BLOG: Gender Equality Act – Sailing the Seven Cs of Smooth Implementation

The Gender Equality Act 2020 came into effect on 31st March 2021. There are several actions that defined entities will need to undertake to fulfil their obligations under the Act, including Workplace Gender Audits, Gender Equality Action Plans (GEAPs), and Gender Impact Assessments (GIAs). For many organisations, this means heading into uncharted waters. Following are some tips to maximise your chances of smooth sailing.

1: Contextualise

Staff members across your organisation need to understand why you are doing this work. Emphasise that this not ‘just another compliance requirement’. Rather, this is about making our workplaces, programs, and services fairer and more accessible, and improving the lives of women and girls across Victoria. Highlight how this work aligns with your organisational values. (If words like fairness, equality, respect, learning, diversity, experience, innovation, quality, collaboration, or leadership appear in any of your organisational statements, you’re off to a great start!) Knowing the context for why this work is important can help get staff members on board.

2: Create a plan 

Familiarise yourself with the requirements of the Gender Equality Act and create a plan for managing your organisation’s obligations.  

Construct a timeline of key dates. Some of these dates are fixed – for example, your Workplace Gender Audit takes place on 30th June and your initial Gender Equality Action Plan (GEAP) is due for submission on 31st October this year. You will then need to submit your first progress report by 31st October 2023. Keeping these dates in mind, plan out a manageable review cycle for your policies, programs, and services. It’s probably unwise to have all reviews due at the same time, as this will mean having to undertake many Gender Impact Assessments at once – a huge task! How many GIAs do you anticipate having capacity to undertake in any given year/semester/quarter? What other key dates do you need to plan around (e.g. EOFY, semester dates, public holidays, other dates specific to your sector)? 

Consider also your priority areas for this first year of implementation. While the first round of gender audits and GEAPs must be completed this year, there is some discretion with Gender Impact Assessments. GIAs need to be conducted on all policies, programs, and services that are new or up for review, and which have a ‘direct and significant’ impact on the public. What does ‘direct and significant’ impact mean for your organisation? If you have new programs or services on offer this year, how will you embed Gender Impact Assessments in the planning process? Of your existing policies, programs, and services, which would you like to review this year? Which ones might be better scheduled for review once you have a couple of GIAs under your belt? Perhaps, for example, you might consider prioritising smaller policies or programs this year – dip your toes in the water to start with, rather than diving in head first and finding yourself overwhelmed by the process. 

3: Consider your strengths and needs

What strengths, knowledge, and experience already exist in your organisation? How can you harness this expertise for your gender equality work? Who in your organisation needs upskilling? 

Who is supportive of gender equality? Who else needs to be brought on board?

What gaps are there in your current information? How will you fill these?

Whose voices are missing from the conversation?

4: Collaborate across teams/departments

This is not just a job for Gender Equity Officers or Diversity and Inclusion teams! While these folks will have expertise in the area of gender equality, they may not have specific knowledge of all the day-to-day work of other teams. They may not know about revenue and rates, or water infrastructure, or IT, or forensic services, or curriculum planning, or medical procedures. Staff members from other teams within the organisation are the ones with this type of specialist expertise – so everyone will need to work together to meet your organisation’s obligations under the Gender Equality Act. 

Some organisations have asked their HR department to take the lead on the internal obligations of the Gender Equality Act (gender audit/GEAP) and their Diversity and Inclusion teams (or equivalent) to take the lead on the external obligations (GIAs). However, all teams/departments that provide programs or services to the public will need to be involved in this work. For some organisations, this may well mean every single team! This fits well with what we know about effective cultural change – that is, a whole-of-organisation approach works best. 

So make sure you get gender on the agenda, right across your organisation!

5: Collect information 

Capture data. If you’ve not already been doing this, start as soon as possible! Consider collecting not only data on gender, but also other characteristics that may compound experiences of disadvantage or discrimination, such as race, Aboriginality, religion, disability, age, and sexual orientation. 

Consult the people affected by your policies, programs, and services – your staff members, program/service users, community members.

Collate, deidentify, and disaggregate results. These will be used to complete the key actions required by the Gender Equality Act – Workplace Gender Audits, Gender Equality Action Plans, and Gender Impact Assessments – as well as for reporting purposes. These results can (and should!) also be used to inform continuous improvement processes within your organisation.  

The more information you have, the easier you will find it to fulfil your obligations under the Gender Equality Act, and the better you will be able to understand the needs of the people you work with and for. 

6: Connect with Women’s Health East

Women’s Health East is here to support organisations with implementation of the Gender Equality Act, so please reach out and connect with us! 

We are in the process of developing a series of training sessions around the Gender Equality Act, and will publicise details once finalised. Watch this space!

We can also offer tailored packages, so please contact us if you would like to discuss your organisation’s specific training and support needs.

7: Communicate

Good communication is key to the success of any change initiative. It can assist in building trust with stakeholders, and maximising their engagement in the process. 

Explain to your staff members why you are undertaking this work, how it aligns with your organisation’s values, and what their role in the process will be. Convey to your Board members the fantastic opportunity this work provides to strengthen your organisation’s gender equality credentials and add value for your clients/service users. Let your clients/service users know that you are listening: that you will use what you learn to improve your programs and services so that they do not contribute to gender inequality, and so they better meet the needs of women and girls. Reassure all of your stakeholders that data will be deidentified and you will maintain their privacy. 

Communicate the wins too! Let people know what gains you’ve made, however small they might seem. Track and celebrate your progress with members of your workplace and your community! 

In summary, to ensure the process of implementing the Gender Equality Act is as smooth as possible, plan early; collect as much information as possible; keep good records of actions you have taken; and communicate with all key internal and external stakeholders so they know what is happening, when, and why. The Gender Equality Act represents a fantastic opportunity for organisations to show some genuine leadership in the workplace and the community, and for all of us to make substantial progress towards gender equality. 

You definitely do not want that ship to sail without you. 

 

-by Kirsty Kain, WHE Training Coordinator