Fewer than 1 in 4 Australians work in a gender-balanced occupation

Australia’s workforce is almost uniformly divided between men and women. However, less than one in four Australians works in a balanced occupation.

It improved over time, but at a glacial pace. In 1990, more than half of men (52%) worked in professions that were more than 80% of men. Thirty-five years later, this figure only decreased to 41% of men.

Meanwhile, the share of women in the professions dominated by women (who are more than 60% of women) have largely oscillated between 60% and 65% since the mid -1990s.

This is also true in industries. Less than half of all employees are in balanced gender industries, and three of the five industries with the largest workforce – health care and social assistance, construction, education and training – have become even more separate since 1990.

Between 2006 and 2021, only one in five occupation became less separate.

Why is it important? It turns out that it is bad for workers, businesses and the economy.

Income and productivity stroke

As this graph shows, while most Australian industries have improved their gender balance between 1990 and 2025, a third remain dominated by men.

Productivity and income are lower when men and women are channeled in different jobs.

Personal income is lower when women are under-represented in entrepreneurial posts and in highly qualified professions.

From scientific teams to the company’s boards of directors, international research shows that innovation is higher in sex teams.

Segregation also contributes to the gap of compensation between the sexes and to inequality.

Almost a quarter of the remuneration gap in Australia is attributable to segregation within professions and industries. The remuneration gaps are the most important in the most separate jobs. And there is international evidence that suggests that remuneration and prestige fall as the share of women in an increases.

Companies suffer when they do not fire a complete talent basin when hiring workers. They have fewer candidates per job post, which can cause less quality hires or difficulties in filling jobs. This makes the labor market less effective and unemployment structurally higher.

Individuals also pay a price. People face social stigma and an increased risk of harassment when they work in non -traditional roles. And their ability to move between jobs as the economy changes and new emerging opportunities is restricted.

Different strategies for different industries

Sexes segregation in Australia has proven to be resistant to the rapid increase in the level of education of women and to the virtual change in the workforce of the workforce between men and women.

It is probably because the segregation of the genre is motivated by several linked and self-reinforced factors: educational pathways and gender standards, the unequal distribution of unpaid work, work crops and low wages in feminized industries.

If we really want to move the dial on this deep problem, a mixture of targeted and wider economic policies will be necessary, in parallel with the membership of companies, workers and society as a whole.

In industries and professions dominated by women, who tend to be remunerated, the most direct lever available for governments is remuneration.

Higher wages should attract more workers – males and women. The federal government has initiated significant funding for salary increases for care workers for the elderly and daycare. But it should also focus on improving their working conditions.

In industries and professions dominated by men, the improvement of workplace cultures should be a priority. Here, most of the levers are in the hands of businesses.

The improvement of culture obliges companies to have appropriate recruitment, driving, family and performance policies. Plus the commitments of senior management to model and apply these policies.

Australia is progressing in these areas. But there is even more work to do on the reshaping of gender standards.

Change of gender standards

Gender standards are not static: they change over time and can be influenced by policy parameters.

There is solid evidence that a greater absorption of equal parental leave leads to a greater equal attitude among adults and their children, and a more equal distribution of unpaid work over time.

Too many men do not take the proposed leave, both from the government and, more and more, of their employer. Changing this will require a change in societal attitudes, to normalize men who provide care.

The government should consider extending the user component or losing parental leave paid four weeks to six, to encourage more men to take it.

Things can change

The imbalance between the sexes of professions and industries is slow to change, but it is not immutable.

The international variation in which sex dominates a particular job suggests that existing models do not need to be permanent. Indeed, the professions can reach a tilting point, after which the improvement of the gender balance increases rapidly.

Progress leads to more progress, because people react to policies and cultures change.

Professional aspirations of adolescents and girls reflect the current balance of the sexes on the labor market. But over time, and with a concerted effort, we can change what future generations are possible.

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