Gender equality reporting software helps Australian employers report against the six gender equality indicators that WGEA tracks, not just the pay gap. That includes workforce composition, governing body composition, and policies on flexible work, harassment, and discrimination. Because larger employers must now hold strategies for each indicator, the software manages both the data and the policy evidence in one place.
Key takeaways
- Gender equality reporting is broader than the pay gap; it spans six indicators WGEA tracks.
- According to WGEA, employers with 500 or more staff must have policies or strategies for each gender equality indicator.
- The six indicators include workforce composition, governing bodies, equal remuneration, flexible work, harassment, and consultation.
- Software helps by holding both the numeric workforce data and the policy evidence in one system.
- Reporting is a starting point; the indicators are really a framework for building a fairer workplace.
What is gender equality reporting software?
Gender equality reporting software helps employers collect, manage, and report the data and policies that make up their annual gender equality report. It covers the full set of WGEA indicators, from workforce composition to policies on harassment and flexible work. As a result, you report against every indicator from one system, rather than gathering evidence from scattered documents and spreadsheets each year. It works alongside your WGEA reporting software and automated WGEA data submission, which produce and file the compulsory return.
The category is broader than pay, which is a common point of confusion. Many people equate gender equality reporting with the gender pay gap reporting tool, but pay is only one of six indicators. It also covers who sits on your board, how you handle flexible work, and your policies on discrimination. So the software manages both numbers and evidence. That is why it usually sits inside your broader WGEA reporting capability.
What are the six gender equality indicators?
The six gender equality indicators are the framework WGEA uses to assess workplace gender equality. They cover the gender composition of the workforce, the gender composition of governing bodies, equal remuneration between women and men, availability of flexible work and support for carers, consultation with employees on gender equality, and policies to prevent sex-based harassment and discrimination.
Each indicator asks a different question about your organisation. Workforce composition asks how men and women are distributed across levels. Governing body composition asks about representation at the top. Equal remuneration covers the pay gap and pay equity. So together, the six indicators paint a fuller picture than any single number. According to WGEA, employers report against all of these through the workplace profile and questionnaires.
The policy indicators are where evidence matters most. For flexible work, harassment, and discrimination, you must show that you hold relevant policies and, increasingly, that you act on them. This connects directly to your compliance and records, because the policies and their acknowledgements are the evidence. So gender equality reporting is not only about counting people; it is also about proving what your organisation actually does.
Why does gender equality reporting go beyond the pay gap?
Gender equality reporting goes beyond the pay gap because pay is a symptom, not the whole story. The pay gap often reflects deeper patterns. It shows how men and women spread across roles, who reaches senior positions, and whether flexible work is real. So the broader indicators reveal causes that the pay number alone only hints at.
The regulatory bar has also risen. Since 2024, employers with 500 or more employees must have policies or strategies in place for each of the six gender equality indicators. So for larger organisations, holding and evidencing policies is now a requirement, not a nice-to-have. This raises the stakes on record-keeping, because you must be able to show the policy existed and was in force. A system that stores policies with version history and acknowledgements makes this provable. That is a core job of a WGEA compliant HRIS.
There is a strategic case too. The six indicators together form a practical framework for building a fairer workplace. When you track representation, flexibility, and consultation alongside pay, you understand your organisation more deeply. So the reporting requirement, handled well, becomes a lens for genuine improvement rather than a box to tick. This ties into your wider HRIS for mid-sized companies, because the same people data underpins every one of these views.
What should gender equality reporting software do?
Good software does four things. First, it captures workforce composition data by gender and level from your live records. Second, it stores and tracks the policies tied to each indicator, with version history and acknowledgements. Third, it produces the reporting outputs WGEA requires. Finally, it lets you monitor progress over time, so you can see whether your actions are working.
The combination of data and evidence is the key capability. Numeric indicators like workforce and governing body composition come from your employee database, so they should build automatically from live records. Policy indicators need document management, so the software must store policies and prove acknowledgement. When both live in one system, you report against every indicator without hunting for evidence. So the software removes the annual scramble across data and documents alike.
Progress tracking is the feature that turns reporting into improvement. Because gender equality changes slowly, you need to see the trend across years. When the software records each indicator over time, you can tell whether representation is improving or flexible work is expanding. So the report becomes a management tool, not just a compliance artefact.
