Sharon Claydon (Newcastle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I too rise to speak on the Fair Work Amendment (Family and Domestic Violence Leave) Bill 2018 and in support of the amendments moved by the member for Gorton. I am extremely disappointed that only two government members have seen fit to add their names to the speaking list on this important bill before the House—and one of those was added just hours ago, after Labor exposed this shameful fact to the House. I'm disappointed because I don't think there is a more urgent and pressing law and order issue in this country today than the menace of domestic and family violence. This is a very important bill but, as my Labor colleagues before me have said, it doesn't go nearly far enough. It falls well short of the 10 days of paid family and domestic violence leave that women in this situation need in order to give them the best chance of escaping a violent relationship.

Approximately one in four women, or 2.2 million women, and one in 13 men have experienced violence by an intimate partner since the age of 15. Today in Australia, like on any other day, police will respond to over 700 cases of domestic violence. One woman is killed in Australia by a partner or an ex every single week. Already this year, 63 Australian women have died due to violence. We have already well exceeded 2017's history of 54 deaths, and we are still one month out before the end of the year. While there is a growing awareness of the problem, there is nowhere near enough attention being paid to the solutions, particularly the support required for women. We know that around two out of three women who experience domestic violence are, in fact, in the workforce, so workplaces absolutely have to be part of the solution. We know that financial independence is one of the key predictors of successfully leaving a violent relationship, and access to a steady income can mitigate some of the effects of violence and provide one avenue out of abuse. Paid domestic violence leave is one important way in which to help achieve this. That is why domestic violence leave is so important.

Leaving an abusive relationship can be costly. I will go into some of those expenses later, but the measures proposed in this bill simply don't go far enough. It's of no surprise that, when this government seeks to amend industrial relations laws to accommodate something like domestic violence leave, they couldn't bring themselves to get it right, unlike the Labor Party, which has been in consultation for two years across Australia with women, employers, peak bodies and organisations that have been either experiencing this in their own places or working in frontline services helping to assist. The government hasn't put in those hard yards. They're trying to play catch-up now by putting this bill in the House, but they haven't done their homework properly beforehand.

The ACTU placed the costs of escaping a violent relationship at something like $18,000. That's what we're up against. This bill was, of course, not prompted by a sudden change of heart or a revelation to members opposite. It was prompted by the Fair Work Commission's decision to include five days of unpaid domestic and family violence leave into all the modern awards. This became active for 2.3 million workers on awards from August of this year. The government's proposed legislation will amend the National Employment Standards to extend this provision to all employees. It has taken a very long time to get here. Indeed, the government first committed to taking this action in March of this year, so why are we only talking about this in November? Since then we've had some 14 sitting weeks and dozens of bills that the government has considered far more pressing for this House to deal with and that have been coming before us. Those in this chamber have not prioritised women fleeing domestic violence until now.

Labor support this bill in principle. Indeed, it was Labor that first committed to deliver family and domestic violence leave back in 2017. We came to this position, as I said, after extensive conversations with victims and survivors of domestic violence, frontline workers, businesses, unions and organisations that deal daily with the tragic impacts of domestic violence. Their overwhelming message that we received was that domestic violence is a workplace issue and that people who have experienced domestic violence deserve the time and support to escape without losing pay. People told us again and again that family and domestic violence leave should be a universal workplace right.

Labor are glad that the government is finally starting to listen. Of course, this bill is a step in the right direction, but all of the evidence before us says it falls way short of what is needed. Too many women choose to stay in an abusive relationship because they simply don't have the money to leave. Others quit work, because they don't think they'll be able to maintain it and still do all of the things that are needed in order to flee a violent relationship. This is a horrific outcome, particularly when we know that maintaining a job is absolutely key to successfully escaping a violent relationship. We know that the most dangerous time for a woman is when she is leaving that violent relationship, and that it is a time when she needs all the support possible.

Domestic violence leave crushes stigma and protects employees from discrimination. It shows women that their employer understands, supports and cares for them. It gives them the time and space they need to rebuild their lives, while maintaining their financial independence and, of course, it gives them the best chance of successfully building a new life for themselves.

Leaving a violent relationship is traumatic. It can also be enormously demanding, exhausting and absolutely time-consuming. There are doctors appointments, trips to the police station, meetings with lawyers, counsellors, financial advisers and a whole host of other services, not to mention house inspections, applications and calls to real estate agents to find a new home. Then there is the locksmith to fix and continuously change the locks every time your violent partner tracks you down. And, of course, women with children are often finding new schools and making sure the mental and physical needs of their children are looked after.

