity to offer flexibility in the workplace. The Workplace Relations Act and the recently introduced Fair Work Act are examples of legislation that have had an impact.

(Interview, Daniel Mammone and David Gregory, Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry)

I think in general the framework for discrimination and pay inequity has only achieved some fairly low level outcomes to date and generally has not been very effective. The new provisions under the Fair Work Act provide an opportunity to push these issues further, due to the stronger compliance mechanisms that are available. In contrast, in the area of occupational health and safety there has been much greater success in changing business culture and behaviours in the workplace. The tough compliance approach has changed employers' understanding of what is acceptable in the workplace.

(Interview, Nicholas Wilson, Fair Work Ombudsman)

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In discussing the role of government, the largest proportion of submissions advocated that government should have a regulatory role in setting or requiring targets for women (21 percent), in mandatory reporting (16 percent), and in regulating or focusing on performance against benchmarks rather than implementation of strategies (13 percent). This view was more frequently raised in expert individual, academic and government submissions than in industry submissions, although 13 percent of submissions from industry did indicate that government should have a regulatory role in setting or requiring targets for women.

In addition, eight percent of submissions advocated non-regulatory approaches as a preferred role for government (eg education, incentives, or program assistance) and two percent of submissions advocated for no further regulation. This perspective was most frequently raised by industry peak body submissions.

Views expressed during the stakeholder interviews generally reflected the range of sentiments in the submissions.

While the government should have a regulatory role, there is currently overregulation. Some rationalisation of regulation related to discrimination in general may be required, with sufficient industry input

(Interview, Daniel Mammone and David Gregory, Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry)

Business generally hates regulation but it is the major driver for achieving any change that is not perceived as necessary for business success. For example, in food safety the only reason anything has changed is because of regulation and compliance.

(Interview, Catherine Harris AO)

In the survey of employees, 87 percent of respondents strongly agreed or agreed that regulation is necessary to ensure employers take actions aimed at equal employment opportunity for women. Twenty percent of all male respondents and four percent of all female respondents strongly disagreed or disagreed.


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