Women Leaders In Aged Care Private Sector: Ask For A Pay Rise!

Australian women executives, general managers, & managers in the aged care private sector are paid 8% - 18% less than their male peers.

© Danielle Robertson Consulting Pty Ltd t/as DR Care Solutions

For the first time, the Commonwealth Government’s Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA)^[1] last week released its gender pay gap data across private sector employers with more than 100 employees.

This means that you can go into the WGEA Data Explorer tool^[2], find an employer and explore differences between the pay levels of their men and women employees, and find out what they plan to do about it.

On releasing the data, WGEA said that across all employers in all sectors, 50% have a gender pay gap of over 9.1%. An acceptable pay gap is +/-5%^[3].

Pay gap in aged care sector revealed

Our exploration of the industry data on the major residential care employers of 5,000 or more employees, which also includes some of the major home care providers, showed that:

• Women executives and general managers are paid around 8% less than their male counterparts.

• Women managers are paid around 18% less than their male counterparts.

So this International Women’s Day (8 March 2024), if you hold one of these roles, consider the opportunity WGEA has given you to have a conversation with your employer about your level of pay.

If you work for a smaller organisation and/or hold a different role, explore the data to see whether your male counterpart is paid more, and if necessary, start a conversation.

Celebrating our women leaders in the aged care private sector

Last year we started celebrating our women leaders in the aged care private sector and we’re keeping that tradition.

Within the 20 largest residential care providers in Australia^[4], we celebrate the leadership of:

1. Rachel Argaman, CEO of Opal since May 2018

2. Linda Mellors, CEO of Regis since September 2019

3. Tracey Burton, CEO of Uniting & Wesley Mission NSW since April 2018

4. Ingrid Harvey, CEO of Blue Cross since March 2022

5. Angela Nolan, CEO of Mercy Services since October 2022

6. Janet Muir, CEO of RSL LifeCare since September 2022

7. Cathy Thomas, Group Executive, Blue Care since February 2019

8. Maryann Curry, Chief Executive, Residential Care, Anglicare (Sydney), since April 2023

And within the 20 largest home care package providers^[4] we celebrate:

1. Prue Bowden, CEO, Home Health, Australian Unity

2. Dale Fisher AM, CEO, Silverchain

3. Deidre McGill, Chief Operating Officer, Home & Community Support, Bolton Clarke

4. Sarah Warner, Co-Franchise Owner, Home Instead

5. Sarah Newman, General Manager, BaptistCare at Home NSW & ACT

6. Geraldine Lannon, CEO, Baptcare

7. Sue Cooke, Executive Director, Anglicare Southern Queensland

8. Mel Ottaway, Executive Manager, Community & Living Services , Resthaven

9. Bernadette Gotch, CEO, KinCare

10. Catherine Daley, CEO, Integratedliving Australia

11. Lynda Chalmers, CEO, Care Connect

12. Karen Sahli, Co-Franchise Owner, Right at Home

13. Cassandra Matthews, Chief Executive, Seniors Living, Anglicare (Sydney)

The leader listings have been researched and compiled by DR Care Solutions.

In a sector dominated by women employees (81%)^[2], one would naturally expect a majority representation of women in chief executive and general manager positions. For those holding these positions, take a look at WGEA’s recent pay gap data release.

Need help caring for or supporting a loved one? Please feel free to call me, Danielle Robertson, at any time for an initial complimentary discussion on how to set up the right care, support and assistance at the right time and in the right place.

Resources

^[1] Australian Government Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA)
^[2] WGEA Data Explorer
^[3] WGEA Employer Gender Pay Gaps Published First Time
^[4] KPMG Aged Care Market Analysis 2023