When my friends and I complain, we often wrap up our whining with a simple yet effective line: “I’m literally just a girl.”
I know some feminists may have a problem with this growing internet trend, which exists in a similar vein to Lazy Girl Jobs, girl dinner, girl math and more. For a non-internet native, it paints women as silly little beings who are lazy, ditzy and dependent on men. As a disclaimer, this internet joke is just that: a funny, viral, lighthearted trend.
But it has an element of truth to it: how are we – girls – expected to meet the demands of paying exorbitant amounts for rent, groceries, petrol, health care and sweet treats to get us through the day, in a world where we are paid less, expected to do more unpaid work and fundamentally disadvantaged?
And you expect me to handle all of this? A girl? There’s no way.
Young women face a myriad of problems that the older generation, not to mention our young male counterparts, won’t ever understand. But from recent government announcements, it seems the government is trying to.
There’s a chance there could be more to come, as well. This week, the government is unveiling the federal budget for 2024-25, one that has been described as “good for women” by Treasurer Dr Jim Chalmers. Speaking to the press over the weekend, Chalmers noted how policies on childcare, paid parental leave and more will help women of Australia.
Today, I decided to ask my friends – all 20-something year olds living in Australia – what they want to see the government invest in. Whilst many didn’t realise there was even a “budget” being announced this week, once given the floor, they had a lot to say.
Here are the big issues that young women are facing.
Cost of living
The Albanese government’s stage three tax cuts will help 90 per cent of women “keep more of what they earn”, as women are overrepresented in low and middle-income earners. Women account for 63 per cent of workers earning less than $45,000, according to analysis from the McKell Institute.
This of course will benefit young women in particular who are on lower salaries, yet bearing the brunt of the cost of living crisis the most. On average, a woman’s weekly earnings are 14 per cent less than the male counterparts, according to analysis from the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute.
This economic crisis is pushing young people, particularly young women, out of the housing market: one friend told me that her hope to purchase a home in the future is “becoming evermore unattainable”, as she faces extraordinary costs of renting in Sydney.
It’s also pushing women out of safe and affordable housing altogether. Between the 2016 and 2021 Census data, there were dramatic increases in the number of homeless women aged 35-44 and, even more concerningly, aged 12-18.
Overwhelmingly, the responses I received from my friends are for the government to ease the burden of the cost of living crisis – now.
University debt
Over the weekend, I made the mistake of checking the balance of my student HECS-HELP loan. It wasn’t a pretty sight.
I know I’m not alone in feeling overwhelmed by student debt: according to government figures, the average student debt is $26,000. For many, it’s much higher.
Most of my friends with large student loans agreed the government’s announcement to amend indexation of HECS-HELP debt was a “step in the right direction”, particularly for women, who make up 58 per cent of overall student debt. More than half of the $3 billion being wiped by the government ($1.75 billion) will impact women.
But as Dr Marg Rogers writes, any and all indexation on student loans is going to hurt women the most, as it takes us longer to pay off debts. This is not only true for women who decide to have children and take career breaks for caring responsibilities, but it’s true for literally any woman in the workforce. There is a gender pay gap and a superannuation pay gap that stops us from earning the same amount as our male counterparts.
There is also a problem with how women entering feminised workforces are supported at university. “Placement poverty” has placed significant financial burdens on teaching, nursing and social work students at tertiary education institutions, who have had to complete hundreds of hours of unpaid work to receive their qualifications. Majority of those have been women: according to statistics from the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA), women make up almost three quarters of education (73.9 per cent) and health (74.4 per cent) students at Australian universities.
Whilst a new proposal from the Albanese government will give students a weekly payment of $319.50 to make up for lost income whilst they complete their placements, many say this is not enough. As one friend told me: “How are we supposed to set ourselves up for our future if we can’t afford to educate ourselves?”
Healthcare
Australia has normalised women’s pain. Every day, women suffer from debilitating pain from run-of-the-mill cycles like menstruation, menopause and perimenopause, to extreme conditions like endometriosis and polycystic ovaries syndrome (PCOS). According to research from Nurofen, over half (55 per cent) of women feel their pain is ignored or dismissed.
But women incur most of the costs associated with pain they cannot control. Australia boasts universal healthcare, but women still struggle to access the care they need.
“I have a lot of friends who aren’t going to the doctor because they can’t afford it and therefore are not getting access to healthcare,” a friend told me.
Last week, the government announced specialist consultations for gynaecological care will be covered under Medicare, covered under a $49.1 million investment to provide around 430,000 additional women’s health services across the country.
A step in the right direction, no doubt: for the one in seven Australians with uteruses who suffer from endometriosis, this investment has the potential to reduce the six-year wait time for diagnosis and treatment for the condition.
But as my friends indicated, accessing specialist healthcare – no matter the condition – starts with seeing a GP. And this is getting harder and harder to find not just a GP that bulk bills, but a GP at all: according to the Australian Medical Association, Australia is predicted to face a GP shortage of more than 10,600 by 2031.
Women’s safety
Last month, thousands of people took to the streets calling for stronger federal government action on women’s safety.
This national event was spearheaded by Sarah Williams, a 23-year-old woman, who managed to rally people from all walks of life to fight for change.
I attended the Sydney rally and was blown away by the demographics I saw who walked alongside me: older women, fathers, families, couples and more. But it’s safe to say the majority of the people who were at these rallies were young women.
Everyone cares about women’s safety, but it’s overwhelmingly young women who are speaking up. Several of my friends who I spoke to said the government must do more than the $925 million Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced a few weeks ago, namely: more emerging housing, financial aid for those experiencing abuse, and investigations into the systems that are failing Australian women.
According to Destroy the Joint’s Counting Dead Women, male violence has killed 28 women in 2024. Women are afraid, angry and, most of all, exhausted from fighting for the right to live.
Anything else?
Student loans, cost of living, healthcare and women’s safety were the four main issues that consistently came up when I spoke with my friends. But they weren’t the only ones.
Young people are worried about the climate crisis, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, the live music sector, working conditions and so much more.
We cannot fight these fights alone. We are literally just girls.