scholarly journals Women, work and industrial relations in Australia in 2019

2020 ◽  
Vol 62 (3) ◽  
pp. 365-379 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meraiah Foley ◽  
Sue Williamson ◽  
Sarah Mosseri
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Labour Force ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Labour Force Participation ◽  
Aged Care ◽  
Economic Security ◽  
Care Quality ◽  
Royal Commission ◽  
Political Agenda ◽  
Annual Review

Interest in women’s labour force participation, economic security and pay equity received substantial media and public policy attention throughout 2019, largely attributable to the federal election and the Australian Labor Party platform, which included a comprehensive suite of policies aimed at advancing workplace gender equality. Following the Australian Labor Party’s unexpected loss at the polls, however, workplace gender equality largely faded from the political agenda. In this annual review, we cover key gender equality indicators in Australia, examine key election promises made by both major parties, discuss the implications of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety for the female-dominated aged care workforce, and provide a gendered analysis on recent debates and developments surrounding the ‘future of work’ in Australia.

scholarly journals Women, work and industrial relations in Australia in 2018

2019 ◽  
Vol 61 (3) ◽  
pp. 342-356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sue Williamson ◽  
Meraiah Foley ◽  
Natalie Cartwright
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Policy Development ◽  
Family Policy ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Economic Security ◽  
Annual Review ◽  
Pay Equity ◽  
Work Family ◽  
Key Events ◽  
Gender Equality Policy

This year's annual review of women, work and industrial relations marks an important milestone. Nearly 10 years have elapsed since the introduction of the Fair Work Act 2009, which enshrined important new rights for the progression of gender equality. It is also 10 years since the Journal of Industrial Relations commenced this annual review. In addition to focusing on developments affecting women and work in 2018, this review provides a broad summary of key events over the past decade. We explore trends in women's workforce participation, union membership, economic security and pay equity, as well as major changes pertaining to work–family policy settings, workplace sexual harassment, and family and domestic violence leave. We conclude that although policy and employment frameworks have created a foundation on which to build gender equality, policy development has been sporadic and the context for women in Australian workplaces remains far from equal.

scholarly journals Towards gender equality in the labour markets of Canada, USA and Russia: an overview of progress in achievement of international commitments

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 38-50
Author(s):  
Maria Yu. Beletskaya ◽  
Elena A. Zotova
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Gender Gap ◽  
Labour Force ◽  
Labour Force Participation ◽  
The United States ◽  
Work And Family ◽  
Policy Action ◽  
Family Responsibilities ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Employment Of Women

In 2019, the International Labour Organization (ILO), together with the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), prepared and presented to the G20 leaders a report entitled “Women at work in G20 countries: Progress and policy action”. According to the report, Canada, the United States and Russia show the lowest results among the G20 countries in reaching the goal of reducing the gender gap in labour force participation by 25 percent by 2025. This is largely due to the relatively high levels of gender equality that have already been achieved in these countries. The article analyzes the policy of Canada, the USA and Russia towards women at work in four directions: 1) measures taken by national Governments, in cooperation with social partners, to increase women’s participation in the labour force and to overcome cultural and behavioural barriers to the employment of women; 2) measures to increase women’s ability to earn decent wages, including through lifelong learning, upgrading qualifications and skills development; 3) measures to reduce the proportion of women employed in the informal sector and in low-paid jobs; 4) measures to protect women in labour market in order to encourage men and women to combine work and family and share family responsibilities equitably.

Progressing Towards a Freer Market in Australian Residential Aged Care

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-25
Author(s):  
Susan F Cochrane ◽  
Alice L Holmes ◽  
Joseph E Ibrahim
Keyword(s):  
Current System ◽  
Aged Care ◽  
Care Quality ◽  
Cultural Safety ◽  
Residential Aged Care ◽  
Royal Commission ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Fit For Purpose ◽  
Market Driven ◽  
Care System

The Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety has again focussed attention on the failings of the Australian aged care system. Residential aged care in Australia has become increasingly market-driven since the major reforms of 1997. The aims of increased marketisation include providing residents with greater choice, higher quality services, and increasing providers’ efficiency and innovation. However, marketisation is not meeting these aims, predominantly due to asymmetries of knowledge and power between residents and aged care providers. These asymmetries arise from inadequate provision of information, geographic disparities, urgency for care as needs arise acutely, and issues surrounding safety, including cultural safety. We propose a human rights framework, supported by responsive regulation, to overcome the failings of the current system and deliver an improved aged care system which is fit for purpose.

scholarly journals COVID-19 Pandemic and Gender Inequality in the Labour Market in the UK

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giovanni Razzu
Keyword(s):  
Labour Market ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
20Th Century ◽  
Labour Force ◽  
Labour Force Participation ◽  
Distributional Consequences ◽  
Employment Gap ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The Uk

Although the movement towards gender equality in the labour market has slowed in recent decades, a long-term view over the 20th century shows the significant narrowing of the gender employment gap in the UK, a result of the increases in women’s labour force participation and employment combined with falling attachment to the labour force among men. It is too early to assess with precision the extent to which these patterns will be affected by the Covid-19 pandemic but emerging evidence and informed speculation do suggest that there will be important distributional consequences. Various studies, produced at an unprecedented rate, are pointing out that the effects of Covid-19 are not felt equally across the population; on the contrary labour market inequalities appear to be growing in some dimensions and there are reasons to believe that they will grow more substantially in the medium term.

