Queensland Government
Department of Communities, Child Safety and Disability Services

Work is a part of Queensland women's daily lives. It may be through a job in the paid workforce, in a volunteer role or caring for family or sick or aged relatives.

Research has highlighted several issues for women's life and work.

Queensland women generally have lower levels of financial security than men and are under-represented in emerging industries.

Families and caring are important issues for all Queenslanders, but particularly for women who usually fulfil caring roles in the family and community.

Women need to be able to balance their work, family and lifestyle commitments. And they need flexible and accessible education, training and employment pathways to help them participate in the workforce.

The Office for Women is working on policies and programs to:

  • change the culture around work and what are considered suitable jobs for women,
  • enable women to better combine work and family life,
  • establish lifelong learning opportunities for women in training and work and
  • improve workplace practice and culture to eliminate discrimination.

Policy directions to support Queensland women in the labour market include the following key areas:

  • Conditions of employment
  • Education/training and skills
  • Work/Life balance
  • Wages and income
  • Occupational segregation
  • Part-time work
  • Unpaid work
  • Childcare

Several of our Focus on Women papers discuss these issues. You can browse our resources and publications by topic.

Learn more about work-life balance issues from the Department of Justice and Attorney-General.

Table of contents:

Equal Pay Day 2011 - 1 September 2011

Equal Pay Day is an important initiative aimed at educating the wider community and enlivening debate, as well as educating the business community on the benefits of pay equity, conducting pay audits, and maintaining fair and equitable workplaces.

In 2008, the Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency (EOWA) marked Equal Pay Day for the first time in Australia. In 2008, it fell on August 27 - being the date that illustrates the number of extra days many women have to work after the end of the financial year to earn the same as men.

In 2009, Equal Pay Day took place on 1 September - an extra five days on 2008 - due to an increase in the national gender pay gap of one percentage point to 17.2 per cent. In 2010, Equal Pay Day took place on 4 September, an increase of 3 days from 2009.

This year in 2011, Equal Pay Day takes place on 1 September, reflecting the national pay gap of 17.2 per cent.

This means that, not only will women have less pay but, by 2019, it is likely that women will have only half the amount of superannuation of their male counterparts.

For further information about Equal Pay Day in Queensland, visit the Department of Justice and Attorney General website.

The Office for Women publication Profile: Queensland Women 2009 provides statistics about Queensland women's income and financial security.

Office of Fair Trading publications

The Office of Fair Trading has a number of handy publications to assist consumers, including Buy Smart, Property Smart, Car Smart and Retire Smart guides.