A Shorten Labor government would compel the Fair Work Commission to prioritise pay equity for Australian women in a series of reforms designed to reduce the gender pay gap.

Under the proposed changes, pay equity would be written into the Fair Work Act as a central objective of the industrial relations system, compelling the commission to consider gender disparities when making pay orders.

Deputy Labor leader Tanya Plibersek said current laws were not doing enough to reduce the gender pay gap. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Labor would also create a new presidential role within Fair Work to undertake pay equity reviews, backed by a pay equity panel and a research unit dedicated to equal remuneration.

These reviews would be targeted at low-paid industries dominated by women including early childhood education, aged care, disability services and social workers.