scholarly journals Women, work and industrial relations in Australia in 2020

2021 ◽  
pp. 002218562199640
Author(s):  
Meraiah Foley ◽  
Sue Williamson
Keyword(s):  
Women Workers ◽  
Social Impact ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Aged Care ◽  
Annual Review ◽  
Policy Responses ◽  
Early Childhood Care ◽  
Childhood Care ◽  
Paid Parental Leave

The COVID-19 pandemic drove significant changes affecting women, work and industrial relations in Australia in 2020. This annual review explores the economic and social impact of the pandemic on women workers, and examines the gendered impact of key policy responses, including: the introduction of an historic temporary wage subsidy programme; the early release of superannuation funds; multiple economic stimulus measures, targeted mostly at male-dominated industries; and the provision of paid pandemic leave. This review also analyses major developments in early childhood care and education and aged care, and the longer-term implications of the massive natural experiment in working from home that occurred in 2020. Developments in paid parental leave and sexual harassment are also briefly discussed. We find that, although women workers were disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, policy responses to date have largely failed to acknowledge or repair the gendered impacts of the crisis.

scholarly journals Is A Gender Analysis of Social Policy Still Required in High Income Countries? A Case Study of The New Zealand Sole Parent Benefit; Objectives and Outcomes

1970 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 36-45
Author(s):  
Katheryn Margaret Pascoe
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Social Policy ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
Policy Design ◽  
Labour Force ◽  
Labour Force Participation ◽  
Pay Gap ◽  
Promote Gender Equality ◽  
Gender Based ◽  
Progressive Policy

New Zealand is considered an egalitarian society, with a progressive policy history in promoting gender equality, however, this paper illustrates how social policy does not always support this agenda. The objective of New Zealand Sole Parent Benefit is to provide temporal financial support to sole parents and their dependents while supporting a transition into formal paid employment. While ultimately aimed at increasing the labour force participation of sole parents, this paper queries to what extent the policy has achieved this objective and why. Recipient statistics are disaggregated by gender to highlight the disproportionate impact on, and unequal outcomes for women. Furthermore, a gendered analysis informed by feminist economists Naileer Kabeer, Diane Elson and Nancy Folbre, alongside statistical evidence of a gender pay gap, occupational segregation and motherhood penalty is applied to demonstrate how market constraints affect New Zealand women’s participation in the labour force, and contribute to the counter intuitive policy results. While these factors do not account for individual differences in motivation, nor individual aspirations, unless the gendered nature of the labour market is addressed, women will continue to face higher rates of engagement on the Sole Parent Benefit and continue to experience disproportionate economic disadvantage and financial insecurity. The consistent use of a gendered analysis in policy design and implementation is essential to reduce gender-based disadvantage, even in countries believed to promote gender equality.

scholarly journals Gender Equality and Labour Force Participation: Mind the Gap

2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 113-123
Author(s):  
Madhusree Banerjee
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
Labour Force ◽  
Labour Force Participation ◽  
Cultural Dimensions ◽  
Female Labour Force Participation ◽  
Female Labour ◽  
The Public ◽  
To Come

Despite increase in education, female labour force participation in India is abysmally low and has fallen over the years. The reasons for this are complex and involve a whole range of social and cultural dimensions apart from objective conditions. The article attempts to analyze how social mindset of women being homemakers is one of the reasons that affect this. In addition, lack of education and job-oriented courses, lack of mobility and discrimination at workplace have acted as deterrents for women to come out to the public space for work. Thus, policy which tries to address this gap must be holistic. Legislations alone are not enough, and all stakeholders should join hands to close this gap.

COUNTRY-LEVEL SOCIOECONOMIC INDICATORS ASSOCIATED WITH SURVIVAL PROBABILITY OF BECOMING A CENTENARIAN AMONG OLDER EUROPEAN ADULTS: GENDER INEQUALITY, MALE LABOUR FORCE PARTICIPATION AND PROPORTIONS OF WOMEN IN PARLIAMENTS

2016 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 239-250 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jong In Kim ◽  
Gukbin Kim
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Gender Inequality ◽  
Survival Probability ◽  
Labour Force ◽  
Correlation Coefficients ◽  
Labour Force Participation ◽  
Socioeconomic Indicators ◽  
National Parliaments ◽  
Country Level ◽  
Male Labour

SummaryThis study confirms an association between survival probability of becoming a centenarian (SPBC) for those aged 65 to 69 and country-level socioeconomic indicators in Europe: the gender inequality index (GII), male labour force participation (MLP) rates and proportions of seats held by women in national parliaments (PWP). The analysis was based on SPBC data from 34 countries obtained from the United Nations (UN). Country-level socioeconomic indicator data were obtained from the UN and World Bank databases. The associations between socioeconomic indicators and SPBC were assessed using correlation coefficients and multivariate regression models. The findings show significant correlations between the SPBC for women and men aged 65 to 69 and country-level socioeconomic indicators: GII (r=−0.674, p=0.001), MLP (r=0.514, p=0.002) and PWP (r=0.498, p=0.003). The SPBC predictors for women and men were lower GIIs and higher MLP and PWP (R2=0.508, p=0.001). Country-level socioeconomic indicators appear to have an important effect on the probability of becoming a centenarian in European adults aged 65 to 69. Country-level gender equality policies in European counties may decrease the risk of unhealthy old age and increase longevity in elders through greater national gender equality; disparities in GII and other country-level socioeconomic indicators impact longevity probability. National longevity strategies should target country-level gender inequality.

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