Gender Equity
With a predominantly female membership, achieving gender equity is central to the work of the ANMF.
Australia’s national gender pay gap
Australia’s national gender pay gap sits at 21.1%, meaning women earn just 78.9 cents for every dollar earned by men — a difference that adds up to $28,356 every year. While progress is being made, it remains slow. Current projections suggest it could take another 26 years to close the gap.
With a predominantly female membership, the ANMF has long advocated for meaningful reforms to advance gender equality, strengthen workplace fairness, and address the persistent pay disparity experienced by nurses, midwives and care workers.
Work Value Cases
In 2025, the ANMF is working to implement the outcomes of the Aged Care Work Value Case. We have commenced our second work value case, which seeks to vary the Nurses Award 2020 to lift the minimum award wage rates for all RNs, midwives, ENs, and AINs in settings other than aged care.
Enterprise Bargaining
Recent reforms have made it easier for employee representatives to bring employers to the negotiating table and to resolve bargaining disputes, meaning the ANMF achieves greater gains in wages and conditions for members.
Modern Award Review
The Fair Work Commission has initiated a series of reforms to Modern Awards and model terms in enterprise agreements, resulting in new entitlements for workers, such as the Right to Disconnect and Delegates Rights. In 2025, the ANMF will advocate for improved part-time work clauses in the Nurses Award and stronger workplace consultation standards.
Related Resources
ANMJ Articles