Infrastructure and property group John Holland has highlighted a commitment to gender pay parity, saying it has adjusted the salary of women found to be paid less than their male colleagues across the business.

Chief executive officer Joe Barr said the company identified 15 per cent of women were being paid less than men and acted immediately to fix the problem.

“The construction industry hasn’t typically led the way when it comes to providing a level playing field for women, but that’s something I am determined to change,” Mr Barr said.

Gender pay equity was about ensuring women and men performing the same role were paid the same amount, and women and men performing different work of equal or comparable value were paid fairly, he said.

“Our commitment on gender pay is just the start. We’ve got a lot more to do when it comes to making our workplace more inclusive for everyone, especially women. It’s something I am passionate about because it’s not only good for our business, it will lift our whole industry,” Mr Barr said.

“Our next focus is on embedding a flexibility and wellbeing culture into the business – no small feat in construction and property. We already offer lots of benefits to our people to promote flexible working and I want to lead the way to make this a reality on John Holland work sites.”

Mr Barr was today named a Pay Equity Ambassador by the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA).