In Australia, women earn less money than men. This is also likely for gender-diverse groups. Australia’s Workplace Gender Equality Agency has found that women only earn 78 cents on the dollar compared to men in Australia. Over the course of a year, that difference adds up to $26,393.
This is much greater than the estimates produced by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), because some important factors such as overtime, bonuses and the salaries of part-time and casual workers are not included in the ABS calculations.
Where disability and gender collide, it has been called a double burden of wage discrimination. A study has found that this is the case for women living with multiple sclerosis (MS) in Sweden. Dr Julie Campbell and her research team are interested to see if this is the same in Australia.
This study will be the first in Australia to investigate this phenomenon for people living with MS. Led by Dr Campbell, the study will examine whether women and marginalised groups living with MS, in reality, earn even less than 78 cents on the dollar than men. If this is occurring, Dr Campbell and her team will also look at the reasons why.
The findings from this study will help to raise awareness and provide the evidence needed to help with advocating for wage equality for women and gender-diverse groups living with MS. The findings may also lead the way for people with other complex and chronic neurological conditions in Australia.
Over the past year, Dr Campbell and the team have made strong progress in understanding how MS affects work and income.
First, the team completed a comprehensive global review of research on income and employment for people with MS. This showed that while income loss is well recognised, many previous studies used unclear definitions of income and did not properly account for important factors such as job type or existing gender pay gaps. As a result, it has been difficult to clearly understand why income loss occurs and who is most affected.
Building on this, the team completed a new Australian study using data from the Australian MS Longitudinal Study (AMSLS) linked with national income and employment data. They found that income loss for people with MS is most often driven by changes in employment, such as moving into different roles, rather than gradual reductions in pay. This process can be described as career erosion, where repeated role changes limit access to higher paid and higher intensity work over time. The study also found that the greater financial vulnerability seen in females is largely explained by existing inequalities in the labour market, rather than MS having a more severe direct financial impact on women.
Another important insight was the role of early warning signs. People often report feeling less productive at work before major job changes or income loss occurs, suggesting opportunities for earlier workplace support that could help people stay in work longer.
These findings have been written up as academic papers, with two now ready for submission. They have also been presented at conferences and contributed to the employment chapter of MS Australia’s national health economic impact report.
Overall, this work has shifted from identifying gaps in the evidence to producing clearer, practical insights that can inform workplace support, policy, and future research. The findings support a shift toward early, work focused support to help people with MS remain employed and financially secure, and to address broader workplace inequalities that increase vulnerability, particularly for females living with MS.
Updated 31 March 2026Â
$24,833
2025
1 year
Current project
