Gender Equality

One side effect of this pay gap is lower retirement savings for women. As at June 2019, the median superannuation balance for men at retirement was $178,800 in comparison to $137,050 for women, equating to a 23% gap² in savings.

In addition, complaints statistics released by the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) reported that 76% of the 479 sexual discrimination claims in 2019-20 were made by women³ and the 2020 Respect@Work Report notes that women are 50% more likely than men to have experienced sexual harassment in the workplace.

This imbalance is generally worse for First Nations’ women, women of colour, trans women and women with a disability.

ROLES

The ARA’s role is to unify our sector behind a common
vision for change, outline the policy and advocacy measures
that will frame discussions with government and other
stakeholders, and support our members’ efforts to address
gender inequality.

In addition, the ARA Diversity, Equality & Inclusion Advisory
Committee will also:

Continue to shape, advance and promote gender equality in retail through the delivery of a suite of initiatives
Endorse a gap analysis against best practice and
prioritise areas of improvement for Australian retail
Work with the WGEA to monitor our sector’s progress
Partner with a range of industry experts to develop a set
of practical tools and resources

GUIDING PRINCIPLES

To meet our commitment of advancing and promoting gender equality in the Australian retail sector, we need to:

Focus primarily on addressing the imbalance between
women and men in our sector but ensure that gender
equality is not positioned exclusively as a 'women's issue'
Recognise that members may have different challenges
and may require different solutions, given the differences
between large national and international retailers, and
our small and medium sized members who represent
95% of the ARA’s membership
Leverage expertise from the ARA’s largest members to
uplift capability across the whole sector

ACTIONS

To improve choice, career progression and financial security for women in retail, the ARA believes the sector will need to:

Develop and deploy awareness campaigns, education events and forums to address sector-specific sexual
discrimination and harassment issues, in line with Recommendation 47 for key industry groups outlined in the Respect@Work Report⁴
Identify opportunities to strengthen policies in relation to workplace sexual discrimination and harassment
Adopt a 40:40:20 gender mix in boards and executive teams, with an aspirational target that 50% of director and leadership positions should be filled by women by 2030, in-line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals
Take actions to address the gender pay gap and remove barriers to financial security for women in retail, through
their working life and at retirement
Remove barriers that hinder women in retail realising their full potential, through improved flexibility, career pathways and
return-to-work options for working parents
Advocate for more cost-effective childcare and increased flexibility in childcare arrangements
Offer equal access to parental leave and address the stigma of men taking on caring responsibilities
Support community efforts to address violence towards women and establish leave provisions to support victims of domestic and family violence
Remove rigid gendered stereotypes in advertising, product ranging and pricing, signage and visual displays

Notes

1 - WGEA Data Explorer - Retail Trade (https://data.wgea.gov.au/industries/76)

2 - Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia, 2022-23 Pre-budget Submission

(https://www.superannuation.asn.au/ArticleDocuments/1588/ASFA_Pre-Budget_Submission_2021-22.pdf.aspx?Embed=Y)

3 - AHRC 2019-20 Complaints Statistics (https://humanrights.gov.au/sites/default/files/2020-10/AHRC_AR_2019-20_Complaint_Stats_Final.pdf)

4 - AHRC Respect@Work: Sexual Harassment National Inquiry Report (https://humanrights.gov.au/our-work/sex-discrimination/publications/respectwork-sexual-harassment-national-inquiry-report-2020)