So it's clear that the government's plan for just five days of unpaid leave isn't good enough. Labor would like to see the government match our commitment for 10 days paid domestic violence leave. The cumulative stress of finding a safe place to live, seeking out legal advice, accessing counselling services and medical treatments should not be exacerbated by the fear of losing your job, or indeed the financial hit from the loss of income, because of having to take days off work. Yet, this is the very brutal reality for Australian women today. They simply can't afford to go without pay, especially with the extra costs of trying to find bonds, rent money, maybe buying furniture and having to pay for some of the specialist services and counselling services that are required.

In making this unpaid leave, the government is essentially saying that only women who can afford to take leave without pay should be able to leave a violent relationship, and that is not the message we want to send to Australian women. Too often we hear members of the government bemoaning the scourge of domestic violence, but, when there is a real chance to do something meaningful about it, their actions rarely match the determination or strength of their words. Indeed, it was this government who removed the domestic and family violence provisions from some of Public Service enterprise agreements that it was negotiating.

Some of the comments of government members on this matter have been deeply concerning. It wasn't long ago that the then employment minister, Senator Michaelia Cash, argued strongly against family and domestic violence leave. She even went as far as saying that, if it proceeded, women would lose their jobs. This is appalling and, of course, an absolute nonsense—a fig leaf for inaction. If you follow this argument to its conclusion, you might just as well say, 'We need to get rid of carers leave and maternity leave as they are disproportionately needed and accessed by women.' Around the same time, the finance minister, Senator Mathias Cormann, dismissed family and domestic violence leave as another cost to the Australian economy. This was revealed as a particularly shabby argument in light of the research done by the Australia Institute in 2016, a study which found that domestic violence leave wage payouts actually cost less than one-fiftieth of one per cent, or 0.02 per cent, of current payrolls. And even then these costs themselves are likely to be totally offset by the benefits to the company that they would receive in terms of reduced turnover and increased productivity. Without this provision, we know that some women are actually leaving work entirely when the pressure becomes too much, and I know this from women who have come to see me in my electorate office.

By providing this extremely modest support, employers maintain an employee, rather than going through the expensive and time-consuming process of hiring and training a new person. They are likely to be rewarded with a loyal, committed staff member, who appreciates the support they have been given. It is worth noting at this point that the private sector is well ahead of the government when it comes to this issue. In fact, there is a terrific rollcall of big household names that have already instituted paid domestic violence leave. I know that my colleagues have mentioned them before, but companies like Telstra, NAB, IKEA, Qantas and Virgin are leading the way in supporting their staff. In fact, between the beginning of 2016 and the middle of 2017 there have been over 1,000 agreements with at least 10 days of paid domestic violence approved under the Fair Work Act. This is because these businesses know that it's not only the right thing to do, morally, but it also makes sense economically, despite the nonsense being peddled by the finance minister. In fact, there is a cost, but it's for the inaction. Indeed, anything that discourages a woman from leaving violent relationships not only hurts her, her children and her community but it has great, broader economic impacts for our nation.

In 2016, domestic violence was estimated to cost the business sector $1.9 billion, but it's not just business that is moving to enshrine family and domestic violence leave. Indeed, the Queensland, Australian Capital Territory and Western Australian governments have all implemented 10 days paid domestic violence leave. South Australia offers 15 days and Victoria has 20. So, every Liberal state has now enshrined paid domestic violence leave, and it's not just Australia. In July this year, New Zealand also agreed to guarantee 10 days paid leave for workers experiencing family and domestic violence. So, again, like so many other issues, federal Liberal governments find themselves isolated, behind the times and completely out of step with the country and with community opinion.

We also need to recognise that paid family and domestic violence leave is just a start when it comes to addressing the menace of domestic violence. There is much more work to be done. Labor has a longstanding commitment to invest an additional $88 million for a new safe-housing fund to increase housing options. We've also committed to boosting legal aid funding to $49 million to meet the increased demand on services resulting from changes following reforms to the cross-examination laws in the Family Court system. I applaud the announcements of last week—the commitments from a future Shorten Labor government, if elected.

To conclude, whilst this bill is a step in the right direction, it's nowhere near Labor's commitment. It falls well short of what our victims and survivors of domestic violence need and what all of those who work in frontline services need. I would like to pay a special tribute to those working in organisations in my electorate like Nova For Women and Children, Jenny's Place, Trisha's House, the Hunter Women's Centre and Got Your Back Sista. These are the women who are working tirelessly on the frontline to end the scourge of violence against women and children. (Time expired)

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