Louise Miller-Frost (Boothby, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

The recently released Globalgender gap report from the World Economic Forum shows that, since the Albanese Labor government took office, Australia's world gender equity ranking has jumped 17 places from 43rd to 26th, the largest increase since the index began in 2006. This is a huge achievement. It means that Australia is starting to properly value and invest in better outcomes for women and girls. This historic 17-place jump is in part driven by Labor's commitment to equal gender representation in politics. We are now the first Australian Commonwealth government in history to be majority women—53 per cent. The number of women in our cabinet has increased to 10 out of 23—43 per cent. This is the largest number of women we've ever had in an Australian federal cabinet. This kind of representation was thought to be completely outside the realm of possibility when I was young. When I was born, there was one female MP in the House of Representatives and there were four female senators. Young women and girls of today's Australia have a very different example before them.

We know that gender equality has been demonstrated to lead to better decision-making. We see the evidence in boardrooms and management. ASX listed companies have better financial outcomes when they are led by a diverse board with at least two women. We had a decade of stalled progress under the former coalition government, which has allowed the gender status quo to continue for far too long. As the Minister for Women, Senator Gallagher, has said, on average, women working full time can expect to earn 14.1 per cent less per week in their pay packets than men, and we are facing poorer economic outcomes as a result of this inequity. Every year, $51.8 billion is lost because the underpayment of women continues. The current projections show it will take another 26 years to close the gender pay gap. This is unacceptable, and the Albanese government will not sit back and allow this sorry situation to continue.

At the last election, Labor promised to push forward Australia's progress and make us a world leader on gender equality, and some of the changes we've implemented are making a tangible difference. We are extending and modernising paid parental leave. Our new model encourages fathers to also take parental leave, which is a benefit to the child and also to the whole family. It also allows the mother to return to work earlier if she so chooses. We are expanding the single parenting payment, legislating Australia's first paid domestic violence leave so survivors don't have to choose between safety and retaining their job, and increasing transparency on gender pay gap reporting. I have my own personal expense with the gender pay gap, where in a team of three equivalent executives I discovered I was being paid $8,000 less than one and $15,000 less than the other male counterpart. It was only once I discovered this and pointed it out that I could make the case, and my pay was adjusted appropriately. I shouldn't have to do that work.

We are investing in consent based, respectful relationships and protected behaviour programs in primary and secondary schools because, if we want to end sexual assault, we need a cultural change. There is funding for a national consent survey, and we are abolishing the ParentsNext program on 1 July 2024. This is just the start.

A large part of our plan to push for better outcomes for women and girls is the National Strategy to Achieve Gender Equality. We've made significant strides in developing this strategy, which will guide holistic, community led action. It will be an important mechanism for recognising, elevating and prioritising actions that will achieve gender equality. The strategy will work towards improving all aspects of life for women, from ensuring their physical safety both at home and at work to challenging stereotypes and attitudes that restrict their choices, as well as addressing the undervaluing of women's labour and leadership. Developing this strategy has involved extensive consultation with a diverse range of women and girls. We understand that diversity of experience and perspective is a vital part of this plan. Recognising the impact that intersecting identities have on the experience of women will allow us to tackle gender inequality in a nuanced and effective way.

The lived experience of gender inequality is something that was really brought home to me during my time at Catherine House. This women's homelessness service and the women experiencing that homelessness are a living example of the perfect storm of gender inequality, the cumulative effect of gender inequality throughout their entire lives. When you discover that women are more likely to be living in poverty in older age and that women 55 and older make up a huge cohort of people experiencing homelessness, this is the reason why. These were often the women who had few options for work when they left school. They were often in gendered roles, none of which were well paid or, in those days, even paid the same as their male equivalents, were there any. They often had to leave work when they got married or pregnant, and, even for those not in that age group, women are often in gendered roles: the caring professions, which are somehow underpaid despite the importance of the work. They are often a casualised workforce with part-time roles and long gaps in their career paths due to caring for children, husbands, partners and parents. And, even if they do go back to work after children, again they're often lower paid, they've lost years of career progression and are on part-time work.

All of this means that they don't have much of a financial safety net: little super and few savings. Then they get older and something happens: a relationship breakdown—sometimes with DV, but it can be something else; a cancer diagnosis, an injury or a job loss; trauma, such as sexual assault; or just getting to retirement age and finding they have nothing to fall back on. They run out of options and they end up sleeping in their car or on a friend's couch. That's how easy it is to become homeless as a woman, and that's how gender inequality directly impacts on a woman's life: it's cumulative through their entire life. Whether a woman ends up in this cohort or not, gender inequality affects all women. I shared the story of how it affected me—and I consider myself to have had a very lucky life.

So it's important that, as a government, we address gender inequality. The understanding that this government has of the experiences of women is like that of no other government to date. Why? What makes this government so different to previous iterations? It's the fact that women's voices are represented at an unprecedented rate. Women are at the table, being heard. The amazing women in our cabinet and our caucus room are sharing their experiences, hardships and triumphs in a room that is prepared and eager to listen to their unique perspectives. They're hearing understanding the experience of other women in our electorates and they're bringing those into the parliament, into the caucus room, into committees and into policy discussions. That changes outcomes, and that's what we've seen. The World Economic Forum has recognised that things are changing here in Australia, and that's why our gender equality ranking has jumped from 43rd to 26th: 17 points. We still have a long way to go. I note that our neighbour New Zealand is at No. 4, but we're heading in the right direction.

I am very proud of the achievements of the Albanese government to date, and I commit to keep pushing forward so that Australia becomes the most gender-equal country in the world. At the last election gender equality and the treatment of women by the former government was one of the major issues that I heard about from women in my electorate. It was certainly something that influenced my decision to run, and my decision to be here to make a difference. To see this enormous jump in the gender-equality rating so soon after we came to government is incredibly rewarding. I'd like to thank all of my electorate for the opportunity to be part of this.

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