In 2004

• Girls are doing equally well as boys at school - over 50% of HSC leavers are girls;
• 58% of university graduates are female;
• Women have access to paid work in all Australian organisations;
  • 49% of professionals are women;
  • 49% of property investors are women;
  • 47% of shareholders are women; and
  • 35% of small business owners are women.

However, Australian working women:

• Participate in the most gender-segregated workforce in the world;
• Are significantly under-represented in leadership roles across the public, private and political sectors;
• Are significantly over-represented in low-paid, low-status work
• Receive on average 84% of men’s’ full time weekly earnings for doing the same work for a full-time week;
• Continue to experience discrimination and workplace harassment;
• Have the highest part time participation in the industrialised world which in many organisations prevents them getting into more senior positions;
• Continue to take the prime responsibility for caring; and
• Retire with much less superannuation 

The majority of Australian employers that report to EOWA;

• See equal opportunity for women as a risk management issue that reduces legal exposure.

A growing number of leading Australian employers;

• See equal opportunity as a strategic business opportunity that, if done well,
  • Improves decision making;
  • Enhanced reputation;
  • Increases working relationships; and
  • Increases profits;

  therefore benefits employees as well as the organisations bottom line.