Zaneta Mascarenhas (Swan, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) acknowledges the data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics showing the national gender pay gap is the lowest on record, falling to 11.5 per cent from 12 per cent in November 2023, and 14.1 per cent in May 2022;

(2) recognises the progress of the Government in advancing the economic empowerment of Australian women, noting the following initiatives:

(a) a $173.80 per week increase to women's average weekly earnings since May 2022;

(b) funding a 15 per cent wage increase for early childhood education and care workers;

(c) reaching a 63.2 per cent record high for women's workforce participation;

(d) a tax cut for every Australian woman taxpayer from July 1, and a bigger tax cut for 90 per cent of Australian women taxpayers;

(e) $1.1 billion over four years to pay superannuation on Government-funded paid parental leave from 1 July 2025;

(f) $427.4 million over four years to provide financial support to students on mandatory nursing (including midwifery), social work and teaching placements;

(g) expansion of paid parental leave, providing families with access to 26 weeks of leave by July 2026;

(h) $38.2 million over eight years to support a thriving, skilled and diverse science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) workforce in response to the Pathway to Diversity in STEM Review; and

(i) $55.6 million over four years to establish the Building Women's Careers program;

(3) supports the Government as it continues to develop policies and invest in programs to improve women's economic empowerment, recognising the connection between the safety of women and women's financial autonomy and wellbeing; and

(4) commends the Government's commitment to putting women at the centre of Australia's economic plan to make the lives of Australian women safer, fairer and more equal.

The good news is that the pay gap between men and women in Australia is shrinking. The motion I move today recognises the significant progress that the Albanese Labor government has made to address the gender pay gap and, in doing so, advance the economic empowerment of Australian women. It comes despite the opposition's efforts to block and repeal many of Labor's measures. Labor is delivering better and more equal pay for Australian women.

The gender pay gap represents more than just a number. It reflects a range of deeply ingrained structural barriers that women face in the workforce, barriers that restrict our earning potential, limit our career opportunities and contribute to ongoing gender inequality. I recognise the connection between women's financial autonomy and their overall wellbeing. Financial independence is a key factor in ensuring a woman's safety and security. It gives them the power to make choices about their lives and their future. Closing the gender pay gap is key.

When Labor came into government in 2022 we promised to close the gender pay gap between men and women, and we are making significant progress. Recent data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that the gender pay gap is now the lowest on record. It fell from 14.1 per cent in May 2022 to it now being 11.5 per cent. That's significant. Under Labor, women's average weekly earnings have increased by $173. This isn't by chance. It is deliberate. It's by design. It's the result of real action and taking bold steps to break down barriers and make real progress. We have banned pay secrecy clauses, we have reformed the bargaining system, we have enforced transparent pay-gap reporting and we have delivered pay increases for aged-care and childcare workers, predominantly feminised industries. Our efforts to lift wages in sectors like aged care and child care, which are dominated by women, are absolutely helping. We have funded a 15 per cent wage increase for early childhood educators and care workers. This is a largely female workforce who have been, for far too long, underpaid for the essential work that they do.

We have also introduced better and fairer tax cuts. Labor's tax cuts have put more money in the pockets of 90 per cent of working women. We have also committed $1.1 billion over four years to pay superannuation on government funded paid parental leave from July 2025. This will ensure that women do not fall further behind than their male counterparts in securing their financial future simply because they took time out of the workforce to care for families.

In addition, we're investing $427 million to provide financial support for students for mandatory nursing, midwifery and social work placements. These are mostly staffed by women. By reducing the financial burden on them to do their placements we are making it financially easier and fairer for women to complete these important qualifications. We're also expanding paid parental leave to 26 weeks by July 2026, giving families more flexibility and more choice. We are working hard to increase women's participation in science, technology, engineering and maths by investing $38 million over eight years to foster a more diverse and skilled STEM workforce. We're also allocating $55 million over four years to establish the Building Women's Careers Program. By supporting women's progression in leadership roles, we are insuring that women indeed have a seat at the decision-making table.

