Brian Mitchell (Lyons, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

At 3.20 pm today, thousands of early childhood educators, the vast majority of them women, will walk off the job in their fight for equal pay. The time is significant because it's the time of day when women, effectively, start working for free, when you take into account the wage gap with men and the historically low wages earned across early childhood education. Tasmanian educators will meet on the lawns of Parliament House in Hobart and at City Park in Launceston at 4 pm.

Educators of our young children earn as little as $21 an hour and the Big Steps campaign being run by the United Voice union is pushing for a 35 per cent increase, and it is well deserved. It is long past time that early childhood educators were recognised for their skills and qualifications. Some educators hold certificates earned after 18 weeks, but, more and more, they are university graduates with four-year degrees. The strength of this campaign is demonstrated by the fact that 95 per cent of educators across the country voted for national sector-wide walk-offs in response to this government's inaction. Ten thousand families across Australia are making alternative arrangements this afternoon. This action has been done in collaboration with parents to minimise inconvenience. We know that there will be inconvenience, but, whether it is recognising the rights of women to vote or winning the eight-hour day, no victory has been achieved without inconvenience and sacrifice.

I commend the work of the United Voice union. (Time expired)