Gender
Gender refers to socially constructed characteristics of women and men. Gender roles and characteristics do not exist in isolation but are defined in relation to one another and through the relationships between women and men, boys and girls. Gender norms, roles and relations can influence health and affect the mental, physical and social wellbeing of individuals. Separating data by gender can identify sex and gender-based differences in health risks and opportunities to design appropriate health interventions.1
This profile addresses the health, employment, education and income data of residents within Wyndham City, and compares it along gender lines and, where relevant, with parallel data from Greater Melbourne and/or Victoria.
The information available shows females in Wyndham enjoy better levels of physical health than males, and that educational qualifications among female adults in Wyndham is higher, but they have lower levels of employment and income than their male counterparts.
All data refers to adults aged 18+ years unless otherwise stated.
Obesity is a condition where a person has accumulated excess body fat which may have a negative impact on their health.
Wyndham adults had higher rates of obesity compared to Victoria, across both females and males. As shown in the graph below, 23.1% of females in Wyndham were obese, compared with 19.7% in Western Melbourne and 19.5% in Victoria in 2017.
As for the males, around 26.9% from Wyndham were obese, compared to 21.5% in Western Melbourne and 19.0% across Victoria during the same period.
Interestingly, a much larger proportion of Wyndham males compared to females were obese, while across Victoria this trend is not observed.
Short-term risk of alcohol-related harm, Wyndham, Western Melbourne and Victoria 20172
On a single occasion of drinking, the risk of alcohol-related injury increases with the amount consumed. For healthy men and women, drinking no more than four standard drinks on a single occasion reduces the risk of alcohol-related injury arising from that occasion3.
The following chart shows the proportion of adults engaging in risky levels of alcohol consumption was slightly higher in Western Melbourne and Victoria than Wyndham.
- In 2017, 25.4% of Wyndham females consumed sufficient quantities to put them at short-term risk of alcohol-related harm, compared to 30.7% of females living in Western Melbourne and 32.2% of Victorian females.
- 41.8% of males in Wyndham were at risk of alcohol related harm, compared to 51.6% of males living in Western Melbourne and 32.2% of Victorian males.
Short-term risk of alcohol-related harm, Wyndham, Western Melbourne and Victoria 20173
Depression has a high lifetime prevalence and is the third highest burden of all diseases in Australia and globally6. As the following graph demonstrates, depression and anxiety was more prevalent in females than males in 2017.
- 29.7% of females who live in Wyndham have had a diagnosis made by a medical professional for anxiety and/or depression, this lower than the proportion of females living in Western Melbourne (34.1%) and Victoria (33.6%).
- The proportion of Wyndham males who have had a diagnosis of anxiety and/or depression is slightly lower (20.2%) than the proportion of males living in Western Melbourne (21.2%) and Victoria (21.0%).
Lifetime prevalence of depression and anxiety, 20175
Breast cancer screening data is used to monitor trends in participation and the detection of invasive breast cancer and ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) in women aged 50-74 years of age. BreastScreen is the national, population-based breast cancer screening program and is a joint program of the Australian and state and territory governments. Mammograms can be used to check for breast cancer in women who have no signs or symptoms of the disease. In Wyndham each year approximately 90 women are diagnosed with a breast cancer, unfortunately 13 of these women won't survive the diagnosis.6
Similar to breast cancer screening, Cervical screening used to detect potentially pre-cancerous and cancerous processes in the cervix and is promoted to women aged 20-69 years of age. The data presented here is used for monitoring trends in cervical screening participation and abnormality detection trends across Australia. Standard cervical cytology and histology tests are used and reported against in compiling this data. Each year in Wyndham about 7 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer.6
Less than half of eligible women in Wyndham had been screened for both breast and cervical cancer. Proportionally fewer Wyndham women had been screened in the last two years compared to women in Western Melbourne and Victoria, however more women have been screened between 2014-15 and 2015-16.7
Breast Cancer Screening participation rates, 2014-2015 and 2015-20167
Cervical Cancer Screening participation rates, 2014-2015 and 2015-20167
Highest Qualification Achieved
As shown in the adjacent graph, just over a quarter of Wyndham females over 15 years of age had attained a bachelor degree or higher in 2016, compared to 23.1% of males.
A much larger proportion of males had attained a vocational qualification, and similar rates of males and females had an advanced diploma or diploma.
Highest qualification achieved, 15 years+, males and females Wyndham, 20168
Year 12 Completion
As shown in the adjacent graph, similar proportions of females 19 years of age and over in Wyndham and across Greater Melbourne had completed year 12 or equivalent. A slightly larger proportion of males 19 years of age and over across Greater Melbourne (58.4%) had completed year 12, compared to Wyndham males (56.7%).
Year 12 completion, 19 years+, males and females Wyndham, 20169
Employment Status
As shown in the graph below, more males 15 years and over were employed in 2016 (67.5%) than females (53.2%). The proportion of females 15 years and over not in the labour force was significantly higher than the proportion of males (35.7% and 21.8% respectively). A proportion of those females are stay at home parents.
Employment status, males and females 15 years+, Wyndham 201610
Youth Disengagement
As shown in the graph below, the proportion of Wyndham female youths from 15 to 24 years of age not studying, not in employment or not looking for work (11.4%) (i.e. not in the labour force) is almost double the proportion of Wyndham males (10.3%) which is larger than the proportion of Victorian females 15 to 24 years of age that are considered disengaged (8.1%).
The large gender gap may in part be due to young stay at home mothers neither studying nor employed.
Youth disengagement, males and females 18-25 years, Wyndham 201611
Industry of Employment12
14.2% of males were employed in the transport, postal and warehousing industry, making it the most common industry of employment in 2016. The most common industry of employment among Wyndham women was the healthcare and social assistance industry (20.3%). 8.2% of men were employed in the retail trade compared to 12.5% of females.
Industry of employment, males and females 15 years+, Wyndham 2016
Occupation of Employed Persons13
Of those Wyndham residents 15 years and over an employed in 2016:
- 1 in 5 employed women work as a professional, compared to 16.7% of males.
- A larger proportion of employed males are managers compared with females (12.9% and 8.1% respectively)
Wyndham males are more typically employed in occupations of manual labour, while females are predominantly employed in service-based occupations.
Occupation of employed persons, males and females 15 years+, Wyndham 2016
Personal Income14
Personal income includes income individuals receive from a number of sources, including salaries and wages, bonuses from employment or self-employment, and income from investments, distributions and profit sharing from businesses.
The weekly income of males and females 15 years and over in Wyndham varied significantly. In 2016, almost three quarters of females (72%) earned less than $1,000 per week, compared to 51% of males. 9.5% of males earned $2,000 or more each week, compared to less than 2.5% of females. Proportionally more females (17.1%) earned nil income compared to males (9.5%).
Personal income, males and females 15+ years, Wyndham 2016
Unpaid Domestic Work15
The graph below shows the proportion of females and males contributing time to unpaid domestic work. The light blue sections of each bar represents females while the dark blue sections represents males.
The proportion of males and females contributing time to unpaid domestic work is imbalanced in Wyndham and across Australia. The majority of Wyndham residents performing 30 or more hours of unpaid domestic work per week were female (85%). More males than females were contributing less than 5 hours per week to unpaid domestic work (64.9% and 35.1% respectively).