In total, it is a comprehensive plan that is driving progress and demonstrates that women are at the heart of Labor's economic plan. I commend the government for its ongoing commitment to improving the lives of Australian women, making them fairer and more equal. This progress benefits everyone, not just women. It's good for men, it's good for families, it's good for the economy and it's good for our entire community. It's good news, but we know that the work is far from over.

Rebekha Sharkie (Mayo, Centre Alliance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is the motion seconded?

Alison Byrnes (Cunningham, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion and reserve my right to speak.

Jenny Ware (Hughes, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on this issue in relation to the gender pay gap. I want to first of all acknowledge that data recently released by the ABS does show that the national gender pay gap is the lowest on record. It's now fallen, based on those statistics, to 11.5 per cent. This is good news.

Since being elected, I've spoken on many occasions about the need for the government to do more for women, particularly on paid parental leave. That is why I am very pleased that the government has now agreed to include superannuation, for example, on government funded paid parental leave from 1 July 2025. That was supported by those on my side and, similarly, the expansion of paid parental leave—with access to up to 26 weeks of leave by July 2026—is a measure that's been supported by the coalition. This is to be commended because for far too many years now women have been financially punished for the intrinsic role that they have in bearing children.

These are measures that will go some way to assisting women with both the gender pay gap and the disparity between Australian women's average superannuation balances and Australian men's. Women's superannuation currently sits at about two-thirds of the superannuation balance that males have, and this is particularly concerning when it is recognised that women also tend to live for a lot longer. We are now in a situation where, I think, this is at a crisis point. We're now in a situation where we need to be pulling out everything we can to help women increase their superannuation balances to ensure their security into retirement.

This then moves us into a space where the government has significantly failed and continues to fail women and Australians overall, and that space is housing. In March 2022, this Prime Minister went into the election and said that mortgages and rents would be cheaper under Labor, but, after two and a half years, that is simply not the case. In fact, the average Australian mortgage holder has paid $35,000 more in interest than they were paying two and a half years ago.

The impact of the housing crisis is particularly costly to Australian women. I just had a look at a study that was done by the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute recently, and it revealed a couple of points that I will quickly summarise. Women are less likely to be able to save for a deposit on a home. For those who do manage, it takes far longer; on average, it takes a year longer for a single woman to save for a deposit than it does for a single Australian man. Women are, therefore, far less likely to own a home to support them into retirement. Also, older women who are paying off a mortgage experience much higher levels of stress than their male peers, which obviously impacts both their health and their wellbeing and places further demands on our health system. Most severely, as housing does become less affordable, the number of women experiencing homelessness continues to rise, with the rate of increase for women being much higher than the rate for men.

In that space, women over the age of 55 in Australia are now the fastest growing demographic of homeless Australians. This is something that needs to be addressed urgently, and there are measures that this government could put in place that would help to achieve that. For example, homeownership is shown to be one of the greatest safeguards and one of the best ways to improve quality of life into retirement. That is why it is mind-blowing that the Labor government won't allow women the choice to be able to withdraw their superannuation if they so wish to be able to purchase a home. It is significantly impacting women, particularly older women over the age of 55 and 60 who may have experienced a divorce and then are unable to buy their own home with the proceeds from the family law settlement. That's why the coalition supports this very sensible policy, and I call on the Labor government to also support this if they are in fact serious about women. (Time expired)

Jodie Belyea (Dunkley, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm very pleased to speak on this private member's motion relating to the gender pay gap moved by my friend and office neighbour the member for Swan. Isn't it just excellent news that the national gender pay gap continues to fall under this government and has fallen to the lowest on record, some 11.5 per cent? It's no coincidence that this has occurred underneath the Albanese Labor government. We made a commitment to close the gap, and this is exactly what's happened.

