New analysis from the Australia Institute shows the gender distribution from the Government’s plan, announced in the Federal Budget, to flatten the income tax scales is skewed against women.

When the tax cut is fully implemented, for every dollar of benefit that goes to women, two dollars goes to men.

Figure 1. Gender Distribution of Income Tax Cut when fully implemented

“There has never been a federal Treasurer of Australia who wasn’t a man, and there have been more Finance Ministers named John than women Finance Ministers. It doesn’t take an economics degree to know those numbers are a problem,” said Ebony Bennett, Deputy Director of the Australia Institute.

“The skewed gender distribution is in large part due to men being over-represented at the top of the income distribution, who receive most of the benefit of the tax cut. Women, on the other hand, are over-represented at the bottom of the income distribution and get very little of the cut.

“The gender pay gap is already an issue in Australia, and income tax cuts that benefit men more than women only act to further widen the gap in post-tax income of men and women.

“Last year Scott Morrison scoffed at our gender analysis, saying ‘you don’t get a blue and a pink form to fill out  your tax return.’ While it is true that men and women fill out the same tax forms, it is just as true that men end up with twice as much as women from these cuts. The intention may not be to discriminate against women from these income tax cuts, but it is certainly the outcome.”