Inclusion, in all its forms, is an important part of how we do business, and key to this, is paying people equally for the work they do, regardless of gender. We recognise the importance of pay equity, and understand its essential role in promoting fairness and equality within our organisation which is why it's been a focus for us over many years.
Our approach to gender pay equity is multifaceted, encompassing pay equity reviews, recruitment practices, pipelining female talent through structured career pathways and fostering an inclusive culture. We are dedicated to ongoing progress and believe that a diverse and inclusive workforce is key to our future success.
As a proud member of the Champions of Change Property Group, we are committed to all aspects of gender equality in our organisation and across our sector. We measure gender pay equity by comparing the remuneration of our people on a 'like for like role' basis. When measured in this way, there is no material difference between the compensation of male and female employees at Charter Hall.
WGEA measures gender pay equity in a different way, looking at median earnings between our male and female employees, regardless of their role or seniority. Under this methodology our headline figure stands at 31.3%. The main factors leading to this differential are a higher representation of males in senior leadership roles, a higher proportion of males in revenue generating roles that attract a premium within the property market, and a higher representation of females in support roles.
Increasing the female talent pipeline and creating a gender inclusive environment for all employees has been a key focus for the last five years. This has been sponsored by our Managing Director & Group CEO David Harrison and is championed through the business by our Executive Committee. While we’re on track to achieve our 2025 gender targets, we know that there is always more work to do to ensure gender equality and ultimately, achieve gender balance across all levels of our business. The below factors are notable areas of focus towards ensuring pay equity, and we will continue to invest our efforts in addressing these:
The higher proportion of men in senior leadership positions is a significant driver in the difference between male and female (median) earnings at Charter Hall. We are actively working to address this through several initiatives including pipelining female talent through the business with structured career pathways to fast-track their growth, providing mentoring programs both internally and through our industry partners, and setting clear diversity goals (learn more below). The graph on the right-hand side of the page shows the progress that has been made over the last five years.
Specific roles within our organisation, particularly revenue-generating positions such as funds management and asset management, tend to attract higher compensation and have a higher representation of male employees. We are working to diversify the workforce in these roles. Since 2018, we have increased female representation in our revenue generating roles from 15.2% to 33.6% in 2023.
When you decide to join Charter Hall, you're not just starting a new job; you're forming a lifelong connection within a dynamic, diverse and supportive community.
Our Alumni program celebrates the bond we share and offers a way for us to come together, to meet, connect and partner.
We want to empower our people to pursue their passions and find purpose. And for many employees, giving back is a meaningful way to make a difference and enrich their own lives.
When you work with us, you can volunteer – as part of a team or in your local community, take part in our dollar matching payroll giving program or raise money for charitable organisations. Whatever you choose, we provide the resources and support.
Through our scholarship program you can get hands-on experience working at one of Australia’s leading integrated property groups, and gain access to potential job opportunities at the end of the program.
Over the last five years, we've implemented the following initiatives to ensure gender pay equity and promote workplace equality.
We've conducted annual pay equity reviews each year for five years as part of our annual remuneration review to identify and rectify any gender-based pay disparities. We have historically provided an additional budget to leaders for closing any like-for-like pay gaps.
We offer leadership development programs and mentorship opportunities to support the advancement of women into senior roles. We also identify key revenue-generating roles within our business that typically feed into senior management positions and support the growth of internal female talent into these roles.
We're a founding member of Property Champions of Change, bringing together the leading organisations across the property industry to ideate and deliver gender equity initiatives.
Whilst our primary place of work is the office, we promote a culture of flexible working (work from home, flexible start / finish times and work from anywhere technology), with formal agreements in place for a transitionary period when returning from parental leave.
Ongoing training and awareness programs are in place to foster an inclusive workplace culture that values diversity. This is evident in our onboarding program where we have a series of inclusion awareness training modules, right through to our senior Leadership Development Programs that upskills our leaders in inclusive leadership practices.
We continually review and adjust our recruitment practices to ensure a diverse candidate pool and fair selection criteria. This includes diverse hiring panels and a 50/50 gender shortlists when partnering with external agencies. We measure the percentage of promotions and career rotations that are female and provide gender insights for leaders on performance and talent assessments to identify any unconscious bias.
We are continually reviewing our policies to ensure equality in our approach and encourage male uptake in caring roles.