Why this matters
Public sector boards and governing bodies are not only internal decision-makers, they also set the strategic direction of the organisations that deliver essential services to Victorians. Boards of hospital and health services, water authorities, TAFEs, councils and statutory bodies make decisions that shape the care, infrastructure, education and local services that communities rely on every day. Who sits around those tables influences whose needs are anticipated, whose experiences are understood, whose interests are considered when those decisions are made, and how resources are distributed.
Having a gender-balanced governing body means a wider range of perspectives and lived experience informs how an organisation operates and what it delivers for the public. Boards that reflect the communities they serve are better placed to identify risks and design services that work for everyone. For organisations whose decisions have a direct and significant public impact, this connects squarely to their obligations under the Act to consider gender in the programs, policies and services they provide.
A gender-balanced governing body also strengthens organisations internally. It increases the likelihood of inclusive policies and practices that work for employees of all genders. And it sends a clear signal, to staff and to the public, about an organisation’s commitment to gender equality.
In addition to enabling a more inclusive workplace culture, analysis from the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) and the Bankwest Curtain Economics Centre shows that governing bodies with more women are associated with better performance (Cassells and Duncan 2020, p.27). When a third of board members are women, around one-fifth of firms outperform their peers (compared to only 8% of firms that have no women on the board). This finding is consistent across all of WGEA’s reporting data – strong evidence of the business case for gender-balanced governing bodies.
You can read more about the importance of gender-balanced governing bodies in the Baseline report (2021, pp. 22-23).
How we define progress
Introduced more than 10 years ago, the Victorian Government’s Women on Boards commitment requires that women make up at least 50% of all new appointments to courts and paid government boards. This commitment was renewed in 2023 as part of Victoria’s second statewide gender equality action plan, Our equal state.
The Commission supports the Victorian Government’s commitment to gender parity on boards. To assess progress under the Gender Equality Act, the Commission uses a complementary 45:45:10 framework (45% women, 45% men, 10% any gender) to define balance on governing bodies. The 45:45:10 framing gives duty holders room to:
- count people of diverse genders
- account for small numerical shifts that can appear as notable percentage swings on a small board
- account for the fact that an exact 50:50 split is impossible on a board with an odd number of members.
The Commission uses the 45:45:10 gender split framework for boards for several reasons. As explained in Indicator 1: Gender composition of the workforce, proportional measures are important when it comes to the gender composition of senior leaders. This ensures that women’s careers are not stalling at the middle levels of an organisation, and that they have fair access to higher pay, greater responsibility, and influence over the strategic direction of organisations. However, when it comes to the gender composition of boards, a 45:45:10 framework is more appropriate as a long-term goal. This is because boards are not a reflection of recruitment, promotion and progression outcomes within an organisation, even though they may reflect broader systemic or industry-level patterns of inequality. Therefore, board appointments do not reflect women reaching a ‘glass ceiling’ or dropping off via a ‘leaky pipeline’ in the same way (see Indicator 5: Recruitment and promotion for further discussion of these issues). Rather, board appointments are usually conducted separately to internal recruitment and promotion processes, and board members in the public sector are often externally appointed. Additionally, governing bodies are often made up of a small number of members. A 45:45:10 framework therefore ensures that an under-represented gender is not in an extreme minority of 1 or 2 people.
While the 45:45:10 ratio should be the goal in the public sector, a slight overrepresentation of women must be viewed in context. In women-concentrated industries, having a board that reflects the gender composition of that industry is acceptable in a wider societal context of persistent gender inequality. This should be viewed as a step on the road to the broader goal of bringing both the governing body and employee gender composition closer to 45:45:10 over time. In men-concentrated industries (as discussed in Indicator 1: Gender composition of the workforce), increasing women’s representation on boards can be part of a legitimate strategy to help drive broader organisational change (Gould et al. 2018).
