The Australian Treasury plays a central role in shaping economic policies that advance gender equality and support women’s full participation in the economy. By integrating gender analysis into fiscal strategy, tax reform, and labour market programs, the Treasury works to dismantle structural barriers and build an inclusive economy. This article examines the key policy levers, current initiatives, and ongoing challenges in the Treasury’s efforts to support women in the economy.

Foundations of Gender‑Responsive Budgeting

Since 2014–15, the Australian Government has published a Women’s Budget Statement each year, coordinated by the Treasury. This statement outlines how budget measures affect women and girls and shows the government’s commitment to gender mainstreaming. The Treasury also works closely with the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) to monitor and improve gender equality in the workplace.

The Treasury’s gender lens extends across portfolio responsibilities, including tax policy, social security, retirement incomes, and industry assistance. By embedding gender analysis into budget processes, the Treasury can identify where policies may inadvertently disadvantage women and adjust accordingly.

The Gender Budget Statement Framework

Each Women’s Budget Statement includes a detailed analysis of expenditure and revenue measures, highlighting their gendered impacts. For example, investments in early childhood education and care are assessed not only as economic productivity measures but also as tools to boost women’s workforce participation. The Treasury has developed internal guidelines for officials to conduct gender impact assessments when designing new policies.

Closing the Gender Pay Gap

The gender pay gap in Australia has persisted for decades. As of 2024, the national gender pay gap stands at approximately 13% for full‑time employees according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The Treasury supports a multi‑pronged approach to close this gap, including legislative reform, transparency requirements, and employer accountability.

Pay Transparency and Reporting

The Treasury worked with the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations to introduce the Workplace Gender Equality Amendment (Closing the Gender Pay Gap) Act 2023. This legislation requires large employers to publicly report their gender pay gaps, empowering employees and consumers to drive change. Companies with more than 500 employees must now submit comprehensive data on remuneration, promotions, and leadership representation to WGEA.

To further incentivise pay equity, the Treasury is exploring procurement policies that favour businesses with demonstrated gender equality practices. The government also offers guidance to small and medium enterprises on how to conduct pay audits and implement fair‑pay frameworks.

Addressing Occupational Segregation

Women remain overrepresented in lower‑paid industries such as aged care, childcare, and administration. The Treasury supports industry‑specific wage interventions, including funding for the Aged Care Work Value Case, which resulted in a 15% wage increase for aged care workers – the majority of whom are women. Similarly, investments in the early childhood education workforce aim to raise wages and professionalisation, making these roles more attractive and fairly compensated.

Workplace Flexibility and Parental Leave

Flexible work arrangements are critical to supporting women’s participation, particularly those balancing caring responsibilities. The Treasury has championed the expansion of the Paid Parental Leave scheme, which will reach 26 weeks by 2026. The new scheme includes more flexibility for both parents to take leave, encouraging shared care from the outset.

Right to Request Flexible Work

Legislation now gives employees the right to request flexible working arrangements, and employers must not unreasonably refuse. The Treasury works with the Fair Work Commission to ensure that these provisions are enshrined in modern awards and enterprise agreements. Data from WGEA shows that organisations with flexible work policies have higher female workforce participation and retention rates.

Childcare Subsidy Reforms

Recognising childcare as both a productivity issue and a gender equality issue, the Treasury has significantly increased the Child Care Subsidy (CCS). From July 2023, the maximum subsidy rate rose to 90% for families earning less than $80,000, and subsidies taper more slowly for higher incomes. The Treasury also introduced a new Child Care Subsidy Activity Test that allows parents to access more hours if they are studying, volunteering, or looking for work, reducing the penalty on unpaid care work.

The government is also funding a Cheaper Child Care Package to reduce out‑of‑pocket costs and increase access, particularly in disadvantaged and remote communities. Treasury modelling estimates that these changes will increase female workforce participation by over 0.5 percentage points and boost GDP by billions annually.

Supporting Women Entrepreneurs

The Treasury has developed several targeted programs to boost women’s entrepreneurship, addressing gaps in access to capital, networks, and skills.

Access to Capital

The Women’s Leadership and Development Program provides grants of up to $1 million to organisations that deliver projects to support women’s economic independence. Additionally, the government has allocated $10 million through the Women in Business initiative to fund mentorship programs and business advisory services specifically for women.

The Treasury has also worked with the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) to launch the Women’s Investment fund, which invests in female‑led clean energy startups. This fund addresses the fact that only 2% of venture capital globally goes to all‑female founding teams.

Training and Mentorship

Programs such as the Future Women’s Jobs Academy and the National Women’s Mentoring Program connect women entrepreneurs with industry experts. The Treasury provides tax incentives for companies that offer paid time off for employees to mentor women in the community. These initiatives are designed to build confidence, negotiation skills, and strategic business planning abilities.

Retirement Income and Superannuation

Women retire with significantly less superannuation than men – on average 23% less according to the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees. The Treasury has introduced several measures to close the gender super gap.

Superannuation on Paid Parental Leave

From 2025, the government will pay superannuation on the Commonwealth Paid Parental Leave scheme. This means that eligible parents will receive an additional 12% super contribution on top of the leave payment. The Treasury estimates this will add over $3,000 to a woman’s retirement savings per child, reducing the long‑term impact of career breaks.

