Mark Butler (Port Adelaide, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Mental Health and Ageing) Share this | Hansard source

Yes, it is somewhat of a change of pace. I thought I would tell the House about some impressions I got from that. The first was that when Mavis was born 100 years ago the average man died at 55 in Australia and the average woman died at 57. In the space of Mavis's lifetime—albeit a pretty long lifetime—Australia had added 25 years of life expectancy. That is a phenomenon not unique to Australia but one which the World Health Organisation has described as one of humanity's greatest triumphs.

Our challenge now is to make sure that, as far as possible, those additional 25 years are good years, years during which Australians live healthy, active and connected lives. One of the most effective ways of achieving all three of those objectives is through the opportunity to work—an opportunity that will be of increasing importance to the broader national economy. As the oldest of the baby boomers turns 65 this year, we confront a situation for the first time in memory where more Australians will be leaving the workforce than joining it and where it will only be immigration that will prevent our workforce in Australia from actually shrinking.

Our problem is that older Australians constantly describe barriers and discrimination which prevent them from staying in work or engaging in encore careers. We are advised that there are two million older Australians outside the workforce who are willing to work; that one in three Australians over 65 will not look for work and will not look for more hours because they think employers regard them as simply too old; and that three in five workers who face mandatory retirement say that they would like to keep working—at the same time that we know, literally, that grey is gold. The Human Rights Commission told us this year that older workers are worth almost $2,000 per year more than other workers because of things like lower absenteeism and increased retention rates. As this House knows, this government is acting on all of these issues. The improved work bonus introduced this year by the Minister for Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs allows pensioners to keep more of their wage and more of their pension if they take up the opportunity to work and to bank that entitlement for fully 12 months. Initiatives led by my South Australian colleague the Minister for Employment Participation and Childcare are providing more support and more training for older workers through things like More Help for Mature Age Workers and Experience Plus. The Attorney-General has delivered on our election commitment to establish the first stand-alone Age Discrimination Commissioner, a position that will particularly focus on the workplace.

The Treasurer—the Acting Prime Minister today—has established an Advisory Panel on the Economic Potential of Senior Australians that will explore other elements of these questions. The panel's second report focuses on the four pillars of positive ageing: health, housing, lifelong learning and participation. The report describes a myriad of other barriers that older Australians confront when trying to stay in the workplace, including financial issues like equitable access to superannuation. I am very pleased to say that, literally at the same time I was receiving the second report from Everald Compton and his panel, the Assistant Treasurer was at this very dispatch box announcing that this government will do just that as part of the MRRT package—just one more way in which this government, across portfolios, is acting to support older Australians to lead a healthy, active and connected life. We see in their opposition to the MRRT package just one more way in which the opposition are opposing it. (Time expired)

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