For small businesses, or any business for that matter, you wouldn’t want to waste your most valuable resource: your employees. Yet, according to the NSW government, women are still underutilised in the Australian workforce, and that’s hurting productivity.
Equal opportunity only takes a little mindfulness, but juggling running your business and implementing effective strategies can make things difficult. It might pay to get some expert help with managing your finances to ensure your workplace is one that promotes equality, so you can get back to making the most of your resources.
Make the most of your employees by promoting equality.Equality in the workforce
According to the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA), we still have a ways to go. On average, for Australian businesses, women make up 46.2 per cent of employees, yet are paid 16.2 per cent less than men. Considering that 90.1 per cent of women in the workforce have attained year 12 qualification or above compared to only 86.3 per cent of men, Australian businesses are missing out by not providing everyone an equal opportunity.
The good news is that Australia is making strong headway towards a more balanced workforce. American Express’ Shop Small report on Australian small business found that while currently 64 per cent of owners are male, there is a strong rebalancing in younger generations of SME leaders, with women making up 41 per cent of owners under 34.
Australian businesses are missing out by not providing everyone an equal opportunity.
Small businesses may feel the effect more
The reality is that for a small team, the impact of things like parental leave will be felt more strongly than larger businesses, and with limited resources available, you can be forgiven for thinking that equal treatment is a challenge rather than an opportunity.
However, this is far from the case. WGEA recommends identifying areas to improve on things like pay equality, analysing your business data and implementing an effective strategy is a good place to start for businesses looking to improve the equality of their workplace.
By getting some financial help identifying opportunities to treat employees fairly, you free your hands to get back to running your business and doing what you do best. At DBS Accountants, we consider a business as a whole in identifying ways to not just improve your bottom line, but to promote a more equal and ultimately more productive workplace.
To find out more about how our financial advice and planning can improve your business, get in touch with our team today.