Adland is collectively confused with what is seen as inconsistent reporting for the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA).
While the industry welcomes the centralised gender parity report, with progress already showing, senior leaders also believe the system has kinks that need to be straightened out.
Industry insiders told AdNews the reporting can be easily manipulated or loaded incorrectly, and can make a business’ WGEA data look better or worse.
“I’ve lost a bit of faith in this system to be honest,” an independent agency CEO told AdNews.
These concerns began when WGEA publicly published its inaugural gender pay report earlier this year, which requires employers with 100 or more staff to report annually against six priority areas relating to pay parity.
WGEA told AdNews it welcomes employer feedback to help refine and improve reporting.
Most sources agreed that there is little support when loading information, so the chance of the data being uploaded wrong is high.
One independent agency owner told AdNews the data they uploaded does not align with the data reported on the site, that business then lodged a formal complaint with the government body.
AdNews asked WGEA to confirm this complaint, but the government agency cannot comment on cases of individual employers that report to them.
Sources also said that reporting can be easily manipulated.
WGEA has put up safety rails - such as mandatory supporting evidence, a CEO (or equivalent) must review and sign off on the information before it’s submitted, and after submission companies are allowed a 28 day grace period to make any edits or updates.
But businesses have the choice to select their reporting date, meaning that a business could choose a date which provides better data over a date that shows poorer data.
WGEA allows this to ensure the employer can choose a date which is representative of the organisation’s normal workforce (for example - if an employer has seasonal highs and lows).
WGEA recommends employers keep the same reporting date as this allows data and insights to be reflective of regular intervals.
Another way businesses can manipulate data is through the business name - reporting is done by either a standalone organisation, a corporate structure or a subsidiary in a corporate structure.
Meaning that a business can choose to drop out individual businesses from a parent company if they see fit.
For example, Mediabrands is separate to Initiative, TBWA Melbourne is separate to TBWA Sydney, but Dentsu has grouped all its businesses under one umbrella.
“It doesn't feel like the diligence is done,” an independent agency CEO told AdNews.
However, WGEA has said it now reports results for entire corporate groups as well as individual employers within their structures and standalone organisations.
Agencies also have conflicting opinions on how well the government body communicates.
Some insiders have said the body doesn’t communicate well, while others say the body is helpful when asked via the phone, email, webinars and through information available on the website.
A WGEA spokesperson told AdNews the body welcomes employer feedback to enable the agency to continue to refine and improve the reporting experience.
“The people who use the service are best placed to provide valuable feedback about what’s working well, and what can improve,” the spokesperson said.
“WGEA is continuously working to improve the employer reporting experience and the support we provide them to complete and lodge their reports.”
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