Prior to my role as an MP, I worked as a professional in the community sector for 32 years in roles supporting children, young people, women and men to learn and grow and find a job. In short, these roles achieved self-determination that leads to economic participation. I've held these roles at a national, state and local level. I recently have spent the better part of the last decade working with women who are experiencing economic hardship due to domestic, family and sexual violence or an acrimonious separation. Despite the responsibility and seniority of these roles, I have always earned considerably less than my husband and other men I know who work in the community sector. It frustrated me greatly and made me feel my work and that of my female colleagues was not valued.

This government has taken real action to drive down the gender pay gap. An extra 510,000 women are now in jobs since the Albanese government came to office, with 60 per cent of these jobs full time. Women's average weekly earnings have increased by $173 a week since May 2022. We've also modernised the bargaining system, enforcing gender pay gap reporting and importantly delivering substantial pay rises for aged-care and childcare workers. These are heavily female dominated industries, and these workers absolutely deserve the pay rise they are getting.

The best part is that this is not only good for women but also good for the economy. In its report, the Women's Economic Equality Taskforce, led by the Minister for Women, Katy Gallagher, identified that Australia loses $28 billion per annum due to women being underemployed or unemployed. That is why closing the gender pay gap is a key ambition for Working for Women: A Strategy for Gender Equality, which outlines the Australian government's vision for gender equality—an Australia where people are treated with respect, have choices and have access to resources and equal outcomes no matter their gender.

Alongside reducing the gender pay gap, another key part of continuing to progress gender equality is the development of a 10-year national plan to end gendered violence. The first-ever national plan will work to end domestic and family violence against women and children in a generation. This investment includes a range of measures that work to mitigate the impact that domestic family and sexual violence have on women and their safety, self-determination and financial independence. I want to commend the Albanese government, my colleagues and peers for focusing on women in their economic plan. Women are the heart of Labor's economic plan. That is loud and clear. This is good for women, good for men, good for children, good for the community and good for the economy.

Angie Bell (Moncrieff, Liberal National Party, Shadow Minister for Early Childhood Education) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The coalition supports women's economic security. The coalition has always supported women's economic security. In government, we delivered more than $5.5 billion in funding for women through our women's budget statements. Our policies boosted workforce participation to record levels, reduced the gender pay gap and empowered more women to run their own businesses. That's really important because that's income. We continue to support the closing of the gender pay gap. We welcomed the first annual release of gender pay gap data from corporate Australia this year from the Workplace Gender Equality Agency. And we put corporates on notice. They need to be doing more than just talking the talk. We don't need to see more morning teas and cupcakes with pink icing; we need real policies to promote and support women across Australia. Those opposite were happy to spend time and money on social policies such as the Voice campaign, but are they willing to do the same to reduce the gender pay gap for good?

It's so important that we close not only the gender pay but also the superannuation gap. Far too many women are being left behind with less in their superannuation balance in retirement compared to their male counterparts. We hear it time and time again. That's women aged 55 and over, which is my age. That is very confronting for many women in that age bracket because we are the fastest-growing cohort of homeless Australians. That's scary if your relationship or your marriage breaks down and there are legal proceedings. Women in this age group are finding themselves in insecure housing. It's so real for those who are struggling with cost-of-living pressures right now. They're paying ridiculous rent under this government's watch. They're paying ridiculous amounts of money and watching their lifestyles go backwards under this Prime Minister.

The coalition supports the principle of super on government funded paid parental leave. We support that principle. We have a strong record in supporting women's economic security. It's important to note that Labor is 14 years late to this policy. The coalition actually took paid parental leave policies to the 2010 and 2013 elections, which included paying superannuation on government funded paid parental leave, only for it to be opposed by those opposite and their political partners, the Greens. We extended PPL in government and are working to improve the government's current proposal to extend its recent extension to 26 weeks. While this helps support women and families in the long run, it doesn't help families struggling with the cost-of-living pressures right now.