Progress between 2021 and 2025
Victorian public sector boards remained gender balanced across all 3 reporting years. In most industries, women’s share of governing body membership held steady or increased since 2021, and the gender composition of board chairs was also stable. This sustained parity reflects more than a decade of clear targets and consistent effort, supported by the Victorian Government’s longstanding Women on Boards commitment.
Key data measures are presented in Tables 2.1 and 2.2. Findings are discussed in further detail after the tables.
Table 2.1: Governing body gender balance progress
| Measure | 2021 | 2023 | 2025 | Percentage point change 2021-2025 | Progress |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Proportion of women members | 52.2% | 54.1% | 53.9% | +1.7pp | Excellent (18 – Matrix) |
| Proportion of men members | 47.8% | 45.9% | 46.1% | -1.7pp | Excellent (18 – Matrix) |
| Proportion of women chairs | 49.2% | 51.2% | 51.1% | +1.8pp | Excellent (18 – Matrix) |
Source: Workplace gender audit workforce data, 2021, 2023 and 2025.
Notes: To understand how to interpret the different types of progress ratings, see Data measures in Appendix 1. The percentage point change column may not always reflect the exact difference between years due to rounding.
Table 2.2: Governing body balance progress by industry (percentage of women members)
| Industry | 2021 | 2023 | 2025 | Percentage point change 2021-2025 | Progress |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Community and cultural services | 56.1% | 57.7% | 55.2% | -0.9pp | Moderate (9 – Matrix) |
| Finance and insurance | 55.3% | 56.0% | 56.8% | +1.5pp | Moderate (9 – Matrix) |
| Local government | 45.6% | 45.9% | 44.2% | -1.4pp | Moderate (9 – Matrix) |
| Other | 54.8% | 60.0% | 59.0% | +4.1pp | Poor (6 – Matrix) |
| Police and emergency services | 51.0% | 56.1% | 52.8% | +1.8pp | Excellent (18 – Matrix) |
| Public health care | 55.4% | 58.4% | 58.4% | +3.0pp | Moderate (9 – Matrix) |
| TAFE and other education | 55.5% | 63.2% | 62.3% | +6.9pp | Poor (6 – Matrix) |
| Transport | 45.5% | 44.4% | 52.9% | +7.5pp | Excellent (18 – Matrix) |
| Universities | 46.7% | 48.0% | 54.5% | +7.9pp | Excellent (18 – Matrix) |
| Victorian Public Service | 50.2% | 52.4% | 56.7% | +6.5pp | Poor (6 – Matrix) |
| Water and land management | 55.4% | 58.0% | 55.3% | -0.1pp | Moderate (9 – Matrix) |
Source: Workplace gender audit workforce data, 2021, 2023 and 2025.
Notes: To understand how to interpret the different types of progress ratings, see Data measures in Appendix 1. Women chairs are not included for industry analysis, because the numbers are too small to provide valid trends. The percentage point change column may not always reflect the exact difference between years due to rounding.
Signs of progress
Governing bodies continued to be gender balanced
Across the sector in 2025, governing bodies remained balanced. Since 2021, women’s representation rose slightly (from 52.2% to 53.9%), and men’s fell slightly (from 47.8% to 46.1%). The number of women chairs also rose slightly over the same period (from 49.2% to 51.1%) and remained balanced overall.
While the recent movement is small, it adds to substantial longer-term gains. Victorian Public Sector Commission data shows women’s representation on larger public entity boards rose from 39% to 55% between 2015 and 2020 (VPSC 2022). This shift points to the value of setting measurable targets.
Three industries received a numerically ‘poor’ rating against this indicator (TAFE and other education, the Victorian Public Service, and other2), each having moved further from a 45:45:10 split – by between 4 and 7 percentage points – towards a higher share of women.
