Report finds Australian Public Service making ‘significant’ progress on gender equality
The Australian Public Service (APS) has made “significant gains” towards gender equality but there is still more to do, according to a new report.
The interim evaluation covers two years since the publication of the APS 2021-2026 Gender Equality Strategy in December 2021.
The strategy, launched under the previous Coalition government, aims to promote gender equality through three main goals: holding leaders accountable for gender equity, shifting workplace norms to support respect and flexibility, and embedding gender equality in all APS practices. It outlines 30 actions across six key focus areas: leadership and accountability, respectful workplaces, challenging gender stereotypes, flexible working, using gender data for progress, and leveraging external influence to champion equality.
The interim report finds that gender equality has improved across the APS, particularly at senior management levels. As of 31 December 2023, women made up 60% of the APS workforce. Women achieved – and in most cases surpassed – parity with men at all levels from entry-level roles (APS 1) to Senior Executive Service (SES) Band 2. The SES consists of the most senior public service leaders, with Band 2 overseeing major divisions and policy areas, while Band 3 represents the highest executive tier below agency heads. At SES Band 3, parity was nearly reached, with women comprising 49% of this group, compared to 51% at SES Band 2.
The APS also narrowed its gender pay gap to 4.5% in December 2023, from 6% in December 2021. This compares to the overall Australian gender pay gap, which stood at 12% in February 2024.
Read more: Australian Public Service to release digital workforce plan in 2025
Work still to do
The interim evaluation indicates that nearly all agencies are engaged with the gender equality strategy and progress has been made against most of its 30 actions. However, it says that there is still opportunity to do more.
“Agencies have a responsibility to maintain momentum on progressing gender equality,” the report states. “This can be achieved by continuing to implement the strategy, whilst remaining aware of changes and progress in our operating environment, both on a national scale and internally to the APS.”
Agencies are encouraged to use the findings from the report and “consider the new and emerging gender equality matters across the strategic landscape” to identify and implement actions over the remaining two years of the strategy.
The report notes: “In taking this approach, agencies may also wish to consider matters identified as implementation challenges as part of this report, including: the resources available to delivering diversity and inclusion, support from larger portfolio agencies to smaller agencies particularly where resources are lacking, and efforts to streamline implementation of actions across multiple diversity strategies where possible.”
Read more: Building diverse public service workforces that reflect the communities they serve
Diversity roles under fire
Meanwhile, opposition leader Peter Dutton has indicated that diversity and inclusion positions could be axed in the public service if he wins the election, which must be held by May 17.
Dutton claims that the Australian Public Service has grown by 36,000 under the Albanese Labor government. In a speech on 31 January, Dutton took aim at diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) advisors, along with “change managers” and “internal communication specialists”.
“Such positions… do nothing to improve the lives of everyday Australians,” Dutton said.
“They’re certainly not frontline service delivery roles that can make a difference to people’s lives.”
The Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) said the remarks were “straight from the Trump playbook” after US president Donald Trump ordered an end to all DEI programmes in the federal government within 60 days soon after he was sworn in on 20 January.
“What Mr Dutton fails to comprehend is that a workforce that reflects the public they serve is better able to deliver essential services effectively,” said CPSU national secretary, Melissa Donnelly.
“Inclusion and diversity may sound like an easy target to Mr Dutton and Mr Trump, but for people who access public services, the value of having someone who speaks their language and understands their experience is immeasurable.”
Public service jobs and services are “shaping up to be front and centre of the upcoming election contest”, Australia’s minister for the public service, Katy Gallagher, said in November.
She said that investment in the government workforce is critical to delivering high-quality public services and proposed job cuts by the opposition would “devastate communities nationwide” and “cripple essential services”.
Dutton said at the weekend that the scale of the Coalition’s cuts to “wasteful spending” wouldn’t be revealed before the federal election.
“We need to sit down and look through an ERC (expenditure review committee) process, which would be the normal course of things,” Dutton said during an appearance on ABC’s Insiders programme. “We’ll do that in government.”
Read more: Women Leaders Index and Women Leaders Index Australia case study 2020
About Sarah Wray
Sarah has over 15 years’ experience as a journalist with a specialism in the public sector and topics such as digitalisation and climate action. Sarah was formerly the editor of Cities Today and Smart Cities World, as well as a specialist video-based publication in the aerospace sector. She has also written for publications including Smart Cities Dive, Mobile Europe, Mobile World Live and Computer Weekly.
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