Agency gender pay gap: Career lost earnings over $1m for average woman
AI start-up platform Evenbetter has calculated the current gender pay gap will on average cost female workers in creative and media agencies $1.4 million when compounded over a 30-year career.
Evenbetter launched earlier this year as a platform to analyse in-house employee pay. Its launch coincided with the annual release of gender pay gap data from the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA).
Data from the WGEA’s 2023-2024 reporting period showed that men, on average, are paid 22% more than women in the Australian workplace. In the world of advertising agencies, that percentage is lower (15%), and in media, it is lower still (13.5%).
The total gender pay gap at Australia’s 25 top-performing agencies. Source: Evenbetter [Click to enlarge]
Agencies in the report include M+C Saatchi, Thinkerbell, Havas, Atomic 212, Clemenger, Essencemediacom, and IPG Mediabrands.
Evenbetter co-founder Sorrel Kesby said that over the course of a 30-year career, the $21,000 gap per year “compounds to nearly $1.4 million in lost earnings for women”.
“While external factors certainly play a role, organisations must understand what’s driving their internal pay gaps and take meaningful steps to address biases in hiring, promotion, and compensation,” she said.
Women represent 59% of the industry’s workforce, but only 46% of top earners. Source: Evenbetter [Click to enlarge]
Dentsu’s gap increased by 0.8%, Havas by 1.5%, Publicis Sapient by 3.4%, DDB Sydney by 3.9%, Ogilvy by 4.2%, M+C Saatchi by 6.4%, Chep Network by 11.8%, and Wavemaker by 12.3%.
Nearly all agencies studied reported the execution of internal analysis and action, but only 53.7% saw actual measurable improvements in their pay gap over time. According to Evenbetter, this demonstrates that only internal analysis and action alone is not enough.
Agencies gap change YOY (Click to enlarge)
“This tells us that while companies are engaging with the issue, many are focusing on surface-level metrics or implementing the wrong types of strategies,” Ayal Steiner, co-founder of Evenbetter, said.
He said that without the right insights, organisations “risk taking action that doesn’t shift the needle”.
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Lauren McNamara is a freelance journalist contributing to Mumbrella. She previously spent three years at the publication, most recently as the associate editor. She first joined in 2022 after completing a Bachelor of Communications (Journalism) at UTS. She left her staff role at Mumbrella in August 2025.
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topics
Ayal Steiner
creative agency
EvenBetter.ai
gender pay gap
Media agency
Sorrel Kesby
WGEA
Workplace Gender Equality Agency
