Long time coming - Paid Maternity Leave in Australia, 2008 Women’s Business: Current issues and future agendas Special Colloquium, WWRG 7 March 2008 A/Professor Marian Baird

Enterprise bargaining outcomes - Preliminary data* 23% agreements refer to paid maternity leave Most common entitlement 14 weeks (178); 6 weeks (161) and 12 weeks (86). 75% are union agreements/ 25% non-union agreements. Most common industries – finance and insurance (51%); utilities (40%); education (34%). Least common industries – wholesale (2.5%) retail (2.5%); mining (4%) accommodation, cafes restaurants (4.5%). *Workplace Research Centre, March Thanks to Betty Frino for assistance.

Compared with 2001 … 10% enterprise agreements had paid maternity leave. 6 weeks (42%) and 12 weeks (22%) were most common; only 2.3% had 14 weeks. Least common in retail and accommodation, cafes restaurants.

Parental Leave in Australia Survey: Employee Usage Females: 37% took paid maternity leave (11 weeks) 57% took unpaid maternity leave (35 weeks) 76% took paid and unpaid maternity leave and other leave (40 weeks) Males: 27% took paid paternity leave (7 days). 7% took unpaid parental leave (14 days). Implications: Gendered use of leave and of provision of care

Macro policy – Welfare Payment ‘Baby Bonus’ Value … $4133 to $5000 on 1 July Options – –Pay fortnightly –Remove? –Means test? –Tax? Implications …..

National Employment Standard - draft 52 weeks unpaid parental leave + extra 12 months per couple on request from employee can be refused ‘on reasonable business grounds’ (undefined) requires 12 months continuos service to be eligible to return to same job – or one of comparable status and pay no mandatory leave period employer required to consult employee on parental leave if ‘significant’ change occurring Implications …. ??

Productivity Commission Inquiry ‘an inquiry into paid maternity, paternity and parental leave’ Emphasis on economic, productivity and social costs and benefits Assess models for impact on employment of women, earnings and workforce participation of parents To report by Feb 2009 Issues paper due end of March

Conclusions and Suggestions: Options – mixed system Tax the ‘baby bonus’. Introduce paid parental leave at minimum wages with individual payments for mothers and fathers. Bargain for income replacement for paid maternity leave for women. Insist on pay equity to equalise family economic decisions. Return to work … ??? Argue for paid paternity leave for men if desire is to get men to share care work and to shift gender load. Time for universal provision and access to paid maternity leave.