Gender equality progress — and why it matters in emergencies

Gender equality progress — and why it matters in emergencies

By Gabby Smith, AWE Fundraising and Strategic Partnerships Subcommittee Chair and Bridget Tehan, AWE President

When disasters strike, gender inequality doesn’t pause — it often becomes more visible.

The Status of Women Report Card 2026 shows that Australian women are participating in the workforce at record levels, with participation reaching 63.1% in 2025. There have also been gains in leadership, education and healthcare, and Australia has achieved its highest-ever international ranking for gender equality, placing 13th globally.

These are important achievements and worth celebrating. But the Report Card also highlights persistent and deeply entrenched challenges. Women continue to carry the majority of unpaid care responsibilities, experience high rates of intimate partner violence, earn less than men, and remain underrepresented in leadership. Progress, while real, is uneven and too slow in key areas.

From an emergency management perspective, these inequalities become most visible during crises. Care burdens, safety risks and economic insecurity directly affect who can respond, who can lead, and who is able to recover when disasters strike. Gender equality is not just a social issue — it is a critical factor in emergency preparedness, workforce sustainability and community resilience.

1. Participation during crises is not the same as equity

High workforce participation can mask how women experience emergency and disaster contexts. During crises, work is often:

• Irregular, prolonged or surge‑based
• Conducted in high‑risk, high‑stress environments
• Layered on top of unpaid care responsibilities

The Report Card’s participation figures raise important questions about who is available, supported and retained during emergencies — particularly when crises intensify existing gendered pressures.

2. Leadership representation in high‑risk decision spaces

While the Report Card notes improvements in leadership representation, it’s important to ask whether women are equally represented in high‑risk decision‑making roles, including:

• Incident management and command roles
• Strategic crisis decision‑making
• Recovery planning and long‑term resilience governance

Uneven progress suggests that women may still be underrepresented in senior roles during emergencies, even when they are well represented in the broader workforce.

3. Unpaid care as a critical emergency workforce constraint

The continued concentration of unpaid care responsibilities on women has heightened implications during disasters, when:

• Schools and care services may close
• Families experience displacement or trauma
• Work hours and expectations intensify

Unpaid care is a structural barrier to participation and leadership in emergency roles — not an individual choice. This reinforces the need for emergency‑aware workforce planning, flexibility and support.

4. Gendered safety risks extend beyond the workplace

The Report Card highlights persistently high rates of intimate partner violence. We also know that during emergencies these risks can escalate due to:

• Housing instability
• Financial stress
• Reduced access to services
• Reinforced gender stereotypes

Disasters are associated with increases in domestic violence, including first‑time incidents, where underlying risk factors escalate under pressure and isolation. Safety and gender‑based violence must be positioned as core emergency management issues — intersecting with workforce availability, wellbeing and recovery capacity — rather than treated as external to emergency systems.

5. Pay inequality and economic resilience

The persistence of the gender pay gap has direct implications for disaster resilience. Lower earnings reduce:

• Financial buffers before disasters
• Capacity to absorb income loss during recovery
• Long‑term economic security after crises

Economic inequality weakens community resilience, making gender equality a preparedness issue, not just a workplace one.

6. International ranking does not equal crisis readiness

Australia’s 13th‑place global ranking reflects progress, but rankings do not capture lived experience during emergencies. Gender equality in crisis contexts depends on:

• Who is protected
• Who decides
• Who recovers fastest and most fully

These dimensions are not reflected in headline rankings. Uneven distribution of resources during response and recovery, and the failure to consult people with lived experience, can deepen existing inequalities and result in inappropriate or inadequate support.

Key takeaways

The Status of Women Report Card 2026 shows clear progress for women overall. But viewed through an emergency lens, structural inequality becomes most visible during crises — when care burdens, safety risks, leadership gaps and pay inequities directly shape who can respond, lead and recover.

We can recognise the progress that has been made while also acknowledging how much more needs to be done. Understanding women’s diverse experiences — across backgrounds, roles and lived realities — is essential. Emergency systems, policies and supports must be research‑informed and trauma‑informed if we are to reduce harm and strengthen resilience when it matters most.