Let's be real: superannuation is important, but increasing homeownership is critical to boosting women's economic security. We know that the key to economic security is housing security, with no or little mortgage payments in your retirement years. When heading towards that 60 to 65 mark, you should be able to gear up the rest of your life to have secure housing and not pay huge rent to a landlord. That's why we believe in homeownership so much on this side; in fact, we have a shadow minister for homeownership. We believe Australians should be able to use their superannuation to draw down on a deposit to buy their own home, which is the biggest purchase they will make in their lifetime. With growing figures of older women finding themselves homeless, homeownership in retirement has never been more important. I can't stress this point enough.

We want to see stronger action taken on women's safety. This is something the coalition was focused on in government. We have repeatedly expressed our commitment to combatting the scourge of domestic violence in this country. Too many women were killed as a result of violence in 2024, and too many others were assaulted. One is too many. It must come to an end. I've spoken about this before in this place and demanded that it come to an end. The numbers are going in the wrong direction and immediate action is required. We need the government to actually deliver on the promises it makes, particularly when it comes to the safety of women and children.

It's not good enough that this Labor government committed to 500 frontline services and community workers to support those experiencing family and domestic violence almost two years ago. Almost two years ago and they've failed to deliver on that commitment. In the Prime Minister's own state of New South Wales, there are only 30 workers on the ground out of the 148 he promised. Again, we see broken promises from this Prime Minister.

Jerome Laxale (Bennelong, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'll get straight to the facts. Under Labor, the gender pay gap has narrowed. Under Labor, we've seen a $173.80 increase in women's average weekly earnings. Under Labor, we've funded a 15 per cent wage increase for early childhood educators and aged-care workers, an industry dominated by women. Under Labor, women's workforce participation has reached a record high of 63.2 per cent. Under Labor, every female taxpayer got a tax cut and 90 per cent of women got a better tax cut than under the Liberals. Under Labor, we've committed $1.1 billion over four years to pay superannuation on government funded paid parental leave and reformed paid parental leave for the first time since its inception to get it to 26 weeks. Under Labor, we will provide $427.4 million over four years to support students in mandatory nursing, social work and teaching placements—industries also traditionally dominated by women. Under Labor, we are investing $38.2 million over eight years to support a thriving, skilled and diverse STEM workforce, one that simply must attract more women.

Political parties are not the same. All this happened under Labor, and all in our first term of government. We are committed to developing policies and investing in programs that will improve women's economic empowerment because we recognise the connection between the safety of women and their financial autonomy and wellbeing. The connection between economic security and safety for women cannot be overstated. Financial autonomy is critical to ensuring that women can live their lives free from violence and abuse. When women earn less than men, when their work is undervalued, they are more vulnerable to financial dependence and exploitation. By closing the gender pay gap, we're not only promoting economic justice but fostering a society where women can live with dignity, free from fear.

We know that economic security also relies on addressing the systemic issues that cause and perpetuate the gender pay gap. That's why this government has banned secrecy pay clauses, modernised bargaining systems and introduced transparent gender pay gap reporting. These reforms have got wages moving again, particularly for women. They will ensure that wage disparity cannot be hidden and that employers are held accountable for creating equitable workplaces. When women thrive, Australia thrives. Women's increased earnings and workforce participation contribute to household incomes, reduce poverty rates and stimulate consumer spending. Closing the gender pay gap benefits us all. When we pay women fairly, we set a standard for future generations. We teach our children that equality is not just an ideal but a reality that we are committed to achieving. We show that the work women do—whether in the classroom, in hospitals, in boardrooms or in parliament—is valued and essential.

