Gender pay equity, wage fixation and industrial relations reform in Australia : one step forward and two steps backwards?

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to discuss the impact on the new federal wage fixing system on gender pay equity in Australia. Design/methodology/approach - The article is divided into four parts. The first section briefly examines the policy approach to the issue of gender pay equity in other Anglophone counties and the history of pay (in)equity under the Australian tribunal based industrial relations system. The second section overviews the recent developments at the State level in Australia focused on gender pay equity. The third section discusses recent cases in State wage fixing systems in Australia designed to remedy the gender based undervaluation of children's services employees. The fourth and final section discusses the implications of the new "national" workplace relations laws in the context of gender pay equity in Australia. Findings - The capacity of State tribunals to continue to apply gender free wage determinations is under threat because of the federal government's 2006 "reforms" to the Australian industrial relations and wage fixation systems. Originality/value - The commissioned case studies and inquiries demonstrate that governments - and State Labor governments in particular - have placed the issue of the gender earnings gap on the policy agenda.