Achieving Australia’s commitment to Net Zero by 2050 hinges on transforming the energy sector through unprecedented innovation, investment and collaboration. However, this ambitious goal is challenged by an urgent skills gap and a persistent gender disparity within the clean energy workforce.

According to the RACE for 2030 report on the future energy workforce, Australia needs up to 200,000 additional workers by 2033 to reach Net Zero by 2050. A limited understanding of clean energy careers, gender imbalance, uncertain policy settings and the slow pace of change in education systems all contribute to this deficit.

Australia's energy sector is traditionally male dominated, with women representing less than 39 per cent of the clean energy workforce. Gender disparity is particularly stark in “upstream” roles, such as electricity generation, network, transmission, distribution and field jobs. There are also significantly fewer women in apprenticeship programs. Potential hiring biases, a lack of support in skills development initiatives and challenges in career progression limit women’s career development.

The Commonwealth Government has committed to equal representation in the energy sector by 2030 as part of the global “Equal by 30” initiative. To support this, the Government has established leadership forums, promoted gender balance, encouraged flexible work arrangements, supported small and medium-sized enterprises, expanded sector engagement, and secured agency commitments.

Progress is being made through these structural reforms, however challenges such as underrepresentation in leadership, pay gaps and limited industry-wide implementation persist. Addressing these challenges requires targeted workforce development, stronger leadership pathways and practical, evidence-based solutions to accelerate gender equality in Australia’s clean energy sector.

The Women in STEM Decadal Plan reviewed numerous initiatives dedicated to upskilling and mentoring women to support their participation and retention in STEM fields. However, such programs have generally overlooked workplace culture, psychosocial and physical safety risks, institutional inertia and unconscious biases.

Insights from industry professionals can help identify the key challenges, opportunities and solutions for addressing gender diversification in the energy workforce.  Our research team at UTS has been working with industry on the challenges and barriers to diversifying the energy workforce through the CSIRO’s ON Prime program.

We have collated the insights of more than 70 industry experts working in both power generation and the retail energy sector. The insights summarised below shows that improving gender equality in the energy workforce can help bridge the skills gap and boost economic opportunities for women.

What the industry experts told us

 Across all STEM fields, gender stereotypes continue to shape career choices and opportunities. Whilst the challenges to generalised women’s participation in STEM and the energy sector are similar, they are exacerbated in the male-centric fields of energy, manufacturing and construction.

For the clean energy sector, a key difference from the generalised women in STEM challenges is the context: national and international target commitments and budget allocations by state and federal governments. Such commitments include the $60.6 million over four years in the 2024 federal budget for the Building Women’s Careers program to fund large-scale projects to support women to access training in clean energy and construction and help drive change in workplace cultures.

In the clean energy sector, recruitment, promotion and decision-making processes can be influenced by unconscious biases, resulting in women being limited to certain roles, such as desk or administrative duties. Women can be perceived as weak, less experienced or less capable due to their age, gender or ethnicity. Consequently, women are commonly underworked by being assigned unskilled tasks compared to their male counterparts. Gaining recognition and breaking through ceilings to accelerate career establishment and progression can be daunting.

Women in the energy industry report facing “mansplaining”, culturally paternalistic attitudes and the experience of being undermined. Work-life balance challenges also persist due to traditional gender roles in the home and women’s requests for flexible work conditions. Women commonly experience isolation due to home-based work and limited work-related networking and development opportunities.

Physical and psychosocial safety are also critical concerns for women. This includes:

• Sexual harassment.
• Feeling undervalued and unheard in meetings, or being intimidated in environments dominated by white heterosexual men.
• Low availability of personal protective equipment (PPE) or insufficient bathroom facilities on worksites.

Such experiences create feelings of disrespect that directly and indirectly contribute to workplace hostility. Cultural norms and biases can exclude and create discomfort, often leading to judgments based on a person’s gender, accent or background. Outdated attitudes toward diversity and inclusion further exacerbate institutional inertia.

Though some energy sector organisations actively address gender diversity, resistance remains to gender diversity initiatives stemming from an unwillingness to acknowledge existing disparities. Perceptions that women are hired solely for diversity reasons undermines their achievements and overlooks unconscious biases and ingrained workplace cultural norms.

Scepticism about women’s career advancements being merit-based persists, alongside concerns from men who feel threatened by the possibility of having less access to opportunities. Institutional inertia in the energy sector is slowing the implementation of inclusive policies, compounded by poor communication from senior leadership and few concrete action plans and targets for gender diversity.

To compound the above challenges, the scarcity of female leadership can deter others from pursuing careers in energy. Just 19 per cent of board positions in the clean energy sector are held by women. Men predominantly hold senior roles while junior positions are held mostly by women. Women challenge systemic biases against female leadership to secure senior positions, making the transition from early career tracks to senior positions difficult.

