YWCA Canberra is proud to once again be awarded the Employer of Choice for Gender Equality (EOCGE) by the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA). The EOCGE program recognises organisations at the forefront of the movement for change towards gender equality in Australian workplaces, and YWCA Canberra has held this citation continuously since 2014.
“Disappointingly, for the third year in a row, we are the only ACT-based organisation to achieve this citation,” YWCA Canberra CEO Frances Crimmins said.
“Gender equality at work should be the norm, not an exclusive club. We want other workplaces to join us.”
Although there was a heightened focus on women’s treatment in the workplace throughout 2021, and greater recognition of women’s value to the Australian economy, this did not translate into tangible action. The gender pay gap increased in 2021, Australia’s ranking in the WEF Gender Gap Report dropped down to 50, and many other measures of gender equality went backwards.
“Now is not the time to stand still but to aim high,” said Ms Crimmims.
“I call on all employers to implement meaningful gender equality strategies, including equal pay, better and more equitable parental leave and domestic violence leave.
“I also call for more organisations to walk the talk on their commitment to zero tolerance of gender-based harassment and discrimination and sexual harassment. As demonstrated all too clearly in our recent publication Our lives: women in the ACT, too many women in Canberra are still experiencing these in their workplaces.
“If your organisation is truly committed to gender equality, join us in becoming an Employer of Choice,” Ms Crimmins said.
The citation is a voluntary initiative for employers that recognises those workplaces which have demonstrated a genuine and structural-level commitment to gender equality. It is additional to the compliance reporting program requiring non-public sector employers with 100 or more employees to submit a report to WGEA.
WGEA offers a wide range of resources and tools to help organisations assess their current gender equality state and implement meaningful action.
“If you are still unsure, I encourage you to contact YWCA Canberra and we can help support you to start the process,” Ms Crimmins said.
More information: YWCA Canberra’s commitment to gender equality
Gender equality is at the heart of what we do and have done at YWCA Canberra for over 90 years. We strive for a world where all workplaces promote gender equality and employees have equitable pay, conditions, access to promotion and lack of discrimination.
At YWCA Canberra, we are working to address some of the factors that lead to the gender pay gap through our community through our advocacy work on a range of gendered issues.
We help overcome workplace discrimination and bias by developing women’s leadership skills through the She Leads program and our Board Traineeships. We also provide our Bringing on Board publication to help other organisations implement programs to improve board diversity.
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