UOW Gender Pay Gap Statement 2022-23
Position statement
At UOW, we are committed to providing a diverse and inclusive workplace and are proud of our culture that aims to provide equal opportunity regardless of gender. Our policies and practices are continually being refined to support gender equity. We have workplace flexibility arrangements that provide all genders with career opportunity and healthy work-life balance. We commit to removing barriers to selection, advancement, and opportunities for women in our workplace.
UOW recognises that gender equity is critical to our organisation’s success, and we passionately believe that companies and communities thrive with diverse perspectives and flexibility in thinking, leading to higher levels of creativity and innovation. UOW acknowledges and accepts the inherently different experiences of women, men, and gender diverse individuals. UOW is committed to promoting and achieving gender equity, and to addressing gender imbalances that exist across the University.
The UOW gender pay gap
WGEA states that the gender pay gap (GPG) is a universally recognised metric of workplace gender equality. However, it is a broad and highly contextual measure, and is one of several that can be drawn on to signal an employer’s commitment to achieving gender equality in the workplace.
In 2023, UOW has noted improvements in the GPG at the Apprentice and Trainee Level (16.7% GPG in 2022 compared with 7% In 2023), Professional Level 5 (-0.5% in favour of women in 2022 compared with -1.6% in favour of women in 2023), and Academic Level E (3.7% in 2022 compared with 0.4% in 2023). UOW is making steady progress towards our 2025 KPI target of 50% of women in the professoriate with a significant improvement in 2023; 38% of women are in the professoriate, compared with 35.8% in 2022 and 33.7% in 2021. We are also seeing improvements in the number of female staff at Academic Level D, Professional Level8/9, and on Professional IEC contracts – our pipeline of female leadership staff. Opportunities exist at Senior Executive Level as we continue with diversification.
UOW context
UOW’s Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) Policy and EDI Action Plans uphold the values set out in UOW’s Strategic Plan 2020-2025 and outline the principles of managing gender equality and diversity in the workplace.
These principles are embedded in all aspects of the UOW workplace including recruitment, ongoing professional development, promotion, and conduct. Various individual policies, strategies, procedures etc specifically incorporate gender equality including the STEM Decadal Plan. UOW is a champion of the STEM Decadal Plan, and so we have aligned our gender equity journey with the Decadal Plan, alongside our WGEA work.
Gender pay gap drivers
UOW conducts ongoing gender pay gap analyses by level, faculty, division, and school. Findings and recommendations are reported to the People and Culture Committee and University Council. The EDI team in People & Culture also works closely with Associate Deans (EDI) in each faculty to consider:
- Issues contributing to the gender pay gap at UOW;
- Academic and professional staff promotion processes;
- Workforce composition and planning processes;
- Addressing bias in recruitment/selection panels; and
- Gender pay gap concerns in STEMM disciplines.
Actions and Strategies
UOW is in the final stages of launching its Gender Equity Action Plan (2024-26) which outlines 34 gender equity actions spanning the end-to-end employee experience including remuneration, recruitment, onboarding, employee systems, retention and promotion strategies. Our goal is to achieve equal outcomes for all genders at the University of Wollongong and reduce the University’s gender pay gap to reach the sector average (11%) by 2026.