EMILY's List

The Gender Gap

Although women and men are born with the same fundamental human rights historically women's specific needs, priorities and experiences have been undervalued or ignored. This is the Gender Gap, the disparity between the way women and men are treated by society, specifically in public policy priorities.

Examples of the Gender Gap in public policy:

• The long term absence of a Paid Parental Leave Scheme, despite decades of increased employment participation of women
• Pay inequity for women workers in "caring" professions
• Workplace policies that prevent work-life balance or flexible working conditions
• Unaffordable and inaccessible childcare

Despite all the achievements of women since Suffrageand the rise of modern feminism, there is still a long way to go before the Gender Gap is bridged.
Consider these statistics:

• In Australia, women working full-time today earn 16 per cent less than men.
• Currently, the average superannuation payout for women is a third of the payout for men - $37,000 compared with $110, 000.
• In the top 200 companies listed on the Australian Stock Exchange women hold only 8.7 per cent of board directorships. The small number of CEO's who are women receive half the salary of their male counterparts.
• Women make up only 25% of the House of Representatives in the Parliament of Australia.
• In the 2008 Queen's Birthday Honours List, there were only four women out of 30 recipients who received awards in the top two categories.
• In the Federal Court of Australia, women make up only 13% of the bench.
• In the 2007 Global Gender Gap Report, released by the World Economic Forum, Australia ranked 35th for women's political empowerment.

The Gender Lens

EMILY's List Australia knows that when women support women, women win.

By applying a gender lens to your giving,prioritising programs and organisations that put women first - like EMILY's List Australia - you can help build the bridge across the Gender Gap.

Women are the great givers of society – as unpaidworkers and as philanthropists. However, sometimes we forget the importance of giving back to ourselves, our sisters and our daughters.

We are just starting to understand the importance of giving to women. EMILY's List has known for a long time that when women supportwomen, women win. In Australia, women

For more information about the importance of giving to women check out:

• Australian Women's Donor Network
• Victorian Women's Trust