Kimberly-Clark Australia leads the way on gender equality

Kimberly Clark Australia, a leading hygiene and personal care company, has been at the forefront of addressing gender inequality at its Millicent facility. In 2019, Adam Carpenter took on the role of manager at that factory with an obvious challenge: to address the pronounced gender disparity at the plant, where only 4% of the workforce were women. After a thorough review, biased hiring practices and a lack of female representation on shifts were identified.

In response, Carpenter implemented significant changes. First, it simplified job advertisements and launched targeted recruitment campaigns for women in local media. In addition, a review of work shifts was carried out to avoid gender concentration at certain times.

These measures led to a significant increase in the hiring of women. According to Carpenter, “It went from nothing to between 10% and 20% of applicants being women.”

However, Carpenter acknowledges that there is still work to be done to close the pay gap and create a truly inclusive work environment. Kimberly-Clark Australia still has a pay gap in favor of men of 11.6%.

Despite the challenges, the changes have had a positive impact on the work culture and the local community. Carpenter notes, “Interestingly, we now have employees consisting of husband and wife, father, and daughter, here at the factory. It has really changed the feel of the workplace and we have seen the culture change in a positive sense to a much more respectful, friendly, and tolerant workplace.”

Carpenter’s advice to other companies seeking to reduce gender disparity is clear: “Embrace it with a clear plan. It won’t happen without an active commitment to solving this problem.”