Low Income Superannuation Tax Offset

The Low Income Superannuation Tax Offset (LISTO) provides up to $500 per year to low‑income earners, the majority of whom are women, to offset tax on super contributions. The Treasury has expanded LISTO to cover more workers, ensuring that part‑time and casual employees – often women – receive this benefit.

Removing the $450 Threshold

Previously, employers were not required to pay superannuation guarantee contributions for employees earning less than $450 per month. This disproportionately affected women in multiple part‑time and casual jobs. The Treasury successfully removed this threshold from 1 July 2022, increasing super coverage for over 300,000 workers, most of them women.

Tax Policy and Economic Security

The Treasury shapes the tax system to reduce disincentives for women to work and save. Several reforms target secondary earners, who are overwhelmingly women.

Independent Taxation and Rebates

Australia’s individualised tax system generally treats each person separately, avoiding the large penalties for secondary earners seen in joint filing systems. However, the Treasury has reviewed the interaction between tax and family payments to ensure that neither the tax system nor the welfare taper rates excessively penalise women increasing their hours.

In the 2024–25 Budget, the Treasury introduced the Women’s Economic Security Package, which includes increased tax relief for single‑income families and a review of the Dependent Spouse Tax Offset to better target low‑income households where one partner is out of the workforce caring for children.

Addressing the Gender Asset Gap

Women hold less wealth than men across all life stages, partly due to lower lifetime earnings and home ownership gaps. The Treasury supports the Housing Australia Future Fund, which sets aside dwellings for women over 55 experiencing homelessness – a fast‑growing cohort. The fund also provides subsidies for women fleeing domestic violence, helping them maintain economic independence.

Intersectional Approaches and Indigenous Women

The Treasury recognises that gender inequality intersects with other forms of disadvantage, particularly for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, women with disabilities, and migrant women.

Indigenous Women in the Economy

The Indigenous Women’s Economic Participation Strategy is co‑designed with Aboriginal community organisations and focuses on removing barriers to employment, including childcare, transport, and culturally safe workplaces. The Treasury allocates funding through the Community Development Program (CDP) to provide tailored job services for Indigenous women in remote communities, supporting enterprises such as social procurement and art centres.

Disability and Migration

For women with disabilities, the Treasury works with the National Disability Insurance Agency to ensure that NDIS plans include employment supports and that disability‑related costs do not create a poverty trap. For migrant and refugee women, the Treasury funds Skills Recognition and Employment Programs that help women have overseas qualifications assessed and gain Australian work experience.

Future Challenges and Policy Directions

Despite progress, several challenges remain. The Treasury’s Intergenerational Report (2023) highlights that increasing women’s workforce participation is critical to addressing Australia’s ageing population and declining hours growth. However, the report also notes that entrenched gender norms, lack of affordable housing near employment centres, and insufficient access to paid leave for casual workers continue to hold women back.

Digital Economy and AI

The Treasury is exploring how the digital economy and artificial intelligence may exacerbate or alleviate gender inequality. Women’s jobs are at risk of automation in administrative and clerical roles, yet women are underrepresented in STEM‑related growth fields. The Treasury supports digital literacy programs and the Women in STEM and Entrepreneurship program to close this gap.

Measuring Impact and Accountability

The Treasury has committed to publishing an annual Gender Equality Progress Report, tracking indicators such as the gender pay gap, workforce participation rates, and entrepreneurship by gender. It is also working with the Australian Bureau of Statistics to improve data collection on unpaid care work and gender‑disaggregated economic metrics, including a pilot Time Use Survey that directly measures care hours.

Internationally, Australia participates in the OECD Gender, Institutions and Development Database and contributes to UN Women’s global programmes on gender‑responsive budgeting. The Treasury also provides technical assistance to Pacific Island nations seeking to implement similar gender budgeting frameworks.

Collaboration Across Government and Society

No single department can achieve gender equality alone. The Treasury coordinates with the Minister for Women, the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet’s Office for Women, the Australian Human Rights Commission, and state/territory treasuries to align policies. Regular meetings of the Council on Federal Financial Relations include gender equality performance indicators as part of service delivery agreements for health, education, and housing.

Private sector partnerships are also key. The Treasury supports the CEO Gender Equality Advisory Panel, where business leaders voluntarily commit to targets for women in leadership and equal pay. The panel’s annual report, published by the Treasury, lists participating companies and their progress, creating peer pressure for change.

Community organisations such as the Australian Women Against Violence Alliance and Economic Security for Women provide ongoing expertise, ensuring that policy design reflects the lived experiences of diverse women.

Conclusion: Building a Truly Inclusive Economy

The Australian Treasury’s role in supporting women in the economy is multifaceted and evolving. From pay transparency and superannuation reforms to childcare subsidies and entrepreneurship programs, the Treasury uses a comprehensive toolkit to address structural disadvantages. The challenges of cultural bias, occupational segregation, and the gender asset gap require persistent effort and innovative cross‑sector collaboration.

By continuously evaluating policies through a gender lens and engaging with international best practices, the Treasury can help create an economy where women’s contributions are fully valued and rewarded. The ultimate goal is not just gender equality as a standalone outcome, but a more productive, resilient, and fair economy for all Australians.