Gender inequality in the media industry
Research has long indicated that the arts and media in Australia is particularly egregious for gender equality and violence against women. The WGEA finds that in 2022-23, the average total remuneration gender pay gap in the Information Media and Telecommunications Industry was 19.5%, and 71% of the people employed in the upper pay quartile and 65% of those employed in the upper middle pay quartile are men (with an industry gender split of 41% women 59% men). The Australian Human Rights Commission has consistently found the Information, Media and Telecommunications Industry one of the worst in terms of sexual harassment prevalence: the 2022 Time for Respect report found that 64% of respondents working in this industry had experienced sexual harassment in the last 5 years, including 75% of women and 55% of men surveyed. 3% of all incidents of sexual harassment measured by the Human Rights Commission took place in the industry, despite it making up only 1% of Australia’s workforce.
The reasons for gender inequality in media are many. The Australian Human Rights Commission’s Respect@Work Report identifies the ‘male-dominated’ nature and culture of the industry, its competitive nature, the fact that workers rely on opportunities from powerful industry ‘gatekeepers’ and the prevalent use of social media as part of work as key factors. Furthermore, there is the fact that the media industry has a high level of freelance and other workers with fewer protections, as well as marginalised workers such as young people.
In spite of this knowledge, there has been very little research focused specifically on the media and arts industry, and less still produced by people within this industry. In this context, Women In Media have released their Industry Insight Report for 2024. Its findings are drawn from a survey of 329 women in various roles across the media sector, giving a crucial insight into the troubles faced by women in media as identified by these women themselves. Unfortunately, the results are disheartening, if not alarming.
Gender equality in media
As countless studies have revealed, issues such as the gender pay gap, sexual harassment, violence against women, and gendered promotion and leadership gaps are rooted in pervasive gender inequality. These are the beliefs, assumptions and practices of individuals workplaces, organisations, industry and broader society that perpetuate a system in which men are considered superior, granted more opportunities, and shielded from accountability for causing harm. Organisations and industries that do not take gender equality seriously risk fostering issues from pay and leadership gaps to gendered violence.
Women In Media’s report affirms the WGEA’s data that the media industry is desperately lacking. 56% of respondents to their survey held a negative view of the sector’s commitment to gender equality, considering it to be either somewhat or very weak. While certain aspects of the media sector, such as film and television, have made some efforts to address sexual harassment and representation of women, there has been no industry-wide commitment to and plan to improve gender equality. Without this collective effort, individual organisations, of varying size and capacities, are left to make their own choices, with little accountability or oversight.
Leaky pipelines and career stagnation
Women In Media’s report further reveals a startling level of career dissatisfaction. 57% of women indicated that they are dissatisfied or unsure about their career progress, with particularly high rates among women early in their careers and at career mid-points. This indicates a three-year high in career dissatisfaction as measured by Women in Media, as 35% of women – largely in mid-level or senior positions - consider quitting their jobs. Of this 35%, 58% have concerns about the amount they are being paid.
These figures indicate that Australia’s media industry might be a ‘leaky pipeline’. The ‘leaky pipeline’ is a metaphor first used to describe the experiences of women in STEM. It suggests that the STEM industries progressively lose more and more women at key moments of career transition, in the same way a faulty pipe leaks water at its joints. The ‘leaky pipeline’ theory notes that women find it harder to gain postgraduate positions, attain grants, or move up either in academia or in private organisations, and this difficulty compels disproportionate numbers of women to leave STEM altogether.
Women In Media’s evidence for a similar ‘leaky pipeline’ is strong. Respondents who indicated that their careers were not progressing at the rate they would like identified problems such as a lack of opportunities and little managerial support as driving causes of this dissatisfaction, and noted that better pay and more opportunities for growth would encourage them to stay. Of those women considering leaving their current jobs, almost equal numbers will seek their next positions in the media industry (19%) as outside of it (16%).
The media pay gap
As WGEA’s data collection already suggests, there is a serious gender pay gap in the media industry. Reflecting this, many respondents to Women In Media’s survey expressed concerns about how much they are being paid. 26% of respondents identified pay as a major ‘driver to leave’ their job. Qualitative responses from women noted that the norm of precarious and unstable work is a particular concern: one respondent noted that ‘a full-time job’ would get them to stay in the industry, while another noted that they were on their ‘sixth fixed contract in three years’. 58% of women were concerned that pay rates would affect their pathways to future opportunities in the media industry.
Low pay and job insecurity go hand-in-hand to marginalise women economically. Financial inequality can exacerbates other forms of gender inequality: for instance, fears about losing one’s job can preclude women from reporting sexual harassment. The average weekly earnings gender pay gap in the Information Media and Telecommunications Industry is $409.40, compared to the national average of $268.95.
A clear vision for the future
From these insights, Women In Media have developed a number of recommendations aimed at employers wanting to better support women in the industry. These recommendations echo broader research on workplace gender equality that emphasises the crucial role leaders play in committing to improvement. Leaders are responsible for steering their organisations in the right direction: in this case, to better transparency and prioritisation of gender equality, through equal hiring, promotion and remuneration practices.
Respondents themselves noted that normalising gender pay audits across the industry could make it easier for them to stay in the work they love. Gender pay audits involve similar analyses to regular audits, but their focus is on revealing the nature, extent and causes of pay gaps in an organisation. They involve identifying comparable work in the organisation and assessing whether genders are paid equally for this comparable work. The further involve identifying drivers of gender pay gaps specific to an organisation and developing a targeted action plan to address and improve. The Fair Work Ombudsman recommends many of these steps as ‘best practice’ to achieve gender pay equity within an organisation.
WGEA finds that 84% of employers in the Information Media and Telecommunications Industry have policies in place for equal remuneration. Women In Media’s research suggests that while these policies are in place, they are not effective in targeting the real causes of the pay gap in the industry. Identifying these causes, and the weaknesses in existing policy and strategy, will be crucial to better foster equality going forward.
In terms of further action to be taken, respondents to the Women In Media survey called for a commitment by employers to providing professional development and learning for women and investing in sponsorship programs. Open responses from women further underscored the importance of an intersectional approach to gender equality in the media industry, with respondents calling for ‘neurodiverse affirming practices’, ‘disability inclusion’ and ‘sweeping changes to the industry to stamp out racial bias and discrimination’.
The alignment of respondents to Women In Media’s survey with demonstrated best practice for organisational gender equality underscores yet again the importance of consulting with workers when planning to improve equity in an organisation. Women In Media’s data is shocking, but this shock should not paralyse. Women In Media and the women they survey engage in this research as a call to action – one that should be heeded across and beyond the media industry.