Lee Rhiannon (NSW, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I congratulate the New South Wales Teachers Federation on a significant outcome in a recent New South Wales Industrial Relations Commission settlement. This settlement secures continuity of learning for tens of thousands of school students through increased permanency of teacher employment in New South Wales public schools.

It is no coincidence that the public school sector of New South Wales is one of the only areas of employment in the last decade to record real wages growth and increased permanent employment. This sector is one of the most densely-unionised sectors of employment. Through their union, New South Wales's teachers were able to effectively argue the case for secure employment and to convince the New South Wales Industrial Commission that the department is indeed obliged, under its staffing agreement, to fill all unfilled permanent vacancies in all schools across the state. This has resulted in a settlement that we will see over the next six months: a minimum of 2,630 more permanent teaching positions appointed in New South Wales schools, with this total rising to meet the department's own calculation of no fewer than 4,451 unfilled permanent vacancies, as of mid-2017.

This decision has huge implications for education in New South Wales. Students in nearly 4,500 classrooms will now benefit from the continuity of learning that only a permanent teacher can provide. It means there are nearly 4,500 New South Wales families who will gain a permanent breadwinner, with all that entails for the stability of their family, their housing and their ability to plan for a bright future.

Contrary to the myths and misrepresentations put out in the media and by the Liberal-Nationals, the highly unionised New South Wales teaching service is also recognised in Australia and internationally as highly effective, professional, engaged and of enduring quality. This, too, is no coincidence, as permanency of employment directly leads to the accumulation of skills, knowledge and experience, long-term career planning and a stable base from which teachers can pursue further education in their field through additional university or public TAFE qualifications.

We see another myth busted by this settlement, because it was achieved by an agreement between the union and the department to outcomes that are beneficial to students, to teachers and to New South Wales public education. This is an example of high union density leading to harmony, not conflict. The settlement requires the department's compliance in filling these vacancies, and the department, to its credit, has indicated its determination to do so in the settlement and to devote the necessary resources to comply with its obligations under the staffing agreement.

It is informative to contrast this with other sectors of employment in Australia, where we see low union density, stagnant wages growth, precarious employment and a decline in people's ability to pursue long-term plans for their family and their career. Low union density has led directly to an erosion of quality of life and quality of work for millions of Australians, and this is the Australia that the Liberal-Nationals are determined to create. The Turnbull government is using the ABCC in a suite of anti-union legislation to tie unions up in constant compliance requirements that increasingly limit active, constructive union work.

We can reverse this trend. The example provided by the New South Wales Teachers Federation in achieving such a significant outcome is a model for other sectors and for workers to join their union and to campaign together for greater permanency and wages growth. So a big congratulations to the New South Wales Teachers Federation for ensuring that nearly 4,500 teachers now have permanent jobs, for securing the education of thousands of students and for demonstrating the advantages of union density.

As a society, we have made significant achievements in promoting the health and wellbeing of older Australians. There are, however, many areas where older people continue to face challenges. These include poverty for a growing number, age discrimination, ageism and social inclusion. The United Nations Principles for Older Persons have been developed and are supported by governments within Australia. These principles recognise rights of older persons to independence, participation, care, self-fulfilment and dignity. And there is also a growing global push for a binding international convention on the rights of older people that moves beyond a statement of desirable principles.

In Australia, poverty rates for people over 65 are relatively low. However—and it's a big 'however'—there are significant problems. Less than 12 per cent of people over 65 fall below the poverty line. However, there is evidence of cumulative economic advantage and disadvantage throughout the life course. Thirty-six per cent of elderly single women and 30 per cent of elderly single men had spent between six and 10 years living in poverty in the decade 2001 to 2010. Relatively few are able to escape the cycle of poverty once established. While home ownership is relatively high among older people, those in rental accommodation are particularly vulnerable to poverty, particularly older women living alone.

With poverty comes deprivation. For example, 40 per cent of the lower income group could not make electricity or gas payments. Most routinely do without even essential services and material, like food. The number of people aged over 65 living in lower income rental households is projected to increase from 190,000 in 2001 to 419,000 in 2026. The greatest projected change is in the group 85 years of age and over, where estimated numbers are increasing from 17,300 to 51,000.

Older women are much more likely than men to face poverty and homelessness as they age in Australia. They are more likely than men to experience discrimination during their lifetime of employment, they are very likely to spend much of their retirement years without a partner and they are very likely to experience severe poverty in their old age. One study found that 51 per cent of older women over 85 live in or near poverty. There are several reasons for this associated with income and living alone. Older women are increasingly likely to live alone as they age. According to a recent analysis by the Australian Institute of Family Studies, among women the rates of living alone increase as they grow older but much more sharply than for men in older age groups. From the age of 50 onwards the chance of women living alone increases sharply, and from the age of 60 onwards that chance is much higher than for men. By age 80 and over, 40 per cent of women live on their own.

Older women are more likely to have no or very limited superannuation, as superannuation only became compulsory only relatively recently. Attitudes to saving for retirement have changed for women but those over 50 are very likely to regard retirement savings as the husband's responsibility. The result is that many women accumulate substantially less superannuation than men, as contributions are usually linked to earnings. The male members of superannuation funds, for example, already enjoy assets almost three times greater than the female members.

Divorce has a very detrimental effect upon a woman's future retirement income. Many women who are at home raising children or working in low-paid part-time jobs assume that they will enjoy a comfortable retirement because of their husband's superannuation. Despite legal protection, many women lose access to a husband's superannuation after divorce. Consequently, given an interrupted career history due to caring responsibilities and given a lack of retirement planning, a great many older women, including highly educated professional women, remain very vulnerable to poverty in old age.

