The gender pay gap at Australia’s major airlines is around double the national average, according to new data from the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA).
Qantas’ average gender pay gap for 2024-25 was 41.7 per cent for total pay, compared to 44.8 per cent at Virgin, with a median gap of 35.7 per cent and 35.34 per cent respectively. Across the Australian private sector, women receive on average 21.1 per cent less total salary than men.
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The result is a slightly wider average pay gap at Qantas than in 2023-24, and a narrower one at Virgin. Jetstar’s average pay gap was roughly in line with last year, at 41.7 percent.
While it is illegal to pay women less than men for the same work, the WGEA says the pay gap is largely due to men predominating in higher-paid roles, which in aviation would include pilots and engineers, and women in lower-paid roles, such as cabin crew and customer service.
“The fact that men are almost twice as likely as women to be in the highest paid jobs and that women still dominate the lowest paid jobs should provide a reality check for anyone who thinks Australia has achieved equality in the workplace,” said WGEA chief executive Mary Wooldridge.
“Women and men want a fair and equal opportunity to use their full range of skills and abilities, hold the highest and best-paid jobs, feel secure at work and have some flexibility to manage other responsibilities, such as caring, outside of work.
“Progress on gender equality benefits workers, families, employers and the wider Australian economy.”
About 92.4 per cent of Qantas pilots and 95 per cent of engineers are men, compared to 77.7 per cent of female airport customer service staff and 70.8 per cent of cabin crew.
In Qantas’ annual pay gap report, chief people officer Catherine Walsh highlighted that Qantas pays men and women equally for the same work and that “the real challenge is representation”.
“78 percent of our people are paid under corporate agreements, which standardize salaries regardless of gender. For corporate employees not covered by agreements, the comparable pay gap is 1.2 percent, unchanged from last year,” he said.
“This year’s expansion was mainly due to retroactive gains from previous reporting periods, including the termination of the agreement between cabin crew and engineering companies, and delays in bonus payments to executives.
“Men hold 92.4 percent of pilot positions and 95 percent of engineering positions. These patterns exist throughout global aviation, and changing them means building a pipeline of female talent in areas where women have historically been almost completely absent. That takes time, but we are seeing it happen.”
Virgin Australia in its report has also pointed to its “demographic profile” as a key factor for its own gender pay gap.
“While there is an improvement in the average gap from 2025, we continue to have a higher proportion of men occupying higher paid roles, such as pilots and aeronautical engineers. Gender representation targets and supporting initiatives have been implemented to continue changing our demographic profile over time,” the airline said.
“Virgin Australia has experienced significant workforce growth in recent years, with staff increasing from 3,000 to more than 8,300. This growth has been concentrated in customer-facing operational roles, including cabin crew and guest services, where female representation is highest.
“In addition, the compensation of our frontline teams is aligned with salary classifications that reflect experience and team members will progress to higher salary classifications over time as their career and seniority advance.
“This results in a higher proportion of people at the top end of the pay grading structure in job groups with large numbers of long-serving employees, such as our pilots and engineers.”
Both Qantas Group and Virgin say they are working to increase the proportion of female employees in key roles, including pilots, engineers and leaders.
