With more than two years of a global pandemic under our belts, it’s not surprising that the impacts on Australian society stretch far beyond physical wellbeing.
Today, Australian women face even more significant barriers in both their lives and careers. New research out last week shows nearly one million Australians now live in severe poverty, with women most affected. It’s a confronting fact that deserves urgent action at the national level, particularly when considering how we protect future generations of women from flow-on impacts of the “she-cession”.
The work of NFP, volunteer-run organisation Dress for Success is helping significantly to mitigate some of the fallout; taking action and bringing awareness to the gaps women already face in getting a job and staying in the workforce.
Now in its sixth year, the organisation’s #EmpowerHour campaign is working to empower women to achieve economic independence by providing a network of free support, professional attire and development tools to help women thrive in work and in life.
Women like Joy Botha, who, in 2019, was made redundant from her long-term job after her employer declined a ‘return to work’ plan. Just as the COVID-19 Global Pandemic hit in early 2020, she was also diagnosed with a psychological injury. Botha’s sudden job loss left her unemployed for nine months without a CV, LinkedIn profile or recent experience in interviewing.
Thankfully, she reached out to Dress for Success and was quickly assisted by volunteers to attend virtual workshops and online webinars in topics as diverse as resilience, budget management and job interview techniques. She built back her confidence, applying for multiple jobs and landing three offers in 48 hours.
It was a similar story for Isela Caicedo, who lost her job at a currency exchange company when COVID hit. Unemployed for a year and half, she describes a desperate sense of “going around in circles”.
Through Dress for Success, Caicedo took part in weekly coaching sessions and learnt how to improve her CV, cover letter and prepare for interviews. Her perspective was simple: “Sometimes it’s okay to say I need help,” adding that the support helped her to become “more confident, stronger and back to believing in myself.”
After landing her dream job at a bank, Caicedo wants all women to know there’s help that exists.
And while it might be tempting to look at the work of Dress for Success and see only a support system for women, it’s important to note the seismic benefit having more women employed plays within families, communities and the wider economy.
It’s for this reason, that the organisation’s 2022 #EmpowerHour campaign goes a step further, asking Australians to ‘pay it forward’ and donate one hour of their pay during the month of March.
“If everyone pledged one hour of pay to help a woman who is struggling to achieve employment and financial stability, we would see real change”, says Dress for Success CEO, Leisa Sadler. It’s not a gift, “it’s an investment in the future”, she adds.
The campaign aims to raise $250,000, which will enable DFSS to transition hundreds of women back into employment following the devastating impact of the COVID-19 global pandemic.
“It’s clear from statistics and stories collated over the last few years that the COVID-19 global pandemic has disproportionately impacted women from a variety of socio-economic backgrounds and women-led job roles. As primary caregivers, women more often hold casual and part-time roles – the first to be impacted by lockdowns. Women are also more likely to leave work to take on caregiving roles,” says Sadler.
“While we have reached a three-year mark living with COVID-19, there are still thousands of women seeking employment. Helping these women get back into the workforce with confidence is what #EmpowerHour strives to do. The average full-time employee works around 2,000 hours a year. We’re asking for one hour”.
If we’re serious about the slogan of this year’s International Women’s Day #BreaktheBias, we need to look seriously at the ways in which individuals, workplaces and the broader community can meaningfully do that– and this is one small step.
Dress for Success’ #EmpowerHour is a simple and meaningful way to engage your workplace and community. It’s a time to celebrate women and come to together to #BreaktheBias. Get involved today!