Our audit data
The insights presented in this section are drawn from VGSO’s most recent workplace gender audit, conducted in line with the Gender Equality Act 2020 and the Gender Equality Amendment Regulations 2023, which require Victorian public sector organisations to complete a gender audit every two years.
This audit informs our obligations under the Act, including the development of our Gender Equality Action Plan (GEAP) and reporting on progress across the seven workplace gender equality indicators.
The data in this infographic covers the period 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2025 and is based on two key sources:
- Workforce data drawn from internal systems and DJCS data collection processes
- Employee experience data from the 2025 People Matter Survey
Insights from our last GEAP
VGSO's People & Culture (P&C) team assumed responsibility for delivering our most recent GEAP. As a result, P&C-led initiatives - such as overseeing proposed remuneration prior to offer to support equitable pay outcomes and mitigate gender‑based pay disparities in recruitment, as well as using tracking tools to monitor the impact of role reclassification and role resizing activities on gender pay equity - have been successful and led to positive progress in median pay gap.
It was recognised that there was an opportunity to promote greater ownership and shared responsibility of VGSO's gender equality actions including increased leadership accountability and greater participation from all levels and genders of our workforce.
This is why ‘Accountability, ownership, and visible progress’ had been identified as a key focus area of the GEAP - to ensure that equality and inclusion are shared responsibilities, supported by clear expectations, transparency, and measurable outcomes.
Consultation process
Two rounds of consultation were taken with VGSO employees and our governing body (Executive Leadership Team), as follows:
Employees
Consultation round 1 (Feb 2026) - Two online consultation sessions where audit results where shared and employees were invited to ask questions, share observations and then provide their feedback to 3 key questions:
- Potential focus areas - their suggestions for which areas we should prioritise in our next GEAP
- Ideas and actions - for the priorities they identified, what initiatives or actions would help address them
- Progress and success measures - what would meaningful progress look like on the issues they identified?
A session recording and anonymous feedback form with the same 3 questions was then circulated to all staff via the weekly staff newsletter for those that were unable to attend a live consultation session.
Consultation round 2 (March 2026) - A draft plan, integrating both audit findings and employee-identified priorities, was shared with all employees for their feedback. This included the use of an anonymous feedback form that asked employees to:
- Rate their overall agreement with the statement 'Overall, the draft plan addresses the right gender equality priorities for VGSO'
- For each of the 3 priority focus areas, rate how important the area was to them, and provide any feedback on the actions and success measures
Employees were encouraged to review and provide feedback to draft focus areas, actions and measures at VGSO's International Women's Day celebration, where key audit insights were revisited with attendees.
"Gender inequality has wellbeing impact on individuals and impact on cohesiveness of teams. We need to be clear about why we want to fix these problems and it's not just a box to tick, but to improve everyone's working life."
Consultation feedback
Governing body
Consultation round 1 (January 2026) - A workplace gender audit report and discussion paper was presented to the Executive Leadership Team (ELT) for discussion and feedback about potential focus areas for VGSO's next GEAP. The paper highlighted both positive developments and areas that warranted further investigation and action.
Consultation round 2 (March 2026) - Running in parallel with the second round of employee consultation, a second discussion paper was submitted to the ELT. This paper focused on the proposed priority focus areas, actions and success measures for VGSO's next GEAP and invited their feedback, including any gaps or concerns prior to finalisation.
Employee representative body
Consultation between VGSO and Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) was undertaken in April 2026 in line with obligations. VGSO shared and invited feedback on sections D & E of the GEAP template, which included:
- VGSO's case for change and vision
- Summary of the underlying causes of gender inequality at VGSO
- The gender equality issues surfaced by VGSO's workplace audit data under each indicator, and the strategies and metrics that VGSO has set to address these
- The additional areas of focus VGSO has opted to include in our GEAP.
VGSO noted that most suggested improvements were addressed through actions already in place and/or will be in the implementation and execution of the plan.
Consultation findings
Employee feedback from the first round of consultation about potential focus areas highlighted systemic barriers women face throughout the employment lifecycle, including pay gaps, underrepresentation at senior levels, perceptions of unequal non-billable and "invisible" work, and limited pipeline data to where and why inequity occurs. Staff also called for a more human, purpose-led commitment to gender equality that addresses intersecting identities, normalises equitable parental leave for all genders, and tackles the cultural and structural conditions driving gender inequality.
Interesting insights were raised around wellbeing and stress, with staff suggesting that women carry an unequal distribution of non-billable, administrative and "office housekeeping" work which may contribute to higher levels of work-related stress compared to men. An analysis of People Matter Survey data revealed a notable difference in high-to-severe workload stress between genders within the organisation (3% for men versus 17% for women). These employee-identified priorities have been incorporated in our GEAP across all 3 priority focus areas.
Organisational engagement with the consultation process was low with only about 6% of the workforce attending a consultation session and/or providing their anonymous feedback. For this reason, priority area 2 of VGSO's GEAP relates to 'Accountability, ownership and visible progress' building responsibility on gender equality through clear expectations, leadership accountability, transparency, and capability-building.
"We need better data to help us understand how gender inequality is affecting people day to day, not just the statistics."
Consultation on the proposed GEAP strategies largely affirmed the overall direction of the plan, with respondents agreeing that it appropriately addresses key gender equality priorities. No new priority areas or gaps were identified. The majority of feedback centred on the implementation of the plan, emphasising the importance of ensuring its feasibility and the availability of adequate resources to support the delivery of all strategies. The phased implementation approach, use of existing organisational processes and operating rhythms, and dedicated internal resources will help ensure these feedback concerns are effectively addressed.
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