report by think tank e61 has found the gender wage gap is due to a range of

factors, not just the jobs women choose.

Many opponents of action to reduce the gender pay gap blame women’s choice of profession for the difference in salaries between male and female employees.

However, the report, Beyond Skills and Occupations: Unpacking Australia’s wage gap, has found women’s preference for lower-paid ‘soft’ professions accounts for only about 20 per cent of the country’s earnings disparity.

“Gender differences in pay within occupations comprise the bulk of the hourly pay gap and do not narrow when

we control for ATAR scores, job tenure, full-time status, and a wide range of other relevant personal characteristics,” reads the report.

“In reality, a broad suite of policies is needed to close the gender pay gap.

“The greatest opportunities for pay convergence lie in targeting the differences in pay between men and women of the same occupation.

Examples of this include targeting women’s access to high-paying firms, and addressing biases in hiring processes and reducing the flexibility penalty for working mothers.”

PSA CPSU NSW Women’s Officer Simone Scalmer echoed the report’s findings, saying they pointed out both state and federal levels of government have work to do.

“Legislators need to ignore some conservative commentators in the media and continue to work on issues such as workplace flexibility, pay equality and superannuation on unpaid parental leave,” she said.