Our reported gender pay gap (GPG) is (average) 11.6% against an industry average of (average) 11.7% for law firms of a similar size and the Australian average of 21.8%. The GPG is the difference in average earnings between all men and women irrespective of job role, seniority and location. That difference is expressed as a percentage of men's average salary. The data used by the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) to calculate the GPG is from 30 March 2024, our compliance reporting date to WGEA.

The significant driver of our gender pay gap result is that a higher proportion of women are employed in clerical and administration roles than men. These are roles that have been traditionally held by women and attract lower market value pay than other roles in the firm. This is an issue across the legal industry and is not unique to us. These roles are paid appropriately for the required skills and qualifications when recruited.

Our ability to close our organisation-wide pay gap remains heavily contingent on recruiting far greater numbers of men into clerical and administrative roles. This is a significant challenge when operating within a recruitment market where women make up the majority of available candidates for these roles.

It is important to note that we support transparency and reporting on the GPG to examine the gender profile of all organisations. At CBP we are equally committed to perform an annual gender equity review analysis to assess the remuneration of men and women performing comparable roles. This process is known as equal pay for equal work.

How does gender pay gap reporting differ from equal pay?

Equal pay means men and women being paid the same remuneration for carrying out the same or similar work. We analyse gender pay equity at each career level within our firm. This is a legal requirement and is carefully monitored in the firm through our annual remuneration review and gender pay equity review process. It is also checked as part of our recruitment protocol. Our results show us that we are paying men and women equitably at each career level.

Our analysis considers factors such as performance, location and years of experience. We also monitor factors such as periods of absence including parental leave, and those choosing to work part time, to ensure no barriers exist for particular cohorts of our people.