But we want more women in the team...

There are a couple of problems with this statement.

The first is that it can be illegal. You can’t just hire someone on gender alone, even if it is to address a gender imbalance in your industry or workplace. Not even just because you want to. There are Federal and State Laws re discrimination and, so no, you cannot hire on gender alone. Unless of course, you have applied for and gained an exemption (for specific gender-based role or team – think Prison Correctional Officer) under your State Act. So, gender can’t be the deciding factor, and recruitment must be based on merit (you want the best applicant for the role). Not on any of the 22 possible discrimination attributes covered under State and Federal laws.

The second is that many employers who wish for more women in their workforce – often don’t deserve them!!

They are usually just not female friendly workplaces. Remember, women in the workplace still do the majority of domestic chores and care giving at home. In fact, they carry out about 70% of domestic duties compared to their male counterparts (42%) on average (ABS). Whether that is domestic duties like shopping or childcare, or looking after ageing parents, even ageing in-laws. You can check out the stats here ABS website.

In sociology, this is known as the "Double Burden." Many workplaces still fail to offer female-friendly or flexible work environments. We've spoken to several hiring managers who insist that roles cannot be job-shared, must maintain strict 9-to-5 hours, or require a five-day workweek. There are no options for flexible schedules, part-time work, or school-hour shifts, and some jobs involve unsociable hours. Even small details like a lack of female restrooms, absence of parent rooms, or a "blokey" culture—where office footy tipping is common but outings to the theatre or ballet are overlooked—contribute to this imbalance.

It could be arbitrary requirements like asking for "15 years of experience" in an engineering role or counting the number of academic papers published to become a professor—criteria that often put parents, especially mothers, five years behind their male counterparts due to time taken for childcare. Another issue is the lack of affordable or free parking in many city centres after 8:30 a.m. (the early bird parking deals are often gone by then). This timeframe coincides with when most parents, especially those with limited childcare options, are doing school drop-offs. As a result, parking alone can become prohibitively expensive—up to $150 a week—which is particularly burdensome for a single mum/dad.

Or maybe it’s just that “blokey” environment again and the job descriptions and adverts are written in a male language (it’s a thing - check out Textio for a more neutral language in your position descriptions and job adverts).

These barriers to hire are real and can mean that someone (women) just can’t take the job with you (even though they are brilliant in your field).

It's time to flex your thinking! To attract more women into your workplace you might just need to take a long hard look at your culture and your facilities. Are you really flex? What could be done differently, and would open the door to so many more great candidate applications? Dads have carer responsibilities too.

One client told us that they didn’t have any women in a particular technical team because 1. Women don’t want to work nights! And 2. It was unsafe to walk to the car park after dark (well I say...work it out).

It’s not about having a policy: with mixed gender on interview panels, it’s about having a flexible attitude, women friendly culture and benefits and flex in the work environment and mean it. If women can be in the Army, a mine site, a nurse, a doctor, a police officer, I am sure they can work night shifts. Or someone can walk them to their car? To encourage women into the work place you need to live it breath it. And – maybe even change!

To find out more check out websites like Work180 who endorse women friendly workplaces. You’ll see their logo on job adverts and the bottom of Recruiter emails. Think also about paid time off, paid maternity, women in the executive team, pay equity, career development, policies and support. Women will be checking these things out about you. Also remember to advertise where the women hang out (fish where they fish are).

A final question to all our female colleges – as a woman in the workplace, and good in your chosen profession - was there ever a barrier to hire that stopped you taking a job? That the employer could have easily changed - but just could not see – or be flexible and change for you – like hours, parking, job share, resources/ pay?

We'd love to hear what you think - please return to the Facebook post and share your thoughts with us.

Author: Rachel Hill
October 22, 2024
Rachel Hill, Managing Director of Hill Consulting HRS and The Recruitment Skills Academy, brings 30+ years of global expertise in recruitment and talent strategy. She helps organisations attract top talent, improve processes, and upskill leaders. Passionate about candidate experience, diversity, and efficiency, Rachel’s mission is simple: “Recruit Better.”