The Financy Women’s Index (FWX) experienced a decline in the past quarter, despite positive gains made in the March quarter.
The index, which tracks time frames for achieving economic gender equality in Australia, fell by 0.2 points down to 77.5 points out of a score of 100 in the June quarter of 2024.
However, the long-term trend across the past 12 months demonstrates strides are being made towards equality. The FWX has increased by 2.36 points in the year from 74.8 points in June 2023.
According to Financy, the June quarter’s stalled result was due to monthly hours worked and underemployment levels for women relative to men.
The FWX employment subindex, which reflects the gender gap in monthly hours worked, declined to 75.4 points – down from 75.6 in March. Meanwhile, female hours worked fell by 0.3 per cent, compared to 0.1 per cent for men.
Moreover, the FWX underemployment subindex was negatively impacted in the June quarter as it fell to 71.2 points from 72.2 in March. The female underemployment rate rose by one percentage point to 7.71 per cent, while the male rate dropped by 6 percentage points to 5.22 per cent.
“Similar to what we saw during the coronavirus pandemic, women are once again bearing the brunt of economic uncertainty largely because they still tend to occupy more flexible and insecure forms of employment, such as part-time and casual roles,” described Bianca Hartge-Hazelman, Financy founder and chief executive.
“As business conditions weaken, these roles are more likely to be adjusted, with hours reduced to the detriment of the female workforce.”
In more positive news, the national gender pay gap saw a record improvement during the quarter as it fell to 11.5 per cent in May. This helped lift the FWX gender pay gap subindex to 88.5 points, up from 88 points in March.
Looking at key time frames, gender equality in the ASX 200 board leadership is expected to be achieved by 2030, with a current wait time of 5.2 years, and the gender pay gap is set to be closed by 2047.
Hartge-Hazelman continued: “As a general reflection, it’s incredibly frustrating that we see these great moments, such as in sport, at the same time we see the repetition of entrenched norms that see women bear the burden of tougher economic times.”
While the June quarter exhibited a “two steps forward, one step back” rate of progress, the CEO remains cautiously optimistic due to the success of Australian women in the Paris Olympics.
“These wins are impressive, and they help to shift the narrative and gender norms over the longer term, which we believe should, in turn, drive greater progress across all of our indicators.”
