Minister for Women Katy Gallagher will release Australia’s first ever strategy for gender equality next week, alongside the government’s second annual Status of Women Report Card.
Both the strategy and report card will be released on Thursday, as Gallagher delivers a speech at the National Press Club on the eve of International Women’s Day.
The government’s strategy is called Working for Women: A Strategy for Gender Equality and it will outline how the government will accelerate positive change for women over the next decade. It will focus on five priority areas: gender-based violence, unpaid and paid care, economic security and equality, health, and leadership, representation and decision-making.
The Status of Women Report Card will highlight where progress on gender equality has stalled and more effort is needed.
“We know that we don’t have a gender equal Australia,” Gallagher said ahead of next week.
“Women earn less, they suffer from a motherhood penalty when they take time out of work for children, and they retire with lower superannuation balances.”
She said the government understands the challenges that women face and is committed to “leveling the playing field for women”.
“On the eve of International Women’s Day, I’ll unveil our national strategy for gender equality, setting out a path to get us there over the next ten years,” Gallagher said. “This action we’re taking stands in stark contrast to the Liberal/National Government, who have shown us this week that they’re stuck in the dark ages.”
“Coalition Senator Matt Canavan claims that data on employer gender pay gaps was useless, and Peter Dutton has given those comments tacit support by not calling him out. It’s attitudes and stereotypes that need to change.”
Some key stats to expect in the Status of Women Report Card are below:
Unpaid and paid care
- 35.7% of women cite caring for children as the main reason they are unavailable to start work or work more hours, compared to 7.3% of men.
- Women do over 9 hours a week more unpaid work and care than men.
- Female parents do 1 hour and 15 minutes more unpaid childcare a day than male parents.
Economic equality and security
- 26% of women who recently experienced sexual harassment experienced it at work.
- Mothers who change from partnered to single mother households experience a 20% decline in household income.
- The gap in median super balances for women and men (aged 60-64) is 25.1% or $53,190.
- 34% of women rely on their partner’s income after retirement.
Gender-based violence
- 57% of women who recently experienced sexual harassment experienced it online or on their mobiles.
- One in five women and one in 16 men have experienced sexual violence since the age of 15.
- Girls are more than twice as likely to experience child sexual abuse as boys.
Health
- Almost a third of women aged 15 to 34 were diagnosed with depression/and or anxiety in 2021, with rates increasing, particularly for women and young people, between 2009 and 2021.
- The rate of death by suicide for First Nations Women is 2.5 times the rate for non-Indigenous women.
- 55% of women experiencing menopause symptoms reported negative impacts on their mental and emotional wellbeing, while 32% reported negative impacts on their relationship with their partner.
Leadership
- 9% of CEOs in the ASX300 are women