This is where the rating needs context rather than alarm. All except the ‘other’ industry are women-concentrated. As explained above, boards of organisations that are women-concentrated may increase their proportion of women without concern during the period where the wider industry is gradually shifting towards greater gender balance. The ‘poor’ label reflects movement away from a 45:45:10 split, but it does not indicate a gender equality problem on these boards at the present time. Women’s expertise and experience being valued at the governance level in industries where women predominate is a reasonable and acceptable outcome in a context of ongoing gender inequality. As noted above, the overall goal should be to bring both the employee population and the board closer to balance. (Data measures in Appendix 1 explains how the ratings are calculated and why a movement away from a 45:45:10 split is scored this way regardless of direction.
Areas for attention
Local government was the only industry where women were underrepresented on governing bodies
Every industry except local government either achieved gender balance or had a higher share of women on boards in 2025. Local government is distinct, because each council’s governing body is made up of elected councillors rather than appointed members. Board composition here reflects election outcomes, not appointment decisions. Nevertheless, councillors govern some of the services closest to communities – local roads, libraries, planning, maternal and child health, waste and recreation – yet remain less gender balanced than the governing bodies in any other part of the sector.
In local government, women’s representation in governing bodies went backwards. The share of women elected to councils fell from 45.6% in 2021 to 44.2% in 2025.3 The state target of 50% women councillors and mayors by 2025 was not achieved (Victorian Government 2023, p. 65), nor was the Commission’s complementary 45:45:10 board framework. The Commission’s 2025 audit data also identified 8 councils with only one woman councillor and 15 councils with only 2. This is a disappointing result, particularly given the significant effort many councils have put into encouraging more women to stand – including partnerships with peak bodies and campaigns such as 1000 Women Standing.
Research on the experience of Victorian councillors between 2020 and 2024 points to significant barriers to women running for, and serving on, councils. These include difficulties balancing caring responsibilities with council demands, and sustained gender-based harassment and abuse from members of the public, the media and other councillors (Carson and Ruppanner 2024).
Commissioner expectations
The Commissioner expects continued vigilance on board composition. Strong progress across most of the sector should not give way to complacency. Organisations must keep monitoring governing body gender composition and act on any inequalities they identify. Balanced governance matters not only for fairness in who holds decision-making power, but for the quality and reach of the services these boards oversee for Victorian communities.
Duty holders must continue to ensure diverse voices are represented on their governing bodies. Organisations that control their own board membership should consider gender alongside other attributes when recruiting members. Those that do not make appointments should actively advocate to the relevant Minister or appointments committee to ensure gender and other forms of diversity are considered. Taking action in this way recognises that the composition of these boards shapes decisions affecting the whole community. Duty holders should also continue to build their pipeline of women leaders through programs and initiatives suited to their industry, including preparing women for board roles where appropriate.
In local government specifically, gender-based bullying and harassment of women candidates and councillors is a serious concern. Because councillors govern services that communities depend on, barriers to women’s participation have additional consequences well beyond the council chamber. Council schedules and rules that make it hard to balance council duties with caring responsibilities can also limit women’s participation. Peak bodies have done valuable work to address these barriers. Individual councils must consider how gender inequality shows up in their own context and develop strategies to address the gendered barriers to standing for election and participating once elected.
You can read more about how local government GEAPs can support more women to stand for council.
Footnotes
2: The ‘other’ industry group is made up of 8 relatively small, diverse organisations. Changes to this industry can be difficult to interpret and may be the result of a turnover in a small number of governing body members. An overrepresentation of women on governing bodies (59% women) compared to the broader employee population (48.8% women) in this industry should be monitored. However, increasing women’s engagement with strategic governance (where they have previously been underrepresented) can be positive for gender equality. Organisations should monitor governing body membership to ensure that a slight overrepresentation of women does not shift towards a highly gender-skewed composition.
3: The Commission collects data as at 30 June in each reporting year. Data about the gender of councillors is provided by each local government organisation in Victoria. Local government organisations may collect this data in different ways. These data collection methods may also differ from the ways that peak bodies (such as the Municipal Association of Victoria, or the Victorian Local Government Association) collect this data. For these reasons, figures reported here may differ slightly from other reported figures about the gender of councillors in Victoria.
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