Achieving gender equity a work in progress: report
Posted on 15 Apr 2025
By Greg Thom, journalist, Institute of Community Directors Australia
Australians are equally divided on the question of whether women are treated fairly and have access to equal opportunities according to new research.
Phase two of the Gender Compass project released by Plan International Australia found a concerning gap between perception and reality when it comes to gender equality in Australia.
Plan International Australia CEO Susanne Legena said the fact that one in two Australians believe that women are treated fairly in most areas of life and have access to the same choices and opportunities as men showed that there is still significant progress to be made in achieving gender equality for all.
“While 60 per cent of people believe we are close to or have already achieved gender equality, real-world data on the gender pay gap, workplace discrimination and underrepresentation of women in leadership tell a different story,” she said.
“The fact that 50 per cent of Australians believe women are treated fairly in most areas of life ignores persistent challenges such as unpaid labour disparities, gender-based violence on our streets and in our homes and systemic barriers in career advancement.”
“In Australia, we’re seeing rising rhetoric against diversity, equity, and inclusion policies and a growing resistance to the notion of gender equality as a fundamental human right.”
The Gender Compass project is funded by the Minderoo Foundation, the Lord Mayor’s Charitable Foundation, the Snow Foundation, Equity Trustees, the Trawalla Foundation, Australians Investing in Women, and the Red Rocketship Foundation.
Ms Legena said the world now find itself at a pivotal moment in time, where backlash against gender equality, cuts to global aid, escalating humanitarian crises, and political and economic instability are rolling back decades of hard-won progress.
“From limits on reproductive rights to restrictions on education and growing gender-based violence, these shifts are not just happening in far-off countries—they are reaching our own shores,” said Legena.
“In Australia, we’re seeing rising rhetoric against diversity, equity, and inclusion policies and a growing resistance to the notion of gender equality as a fundamental human right.”
Legena said such trends meant it was vital to continue pushing towards a gender equal future.
“Gender Compass is a call to action for all of us—to engage, to listen, and to act with empathy and determination. The world needs us to be united in this effort.”
Launched in 2023, Gender Compass regularly surveys a diverse cohort of Australians aged over 16 on their attitudes and beliefs in relation to gender equality and segments them into six groups:
The research highlights that despite the wide range of views on gender equity, organisations have an opportunity to speak to all people about the subject in an effective and inclusive way.
To that end, Plan International has released a guide designed support people in effectively communicating about gender equality.
Lead researcher Dr Rebecca Huntley said the Gender Compass confirmed the effectiveness of communicating based on commonly held values, using accessible language.
“This, coupled with everyday examples of the impact on people of all genders in a range of settings, make the problem recognisable and relevant, [and] points the way forward for a more productive and impactful discussion about gender equality.”
Huntly said Phase Two of Gender Compass showed leaders and organisations how to energise the Trailblazers and avoid polarising the Rejectors.
“But it also, most critically, shows how we can engage the ‘moveable middle’ and bring more people into the conversation about gender equality, despite the political and social challenges of the moment.”