Brendan O'Connor (Gorton, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Prime Minister had an opportunity today to stand up for workers and chose not to, but, whilst low-paid workers in this country are going to suffer as result of the decision that was made and the failure by the government to respond, it is important to note the proportion of women in these sectors of the economy who will be affected. Women are disproportionately represented in the retail and hospitality industries, are more likely to receive minimum award wages and are more likely to rely on penalty rates to meet household payments. So, while it is the case that hundreds of thousands of workers will be worse off, a much greater proportion will be women. Under the hospitality award and the retail award, around 55 per cent are women. Seventy seven per cent of workers under the pharmacy award are women. The Fair Work Commission has also left the door open for a review of the hair and beauty award, and 87 per cent of that workforce are women. So, whilst this is a very harsh decision for many low-paid workers, it is particularly harsh for women in workplaces across the country. In fact, it will increase the gender gap in workplaces across Australia unless the Prime Minister chooses to act and support Labor to support these workers.