Free toolkit levels the playing field for pay

NEW resources have been developed to assist small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to achieve pay equality within their workplaces.

The Pay Equality Toolkit was introduced to members of the Geelong business community at an International Women’s Day event by the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission (VEOHRC) in collaboration with the Geelong Chamber of Commerce (GCC).

Its release follows research conducted by VEOHRC which found that smaller organisations face a particular set of barriers to achieving pay equality and many lack an understanding of the concept of equal pay and how it applies to their business.

VEOHR Commissioner Ro Allen said the toolkit was the first of its kind in Australia.

“[It’s] a comprehensive suite of practical tools tailored to the needs of small and medium enterprises to help them address their gender pay gap and create workplaces where every employee is paid fairly.

“The business owners we spoke to told us that small businesses need practical advice about achieving pay equality that is tailored to their specific needs.

“We have worked with experts in gender equality as well as numerous small to medium enterprises throughout Victoria to produce this practical toolkit.”

GCC chief executive Jeremy Crawford said SMEs had contributed to the design, content and testing of the toolkit.

“It’s a tool for small to medium businesses who may not have the capital to invest in legal advice and HR services,” he said.

“This can really empower business leaders and owners to access a free tool, provide some assessment on their equality and equity across the business.”

He said there were numerous benefits for businesses who adopt gender pay equality, including enhanced productivity and business outcomes.

“It creates really good cultures and makes sure everyone’s working in sync regardless of gender or different backgrounds,” Mr Crawford said.

“It also ensures that businesses are doing the right thing legally. From a compliance perspective, it really helps.

“We know that having a good diversity across all different areas contributes to more diverse and rich cultures and that that naturally becomes an attraction point for talent and for businesses looking to employ more people.”

Mr Crawford said GCC would also offer dedicated resources and workshops to SMEs in the region to help “kickstart” their engagement with toolkit.

“We just feel it’s a really important conversation to have continuously and not just when some of those milestone events are on throughout the year, so that’s something we’ll commit to providing day in, day out,” he said.

“We want to make sure those barriers to having the right workplace structures in place are removed and that we can support the business community to make it really easy to understand how that equality equates to running better businesses.”

To access the toolkit, head to humanrights.vic.gov.au