Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Hansard source

One of the most fundamental changes in the Australian labour market over the past 50 years is the rise in female workplace participation, and we want to continue this trend. About 62.5 per cent of women participated in the labour market in August 2023 compared to 37 per cent in 1966. But we do have a highly gender-segregated labour market, and gender segregation is a major barrier to addressing skills shortages in critical occupations such as aged care, early childhood education and care, teaching and technicians and trade workers. We know that women dominate in sectors that pay less and are less secure, and male dominated sectors have less flexibility or access to paid parental leave. So these are both areas that we need to concentrate on to make sure that we can maximise the use of our labour market to deliver in those areas of skills shortage but also to make sure that we're using fully the skills across the economy.