Is gender equality reporting best handled in your HRIS?
For most mid-sized Australian employers, gender equality reporting belongs inside the HRIS. The reason is that the indicators draw on people data and policies that already live there. Workforce composition comes from your records, and the policies sit in your document and compliance modules. So a built-in capability reports from one source, while a separate tool needs you to feed it data and evidence from elsewhere.
A standalone tool can help if you have highly specialised reporting needs beyond what your HRIS offers. However, for the six WGEA indicators specifically, integration wins, because the data and evidence are already in the HRIS. This is a core reason mid-market teams choose an Australian-built HRIS that treats gender equality reporting as a native feature. Global platforms rarely build for the Australian indicators at all.
The honest trade-off is breadth versus focus. A dedicated diversity platform may offer deeper analytics across many equity dimensions. For WGEA gender equality reporting, though, an HRIS that holds both the numbers and the policy evidence is usually the simpler, more reliable path.
Why is Worknice a strong choice for gender equality reporting?
Worknice is an Australian next-gen HRIS that combines a strong employee database with document and compliance management. So it holds both the workforce data and the policy evidence this reporting needs. Because everything is unified, reporting against the indicators draws on live records and stored policies. Reviewers rate it 4.9 out of 5 on G2 and 5 out of 5 on Capterra.
The reviews reflect this. On Capterra, Worknice rates 5 out of 5, where 99% of reviewers would recommend it, and users describe consolidating scattered data and documents. On G2 it holds 4.9 out of 5. Because gender equality reporting spans both data and evidence, a platform that unifies the two is exactly what makes the reporting manageable.
A fair caveat: Worknice covers the HR data and policy evidence behind gender equality reporting, and it syncs remuneration from your existing payroll. So payroll stays the source of truth for pay figures, while Worknice handles the workforce and policy side. Most mid-market teams prefer this split. You can explore the reporting and compliance features in a free demonstration.
Frequently asked questions
What is gender equality reporting software?
Gender equality reporting software helps employers collect, manage, and report the data and policies behind their annual gender equality report. It covers the full set of WGEA indicators, from workforce composition to policies on harassment and flexible work. As a result, you report against every indicator from one system, rather than gathering numbers and evidence from scattered sources each year.
What are the six gender equality indicators?
They are the framework WGEA uses to assess workplace gender equality: gender composition of the workforce, gender composition of governing bodies, equal remuneration, availability of flexible work and support for carers, consultation with employees on gender equality, and policies to prevent sex-based harassment and discrimination. Employers report against all six through the workplace profile and questionnaires.
Is gender equality reporting the same as gender pay gap reporting?
No. Gender pay gap reporting focuses on pay differences, which is one of six indicators. Gender equality reporting is broader, covering representation, governing bodies, flexible work, consultation, and anti-harassment policies as well. So pay is part of the picture, but gender equality reporting captures the wider set of factors that shape equality in a workplace.
Do employers have to hold gender equality policies?
Larger employers do. Since 2024, employers with 500 or more staff must have policies or strategies in place for each of the six gender equality indicators. So holding and evidencing these policies is now a requirement for those employers. Software that stores policies with version history and acknowledgements makes it possible to prove the policy was in force.
Should gender equality reporting be part of the HRIS?
For most mid-sized companies, yes. The indicators draw on people data and policies that already live in the HRIS, so a built-in capability reports from one source. Workforce composition comes from your records, and the policies sit in your compliance module. A standalone tool would need you to feed it that data and evidence from elsewhere, which adds work.
About the author
Graham Martin is a co-founder of Worknice, an Australian next-gen HRIS. Since 2021 he has worked with hundreds of Australian HR leaders and people teams. He helps mid-sized organisations report on gender equality and act on what the data shows.
This article is general information only and is not legal advice. For advice on your specific obligations, speak to a qualified professional.
Sources
- Workplace Gender Equality Agency. “Reporting.” https://www.wgea.gov.au/what-we-do/reporting
- Workplace Gender Equality Agency. “About workplace gender equality.” https://www.wgea.gov.au/what-we-do
- G2. “Worknice Reviews.” https://www.g2.com/products/worknice/reviews
- Capterra Australia. “Worknice Cost & Reviews.” https://www.capterra.com.au/software/208362/worknice
