Claire Clutterham (Sturt, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Women. How is the Albanese Labor government working to close the gender pay gap, and what impediments are there to this approach?

Ms Catherine King (Ballarat, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I particularly thank the member for Sturt for her question and for her work in shining a light on how this government is supporting Australian women. And just briefly, on indulgence, can I give a hi to Johnny, an 11-year-old who's come here from Ballarat with his parents because he loves parliament. Apologies, we're a bit rowdy today.

I remind those opposite that women don't just make up over half of this government; they also make up half of the Australian population. You wouldn't quite know it from looking at that side of the House, though. The release of the latest employer gender pay gap figures from the Workplace Gender Equality Agency report this morning demonstrate that this work is well and truly bearing fruit. Fifty per cent of large employers have an average total remuneration gender pay gap of 11.2 per cent, down from 12.1 per cent last year; and 54.7 per cent of large employers have reduced their pay gap in the last year. Across the economy, the ABS gender pay gap has now been brought to a historic low, with the gap being reduced to 11.5 per cent. When we came to government in 2022, it was at 14.2 per cent.

In addition to measuring progress on the gender pay gap, the Workplace Gender Equality Agency has identified key measures that can be taken to boost women's economic participation. They include strategies to ensure gender equality on governing boards within the organisation; paid parental leave and other supports for working parents; and, flexible working arrangements, like the ability to work from home. When workplaces genuinely support these measures, women are more likely to remain in the workplace, progress into senior roles and, of course, build their superannuation. These are all actions this government supports and has taken through policies like our three-day childcare guarantee and our decision to expand paid parental leave to six months, and we're paying super on it. I wish I could say the same for those opposite.

Do you know how Senator Hume described some of these policies? The work-from-home policy was welfare and patronising. In fact, we should actually congratulate Senator Hume because today is the one-year anniversary of the disastrous working-from-home policy proposed by that crack economic team opposite, the Leader of the Opposition and Senator Hume. I'm sorry we didn't get you a cake for the anniversary. Perhaps those opposite could explain to me how the policy was going to make it easier for women to rejoin and remain in the workplace. I checked the party's election review that's tabled. I haven't had a chance to get a copy, but I understand lots have. What about the absolute cracker from the now shadow treasurer. When he was asked about whether the burden of child care falls on women, he said: 'I can't deny that. You know as well as I know that it's not my choice that women have children; it's genetic.' This is what those opposite think of policies that are actually there to support women—same old Liberals!