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PAID gender-neutral parental leave has taken the shine off pay equity as the most important priority for professional women in Australia.

With only 48 per cent of large Australian organisations offering paid parental leave, the study launched today by Diverse City Careers reveals there's still ways to go.

Diverse City Careers (DCC), which refers to itself as 'a jobs site with a difference', asked 500 professional women exactly what they were looking for in an employer.

The responses will help DCC better inform the public about which Australian employers are giving women a fair go. Only 'endorsed employers', those showing commitment to supporting women's careers, can advertise with DCC.

DCC's list currently comprises multinationals Accenture, Caltex and IBM, and other companies such as BOQ, Atlassian and Commonwealth Bank.

DCC cofounder Gemma Lloyd (pictured right) says in regards to paid gender-neutral parental leave, DCC is calling for a minimum of six weeks across the board.

Of DCC's endorsed employers, 86 per cent have these policies in place, with 76 per cent offering 12 weeks or more.

"This doesn't just affect women, it's also important for carers, people with health problems, those with sporting careers and other groups" said Lloyd.

Survey respondents identified flexible working arrangements as the second most important thing offered by an employer, followed by professional development.

DCC recognises Aurecon, BP and Cbus as currently being the best in terms of flexibility.

Lloyd says she was surprised pay equity weighed in at fourth, but thinks this could be a little misleading.

"It's difficult for a job applicant to know if pay inequality exists in a workplace until they have been hired, so it's not always on a job applicant's radar," says Lloyd.

A 17.7 per cent gender pay gap and a 44.3 per cent superannuation gap still exists in Australia.

The findings were based on a sample of Australian women working across a range of industries, IT & Telecom, Education & Training, and Mining, Oil & Gas having the highest representation.

Business News Australia