A cross-sector mission for change

With the Commonwealth’s commitments to Net Zero by 2050 and gender parity by 2030, a unique yet urgent opportunity for the clean energy sector has emerged that calls for collaboration between industry, professional education and government to build a safe and inclusive workforce. Such commitments and budget resourcing can lead to government policy attention to the challenges sector wide. Leaders across sectors recognise that gender diversity is not just a moral imperative but also a business necessity tied directly to risk reduction, increased productivity and long-term sustainability. But how do they ensure real, measurable progress?

Data and accountability

Organisations have long struggled to pinpoint the barriers preventing women from entering and thriving in the energy workforce. Part of the solution lies in data. By gathering insights on workplace diversity gaps, safety concerns and cultural obstacles, organisations now have the tools and evidence to drive meaningful change.

Setting concrete diversity targets and incentivised quotas with defined timeframes holds organisations accountable. Workforce diversification measurement tools serve as a compass, ensuring progress is discussed, tracked and achieved. It is essential to first prioritise the process of achieving results, rather than just focusing on outcomes, which are more difficult to measure.

Learning from success

Change is already happening – just not yet at scale. Recent large-scale government initiatives in NSW (NSW Infrastructure Skills Legacy Program) and Victoria (Building Equality Policy) have addressed gender disparity and inclusion in the construction industry. These models could be expanded to the energy sector.

Within the industry, companies such as Essential Energy lead the way, with women in senior leadership roles and a culture that actively supports gender diversity. Their efforts contribute to visible progress for greater inclusion. The energy retail sector, or “downstream” industry, has also made notable progress, demonstrating that a gender balanced workforce is within reach. Networking groups such as Grid 25, Powerful Women in the Power Industry and AEMO’s gender balance initiatives provide further blueprints for change.

Education and career networks

Change must start long before women enter the industry. Currently, only 16 per cent of engineering students are women, highlighting a significant gender gap. Complementing the many STEM outreach programs that address misperceptions about who “can” and “should” be in STEM (i.e., everyone!), educational initiatives are needed to introduce girls to careers in energy. Expanding apprenticeships, internships and graduate programs will provide hands-on experience. Cross-disciplinary training and vocational pathways also offer ways to transition women into energy roles.

Transforming workplace culture

Ensuring that women stay and thrive in careers in energy is also vital. An inclusive and respectful workplace environment is critical. Two-way mentorship and sponsorship programs, networking opportunities and inclusive communities can boost women’s confidence and resources. Recognising their contributions through promotions and performance incentives strengthens their role in the industry. Practical changes, such as tailored PPE and appropriate workplace amenities, directly address physical safety concerns and substantiate inclusive rhetoric.

Leadership, training and institutional shifts

The most challenging barriers are often invisible: workplace culture, attitudes and long-standing norms. Creating open conversations and reflective spaces can gradually shift such mindsets. Leadership training and mentorship programs prepare women for senior roles while equipping managers with the tools to foster an inclusive workplace.

Government reporting, board expectations, public disclosure requirements and industry benchmarking initiatives put external pressure on decision-makers to be accountable for diversity efforts, ensuring that gender balance is not just an aspiration but a measurable reality.

Towards an energised future

The foundations for greater diversity in the energy sector are already in place – now we must quicken the pace of change. By learning from past efforts and pushing for continuous progress, the industry can break the barriers that have long excluded women. The energy sector is evolving, and with the right strategies, it will become a place where women not only participate, but lead, innovate and shape the future.

We are just five years away from the Commonwealth Government’s target for gender equality in the clean energy sector, and 25 years away from the Net Zero target. From top-down policy to bottom-up education initiatives and industry culture change, we must first prioritise the process of achieving results towards gender diversity and inclusion, so we can then focus on outcomes.

Dr Bahareh Berenjforoush Azar is a Lecturer in the School of Professional Practice and Leadership at UTS. Her interdisciplinary research focuses on energy transition, equitable policy reform and sustainable resource management.

Dr Camille Dickson-Deane is a Senior Lecturer and Deputy Head of School (Research) in the School of Professional Practice and Leadership at UTS. She specialises in designing evidence-based processes for continuous improvement, with research focused on the intersection of learning sciences, usability evaluation and educational technology.

Associate Professor Eva Cheng is the Head of the School of Professional Practice and Leadership at UTS. A passionate advocate for social justice, she integrates humanitarian engineering, gender equity and inclusive education into her teaching and outreach. She collaborates with organisations such as Engineers Without Borders Australia and the Tech Girls Movement Foundation to promote diversity in STEM.

Image credit: charliepix