RPS to report reduced gender pay gap
The Federal Government’s Workplace Gender Equity Agency (WGEA) is set to publish employer gender pay gaps for the first time in Australia, and data shows RPS is actively narrowing the gap.
22 February 2024 | 4 min read
Driving action towards closing the gender gap
RPS will join Australian private sector companies with a workforce of 100 or more employees in having wage gaps published online.
This follows reforms passed last year to the Federal Workplace Gender Equality Act, which are designed to foster transparency, hold businesses to account, and help accelerate workplace gender equality in Australia.
WGEA will publish base salary and total remuneration median gender pay gaps, as well as the gender composition and average remuneration per pay quartile. Data for the pay gap calculations will be taken from the April 2022 - March 2023 reporting period, as submitted by employers.
RPS’ People Director Karina Cossum says RPS is not only committed to a workplace that is diverse and inclusive, but also one that is equitable.
“Our approach to gender equality is at the heart of our decision making and we have made significant progress in several areas."
“We have reduced the gender pay gap across the job categories over the past three years – and in 2024, across all our divisions the average annual salary increase for females was higher than males.”
Karina says RPS also sits above the national average for women holding senior roles.
“50 per cent of RPS’ leadership team and governing bodies are made up of women, that’s compared to the national average of 32.5 per cent in key management positions, and 33 per cent on boards.”
The gender pay gap is not the same as equal pay, instead it shows the difference between the average earnings of women and men across the workforce.
According to WGEA, women earn, on average, 78 cents for every $1 men earn, leaving them $26,393 worse off annually.
RPS is actively working to buck this trend. In the last year, 35 per cent of all promotions to manager and leader roles were awarded to female employees. That’s out of a workforce that identifies as 59.03 per cent male, 40.19 per cent female, and 0.17 per cent nonbinary.
Metrics from the RPS People team also reveal that the median gender pay gap in 2022-2023 was 16.2 per cent, well below the industry comparison of 50.2 per cent, and less than the national total remuneration gender pay gap, which sits at 21.7 per cent.
Karina says this is a great comparative result and demonstrates RPS’ progress in recent years.
“Looking at like-for-like roles across our business, our gap is much lower for the majority of roles than the comparable industry average.”
Progress to close the gender pay gap is also reflected in RPS’ policies and benefits, which encourages female participation across all roles.
“To name a few, we’re a certified family inclusive workplace and have a flexible working policy, providing flexible paid parental leave, including superannuation payments on unpaid leave. We also offer a third-party partnership to support our employees with caring responsibilities.”
Karina adds, even though RPS has made progress, the company is committed to taking further steps to deliver better outcomes.
“We still see 16.2 per cent as a gap and are committed to closing it. We do not pay people differently based on their gender and are committed to embedding equity principles in all our processes.
“From hiring, to promotions, to annual salary reviews, we focus on target actions and recommendations, while regularly reviewing our practices to ensure we are closing the gap at every step.”
RPS will also continue to push for gender parity because it’s good for business and competitive advantage.
“We see that diversity, equity, and inclusion is more than social justice, regulatory compliance, a matter of our corporate responsibility and maintaining industry standards. RPS sees diversity, equity, and inclusion as a source of competitive advantage and a key enabler of growth.
“We will continue our mission with focus and work closely with our people to ensure we have the right plans in place to further close the gap and deliver the best outcomes for our clients and our people.”
WGEA’s gender pay gap data will be made public on 27 February 2024. This first release will include private-sector organisations only.
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About RPS
Founded in 1970, RPS, A Tetra Tech Company (RPS) is a leading global professional services firm of 5,000 consultants and service providers. Operating in 125 countries, working across six continents we define, design and manage projects that create shared value to a complex, urbanising and resource-scarce world.
RPS delivers a broad range of services in six sectors: property, energy, transport, water, defence and government services and resources. Services provided across RPS' six sectors cover twelve service clusters: project and program management, design and development, water services, environment, advisory and management consulting, exploration and development, planning and approvals, health, safety and risk, oceans and coastal, laboratories, training and communications, creative and digital services.
RPS stands out for its clients by using its deep expertise to solve problems that matter, making them easy to understand. Making complex easy.
For further information, please visit www.rpsgroup.com.