Ageism can be described as 'a process of systemic stereotyping or discrimination against people simply because they're older'. According to the Human Rights Commission, ageism is an entrenched feature of Australian society, with older individuals being lumped together or thought of as all being the same just because of their age. COTA, Australia's premier advocacy agency for older people, agrees with this view, describing ageism as 'endemic and pervasive in Australia'. Ageism can impact older Australians in many ways. For example, in the media and arts, images of older people are often negative, unattractive or stereotypical. The long-term impact can be serious in rendering older people invisible, useless and feeling like they're a burden on society.

In the health system, certain symptoms in older patients, such as balance problems, memory loss and depression, can be dismissed from the outset as 'old age' instead of being viewed as potentially treatable health conditions. Age discrimination has been detected in assessing suitability for medical rehabilitation services, specifically for stroke and cardiac patients.

And then there is access to employment. The attitudes of many employers to older workers is problematic. Access to training and professional development is often restricted or outright denied. The skills of our older people are frequently undervalued. The Australian Human Rights Commission has identified age discrimination as the foremost barrier to the workforce participation of mature-age workers. Women experience a double-whammy when it comes to employment discrimination, as they are regarded as less capable than older men.

In accessing affordable, safe and suitable housing, including public housing, the profile of older people experiencing homelessness is rapidly expanding, with an increasing number of old people, particularly women, becoming homeless after being evicted from what has been previously comparatively stable accommodation in the private rental market. Even those relatively affluent couples who have invested heavily in retirement village accommodation may find themselves severely impacted by unscrupulous developers, complex and inaccessible contracts and a variety of unregulated fees, including deferred fees. This is where you buy a unit at a retirement village at full price, but, when the time comes to sell, you have to pay the village owner a large percentage of what you get. There can also be ongoing maintenance fees that keep going when you die—and bonds. These various rorts may prevent people from moving, may destroy all financial resources of some older people and may lead their children to carry a huge financial burden after death. In the planning of public facilities, access to public transport, including safe bus stops and accessible vehicles, and location of services should take sufficient account of the needs of older people.

As well as discrimination, many older people suffer exclusion and social isolation. There are multiple factors that cause older people to become socially isolated, including the loss of a partner, family members moving away, living in rural and remote areas, and chronic illness. As mobility becomes affected, access to social events becomes more limited. Age discrimination can intensify social isolation in a psychological sense. Elder abuse is defined by the World Health Organization as:

… a single, or repeated act, or lack of appropriate action, occurring within any relationship where there is an expectation of trust which causes harm or distress to an older person.

Elder abuse can take various forms, such as physical, psychological or emotional, sexual and financial abuse. It can also be the result of intentional or unintentional neglect. That's the WHO definition. Clearly, it is a human rights issues and reflects that a comprehensive set of strategies is needed.

We need a paradigm shift in the development of aged-care policies and programs. We should view older Australians not as a cost burden; we should view them instead as citizens who have the same human and citizenship rights as everyone else and as people who contribute greatly to family, to community and to broader society.

The Melbourne Cup is coming up. It's known as the horserace that stops a nation. Sadly, it also stops, as in kills, many horses. In 2013, Verema died. In 2015, Red Cadeaux died. In 2014, Admire Rakti died, and also Araldo. Between 650 and 960 racehorses are euthanased each year. Surely it is time we reassessed how we treat these animals. The racing year goes from 1 August to 31 July. In the racing year from 1 August 2016 to 31 July 2017, 137 racehorses died on Australian racetracks. Most causes of death on the racetrack are actually catastrophic limb injuries, with broken or fractured legs, backs, necks and pelvises. Torn muscles, tendons or ligaments also occur. I just named some of the horses that have died. You might remember the horrific photographs of the horse with its broken leg flapping around as it tried to walk on three legs just before it was killed.

This is the tragedy for so many of the horses, but there are many other ways that they die. Ninety per cent of race or event horses haemorrhage into their lungs, and 50 to 60 per cent bleed into their windpipes. Racehorses are fed concentrated high-protein grains to maximise performance. However, that's not how horses evolved. They evolved grazing on grasses, often eating dry grass, hay and other fibrous food. This change in diet, which is linked with maximising racing performance, because they're now being fed high-protein foods, causes ulcerated stomachs in stabled horses. So clearly the change in diet is cruel. Eighty-six per cent of racehorses suffer ulcerated stomachs and many suffer deep bleeding ulcers within eight weeks of starting race preparation and going onto the special diets. Gastric ulceration occurs in up to 93 per cent of thoroughbred horses. This increases to 80 to 100 per cent as training increases and racing commences. Dorothy Ainsworth, a veterinary research clinician and professor of large animal medicine at Cornell University, has said:

… it is becoming apparent that racing and strenuous exercise, the actual substance of being a racehorse, is exactly what is putting these horses at risk.

The information I have given about the haemorrhaging and the gastric ulcers comes from a variety of physiology journals and horseracing journals that have documented these problems. There is a very common injury for horses, and one that regularly leads to death. It's well known that once a horse is injured—has broken its leg—it's not going to recover. That is a huge problem, and I understand that it's the fourth-most-common cause of death in horses.

So on the first Tuesday of November, Melbourne Cup day, let's think of the horses. The level of cruelty is extreme, and surely it's at least time that we asked ourselves, 'Does it have to be so extreme?'