Rachel Siewert (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise tonight to talk about an important issue in Western Australia, which I had the pleasure of going to a forum about the week before last. Western Australia's population is growing older. Western Australia will be home to over one million people aged 65 and over by 2050. As our population in Western Australia gets older, it is important that we get wiser and give older people the support they deserve to participate fully in the community and live with dignity.

A recent report by the Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre—Securing our future: meeting the challenges of WA's ageing populationtalks about some of the trends in our ageing population. These present exciting opportunities as well as challenges.

Older Australians make a significant contribution to our community. The Australian Bureau of Statistics estimates that almost one in five older persons living in households undertake a caring role. Older West Australians, both those working and those who have retired, also volunteer in the wider community—in fact as do those who are unemployed, and I will come back to that in a minute. On average, they contribute five hours of their time per week as carers and volunteers. We should recognise and value this important contribution that older Australians make.

But older Australians—and Western Australians, who I am focusing on tonight—face significant challenges. Many older Australians experience discrimination in the workplace. Older people are more likely to experience long-term unemployment and greater difficulty in returning to work. We see that borne out in the statistics for those older Australians who are on Newstart. More than half of older people who want to work but are not seeking employment are discouraged job seekers. Most of these discouraged job seekers believe they would be considered 'too old' by employers. However, we know that older people can and do make significant contributions in the workplace and want to continue to work. Many would re-enter the workforce, if they had the opportunity.

By shutting older people out of the workforce, we are robbing ourselves of their value and all that they have to offer, and we are denying them opportunities to improve their financial situation. We believe that this is a situation in which everybody loses and we need to do more to make our workplaces inclusive for older Australians.

For many older West Australians, getting to retirement is a moment to celebrate. Having worked throughout their adult lives, many see retirement as an opportunity to take time for themselves. Unfortunately, that is not the case for everyone: 46 per cent are pressured or forced to retire as a result of the inflexibility of working conditions, combined with the poor attitude toward older workers. So not only are people unable to gain employment and enter the workforce; they are also forced out of the workforce.

More workers would like the option of a more gradual transition into retirement, with many preferring reduced hours as they age, but are denied this opportunity. This discrimination based on age can force older people out of their jobs and into retirement, which they often cannot afford nor want. All older people should be able to transition into retirement on their own terms, and we need to address that.

There is also a real risk of poverty for older Australians. Older West Australians are at a greater risk of having low economic resources than other groups, and the gap between the richest and poorest older people is bigger in WA than the rest of Australia. This gap means that, while some older people are living out their retirement comfortably, others are struggling to make ends meet. We fundamentally believe that everyone is entitled to a reasonable quality of life, but it is especially important that all older people have a decent income, including an adequate age pension, and are able to live with dignity.

Another challenge for older Australians is housing. Some older West Australians do not have adequate access to affordable and appropriate housing. WA residents aged 55 to 64 are more likely to have a mortgage; more likely to be renting; and more likely to have more spare bedrooms than anywhere else in Australia. Many of this group are experiencing more unstable housing and financial stress, and are living in houses that are inappropriate for their needs, because there are simply no other options.

In turn, older people staying in houses too big for their needs is having a significant impact on the housing stock available for younger families.

There needs to be more affordable, appropriate and flexible housing available for older people. This will benefit the whole of our community. We know that connections to community are essential for quality of life, so it is essential that we plan for WA's ageing population. We need to develop suitable housing options within communities that enable older people to live comfortably and happily. We also need appropriate support services for older people who choose to remain in their own homes, including community care programs and home modification.

Older Western Australians enjoy better health than their counterparts in the rest of the country. But there are still major gaps in the adequacy and availability of services in health and in aged care. Western Australians over 65 are more likely to have unmet care needs than those over 65 in any other part of Australia, at an alarming rate of 36.5 per cent. This group also receives the largest proportion of informal care in Australia, being that provided by family and friends.

Unless we plan carefully as our population ages, our ageing population will continue to put an additional strain on our aged care sector, and it is important that we plan for that. That is why I am really pleased that yesterday the Senate supported our motion referencing workforce challenges in the aged care sector. It is critical that in the coming decades we make sure that we have the right solutions in place for the sector and that we are able to support a sector that will continue to grow and that provides such critical support to an increasingly large proportion of our population.

We will continue to fight for the rights of older Australians to live with dignity, to have decent incomes, to receive quality care and to have appropriate housing.

Senate adjourned at 19:54