“Sunlight is the best disinfectant,” says Chartered Accountants ANZ CEO Ainslie van Onselen. “We are determined to be vocal, to track and to fix this issue as part of our broader strategy for Chartered Accountants to be a more diverse and inclusive profession.”
Just being aware of the gender pay gap is not enough, van Onselen says. The new playbook Narrowing your gender pay gap lays out an agenda for action, so individuals, employers and the profession as a whole can take steps to make their organisation a more diverse, inclusive and innovative place to work.
Calling out doubters
The playbook addresses common misconceptions held by sceptics such as the gender pay gap not existing, it being too expensive to address, or it being a women’s responsibility because they choose to have career breaks, work flexibly, don’t negotiate well or don’t speak up for themselves.
The playbook suggests organisations conduct a gender pay gap analysis to provide solid data to work with and provides direction on achieving this.
Leaders must also look for factors contributing to the gender pay gap in their organisation, which may be complex and many. One factor, for example, may be unconscious gender discrimination and bias in the hiring and promotion of women.
Women in the workplace may have lost out on compounded salary increases and bonuses over the years. They also may face “flexism” — a form of discrimination against those who work flexible times and miss out on opportunities — or they could be working part time and often suffering a ‘part time penalty’ and earning less than men overall.
Gender diverse businesses outperform businesses where women are not well represented, research shows.
There is also a clear business case for organisations to close their gender pay gap. As well as being the right thing to do, research shows that gender diverse businesses outperform businesses where women are not well represented.
Companies in the top quarter for gender diversity are 25% more likely to have above-average profitability, a survey by McKinsey & Co showed. Closing the gap improves your organisation’s performance, workplace culture, makes you a more attractive employer and ultimately boosts your bottom line.
Flexibility and job sharing
Offering a detailed checklist, the playbook takes readers through actions that organisation can take to close the gap. It also includes examples of organisations that have assessed their gender pay gap and then took concrete measures to change their work culture and practices to make them more inclusive.
Sharesies, a financial company in New Zealand, adopted a job-sharing model for its CEO function to enable the executives to balance work with their parenting and personal lives.
When the CEO went on parental leave, two of the six co-founders shared her role. “They decided that the new ‘3EO’ model was working really well and decided to implement the structure permanently,” says Anna Liumaihetau Darling, Head of People Experience.
CA ANZ itself has taken its own measures to address their gender pay gap. This includes developing a hybrid flexibility model for their employees called “3-2-1” which allows them to work up to three days remotely and two days in the office, including one with their team.
“Closing the GPG takes years and is multifactorial,” says Roshni Kapoor, CA ANZ’s General Manager, People and Culture. “It’s really complex and requires a variety of interventions, thought and unwavering attention from leadership. At CA ANZ, we’re trying to do that.”
Let’s talk about the Gender Pay Gap
Read our Acuity Magazine and hear from Senior Leaders and Executives on their opinion on why senior women CAs earn so much less than men.