While today's figures in this motion are worth celebrating, they are by all means not the end of the road. An 11.5 per cent gender pay gap remains an unacceptable inequality. It's still too high. The average woman working full time still earns $231.50 less per week than her male counterpart. That's over $12,000 less per year, an amount that affects her ability to save for retirement, pay off her mortgage or support her family. We cannot be complacent as a government. Our work simply must continue. This government is committed to doing more. We will soon release an employment white paper to further address structural inequalities in the workplace. We are also committed to further reform of the Workplace Gender Equality Act, ensuring that all employers take active steps to close gender pay gaps. This government will not rest until every woman in Australia is paid what she's worth and has the same opportunities to succeed as her male colleagues. We are committed to gender equality and, to have that, we will need to continue to reform. Our government have a commitment to putting women at the centre of our nation's economic plan. We want to make the lives of Australian women safer, fairer and more equal. As we reflect on the progress, we must recognise that progress does not happen by accident. The gender pay gap has fallen to its lowest on record, but we still have much more to do.

Bridget Archer (Bass, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! A quorum has been called in the House of Representatives. We'll suspend proceedings until the members return.

Sitting suspended from 18:05 to 18:07

Libby Coker (Corangamite, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

To build an economy that truly works for everyone, we must ensure it works for women, and an economy that works for women must deliver wage parity. The Albanese government is committed to this goal. I would like to thank the member for Swan, who has moved this important motion. The Albanese government recognises that, while we have made significant strides towards closing the gender pay gap, there is still much more work to be done. However, the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that the Albanese government is on the right track. The proof of the pudding is in the eating, with Australia's national gender pay gap now reaching its lowest point on record. Since the Albanese government came to office, it has fallen from 14.1 per cent in May 2022 to 11.5 per cent today. That's no fluke. It's no coincidence. It's because our government has taken action to ban pay secrecy clauses, modernised the bargaining system, enforced transparent gender pay gap reporting and delivered pay rises for aged-care and early childhood educators.

In my electorate of Corangamite, early years educator and amazing United Workers Union advocate Raelee Fechner told my office that the pay rise for early years educators will be an absolute game changer. She said: 'It's a good move. Some educators are working two or three jobs and, with this pay rise, they will have a much better work-life balance.' For this feminised sector which is facing worker shortages, this significant pay rise is meaningful progress and it will put a dent in the gender pay gap. It will mean more mums who are working as early childhood educators will be better rewarded for the incredible work they do. More than that, soon-to-be mums will now have access to 26 weeks of paid maternity leave by July 2026 under our government. On top of that, women will also be paid superannuation on paid parental leave. It will not be just women, but it will make a difference to the gender pay gap. We're investing $1.1 billion over four years to make this a reality.

This Labor government is doing this because we understand that families cannot always afford or access formal caregiving—child care, elder care or home care. For those families, women are often the ones to step up, and when women step up they usually reduce their working hours, leave the workforce or juggle multiple jobs, both paid and unpaid. That's why we're expanding paid parental leave. It's why we're boosting wages for feminised workforces and it's why we'll pay super on paid parental leave.

These measures will go a long way to closing the gender pay gap. As a result, women can have greater confidence in having a family and returning to work in a timely way—a way that enables women to have a family if they choose, build a career, boost their super and continue to earn a good wage. On women's wages: since we came to government, women's average weekly earnings have increased by more than $173. We've secured record pay rises for women on award wages, fixed the bargaining system to get wages moving in feminised industries and changed workplace laws to put gender equity at the heart of the Fair Work Commission's decision-making. This is despite the opposition opposing almost every single one of our measures.

At the same time that the gap has narrowed, an extra 510,000 women are now in jobs since the Albanese government came to office, with 60 per cent of these jobs being full-time. We're also delivering a bigger tax cut for 90 per cent of Australian women taxpayers, much bigger than the former coalition government had promised.

In closing, closing the gender pay gap is not only a moral imperative; it also means there will be a larger pool of workers to fill jobs and grow our economy. Ensuring fair pay and equal opportunities for women strengthens our economy and enriches our society because, when women do well, we all do well.

Bridget Archer (Bass, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There being no further speakers, the debate is adjourned the resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next sitting.