Building Equality Policy: targets, plans and reporting
Victoria's Building Equality Policy sets minimum hours of work for women on publicly funded construction projects of $20 million or more. The targets apply position by position, so a good project average can still hide a miss.
What is the Building Equality Policy?
The Building Equality Policy is a Victorian Government rule for publicly funded construction projects of $20 million or more. Contractors must meet hours targets for women of 3% in trades, 7% in non-trade award roles and 35% in management, engage women apprentices for 4% of hours, and submit two Gender Equality Action Plans.
Publicly Funded Construction Projects
It covers building, infrastructure, civil engineering and other capital works of $20 million or more with a tender released on or after 1 January 2022. Where a procurement has several packages, the combined value counts, so a contract under $20 million can still be caught.
Head Contractors
The contractor signing with the State carries the commitments, submits both Gender Equality Action Plans at tender and is responsible for reporting. Commitments form part of the contract once awarded.
Trade Partners
A trade partner (subcontractor) working on site must contribute to the project's targets but does not have to complete the action plan documents. The head contractor has a contractual duty to make sure all subcontracting contributes.
What Sits Outside It
Non-construction services such as design, operation and management are out of scope, as are grants. Back-office staff who are not on-site, project-based workers are not counted towards the targets.
What the Building Equality Policy asks for.
What you report, and when.
Estimated Hours By Occupation
To the contracting agency, per contract
Actual Hours, Actions 1 And 2
To the contracting agency, per contract
Project Specific GEAP
To the contracting agency, per contract
Organisation Wide GEAP
To the contracting agency, per contract
Non-Compliance Notification
To the contract manager, in writing
- Estimated Hours By Occupation
- Actual Hours By Woman And Position
- Apprentice, Trainee And Cadet Training Contracts
- Organisation Wide Gender Equality Action Plan
- Project Specific Gender Equality Action Plan
- Social Procurement Commitment Response Form
- Evidence Of Steps Taken For Any Shortfall
Averaging Across Trades
The 3% applies to each trade position, so 10,000 estimated carpentry hours needs 300 hours from women regardless of how electricians went. A project reporting one trades figure cannot show this and may be missing it.
Using The Wrong Base For The 4%
The policy measures the 4% against total estimated project hours, so 400,000 total hours needs 16,000. Working it out from apprentice hours alone produces a far smaller and incorrect number.
Waiting Until The Six-Monthly Report
Contractors must notify the contract manager as soon as practical, with evidence of steps taken and a proposal. A shortfall raised at completion leaves little to propose, and failing to agree alternatives can be treated as a breach of contract.
How Catchment manages the Building Equality Policy.
The Four Hours Targets, Ready To Adopt
SocialProThe BEP framework creates Women in Trade Roles at 3, Women in Non-Trade Roles at 7, Women in Management Roles at 35 and Women ATC Roles at 4. Every month's hours count towards the targets the worker's gender, occupation type and apprentice, trainee or cadet attributes match.
Hours From Trade Partners, Reviewed
SocialProEach package submits its hours monthly and a reviewer accepts or sends back each section with a comment. Accepted periods lock and show upstream, so a six-monthly figure rolls up from checked months rather than a late spreadsheet.
Both GEAPs On Their Own Rhythm
GovAssureThe framework holds Organisation-Wide GEAP and Project-Specific GEAP as separate document requirements, and you can set their frequencies to match your contract. Keep each revision of your own plan in the Document Register and select the current one when you file it.
Seeing A Gap Early
SocialProAnalytics show progress against each target, and packages can enter a month-by-month forecast beside it, while there is still time to recruit. That gives you the record to support a notification to your contract manager, though the decision and the wording stay with your team.
Adopting this framework on a project generates these targets and documents. You can edit them to match your contract.
Building Equality Policy questions.
What are the Building Equality Policy targets?
Women must perform at least 3% of estimated hours for each trade position, 7% for each non-trade Construction Award position and 35% for each management, supervisory and specialist position. Women apprentices, trainees or cadets must also perform at least 4% of total estimated project hours. All targets are measured in hours, not headcount.
When does the Building Equality Policy apply?
It applies to publicly funded construction projects valued at $20 million or more, excluding GST, with a tender released on or after 1 January 2022. Procurements with several packages use the combined value. It applies to entities defined as a public body or department under the Financial Management Act 1994.
What is a GEAP?
A GEAP is a Gender Equality Action Plan. Tenderers submit an organisation-wide plan with data and strategies, and a project-specific plan with strategies, on prescribed templates. They cover seven indicators from the Gender Equality Act 2020, including pay equity, workforce composition, sexual harassment, and leave and flexibility.
Do subcontractors have to report under the BEP?
Subcontractors working on site must contribute to the targets, but they do not have to complete the Gender Equality Action Plan documents. In practice, their hours are needed because the head contractor must report actual hours for each woman employee every 6 months and at practical completion.
What happens if a contractor misses a BEP target?
For contracts executed from 1 July 2024, the contractor notifies the contract manager and proposes alternative appropriate obligations, and each side has 30 days to respond in turn. If no agreement is reached it may be treated as a breach. Responses can include an oversight register or a formal warning from the Secretary or Minister.
Are the Building Equality Policy targets going up?
The Government has said it is committed to increasing them, and RMIT was appointed in 2023 to evaluate the policy and inform those changes. At 4 November 2026 we found no published new percentages or start date. Check Buying for Victoria before you price a tender.
Read our full reporting guide to the Building Equality Policy
- Building Equality Policy (Buying for Victoria)
- Building Equality Policy: Suppliers (Buying for Victoria)
- Building Equality Policy: Buyers (Buying for Victoria)
- Building Equality Policy 2023 (PDF, July 2024) (Victorian Government)
- Building Equality Policy: Staged approach to non-compliance (Buying for Victoria)
Reviewed 4 November 2026. General information to help you plan reporting, not legal advice. Policies change, so check the current version with the policy owner before you rely on it.
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