[3] Since 1984, the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth) has prohibited sex discrimination throughout Australia in a range of areas of public life, including work, accommodation, education, the provision of goods, facilities and services, the activities of clubs and the administration of Commonwealth laws and programs, though some residual inequalities still persist.

The first attempt to redress this imbalance was the voyage of the Lady Juliana, a ship chartered to carry only female convicts to New South Wales, but which became notorious on the trip and was nicknamed "the floating brothel".

Her humanitarian efforts later won her fame in England and great influence in achieving support for families in the colony.

[15] The Sisters of St Joseph were founded in South Australia by Saint Mary MacKillop and Fr Julian Tenison Woods in 1867.

[19][20] Women energetically participated in the war effort, with few signs of defeatism or resistance to government policies.

[citation needed] In 1974, the Commonwealth Court of Conciliation and Arbitration granted women the full adult wage.

[3][25] Only in more recent decades has attention been paid to the role and marginal status of women and minority groups.

In the 21st century, the emphasis has turned to a broader horizon of "gender relations", which includes such concepts as femininity and masculinity.

Despite examples such as in 2010 females holding every position above them in Sydney, (Clover Moore as Lord Mayor, Kristina Keneally as Premier of New South Wales, Marie Bashir as Governor of New South Wales, Julia Gillard as Prime Minister, Quentin Bryce as Governor-General of Australia and Elizabeth II as Queen of Australia)[36] they still remain a minority in federal parliament, and as of 2021 number 37.9% (31.1% in the House of Representatives and 51.3% in the Senate),[43] an increase of 5.9% from the previous election.

[45] She was still the only female judge in South Australia when she retired 18 years later in 1983 although Justices Elizabeth Evatt and Mary Gaudron had been appointed to federal courts by the Whitlam Government.

Victoria passed the Married Women’s Property Act in 1884, New South Wales in 1879, and the remaining states between 1890 and 1897.

[46][47] The very great majority of women were effectively blocked from non-secretarial positions in the Commonwealth Public Service.

In November 1966, Australia was the last democratic country to lift the legislated marriage bar which had prevented married women from holding permanent positions in the public service.

The first Australian state to deal with marital rape was South Australia, under the progressive initiatives of Premier Don Dunstan, which in 1976 partially removed the exemption.

[49] Since 1984, the federal Sex Discrimination Act 1984 has prohibited discrimination throughout Australia on the basis of mainly sexism, homophobia, transphobia and biphobia, as well as sex, marital or relationship status, actual or potential pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, intersex status or breastfeeding in a range of areas of public life, including work, accommodation, education, the provision of goods, facilities and services, the activities of clubs and the administration of Commonwealth laws and programs.

[50] At November 2020, Australia’s national gender pay gap was 13.4%, with women’s average weekly ordinary full-time earnings across all industries and occupations being $1,562.00 compared to $1,804.20 for men.