Australia could see its first job-sharing candidates running for a single seat in parliament in the next federal election. Lucy Bradlow and Bronwen Bock, lifelong friends from Melbourne, launched their campaign over the weekend, jointly running as the independent candidate for the electorate of Higgins in 2025.
The pair say sharing the role will not only produce better outcomes for the constituents of Higgins, but will also set a model for future candidates to follow, to boost representation of women, carers, people with disabilities and other underrepresented people in parliament.
Bronwen Bock, who has worked in the finance and investment sector for more than a decade, said she and Bradlow, as one candidate, will “stand for action on climate, cost of living relief and integrity in politics”.
“We believe the people of Higgins deserve representatives that stand up for them in Federal Parliament,” Bock said.
“Job sharing is tried and tested in the private sector and civil service – we are advocating for Federal Parliament to be like any other workplace.
“We want to show that politics can be done differently for a more inclusive Parliament and for better representation for Australians.”
The pair have been friends for more than 30 years, and Bradlow, the former head of communications of the Workplace Gender Equality Agency, said their ability to collaborate effectively in parliament in a job-sharing capacity will ultimately work in the favour of their electorate of Higgins.
“We are creative thinkers who believe that we need to do things differently to get better results,” Bradlow said.
“We have over 30 years of friendship and share deep trust and respect. Individually, neither of us is able to take on the out of hours or travel demands of being a full time federal politician. But together, we bring two sets of skills and experience, fresh perspectives, and new energy to the role.
“We are confident we can work together collaboratively for the benefit of the people of Higgins.”
How will it work?
Bock and Bradlow have set out a plan on how job-sharing will work should they get elected as the MP for the division of Higgins.
Essentially, they will work in a “week-on, week-off” capacity. For example, if Bock works one week, the pair will complete a “handover” at the end of the week, so Bradlow can pick up where Bock left off the week prior.
With the demands of being an MP in federal parliament – the long, unpredictable hours, as well as the commitment of being in Canberra for 22 weeks a year – this system will ease the burden, they say.
Bock and Bradlow will have a shared email address, a shared diary and a shared project management system to stay across communications with constituents, projects at Parliament House and all other responsibilities of an MP.
The joint candidates describe this as “two for the price of one” representatives for Higgins. Working in a job-sharing capacity will incur no extra costs for taxpayers, as the salary that is usually given for an MP will be split down the middle and shared between the two. In other words, the “candidate” will be “one vote” and “one voice” on the parliamentary floor, but with two perspectives, skill sets and life experiences to give to the role.
Disagreement between two people sharing one role is inevitable. However, Bock and Bradlow have committed to discussing key issues they disagree on until they come to some sort of agreement, noting that having two minds and two perspectives approaching one issue invites deeper analysis and thought. Should there be a “deadlock” in their discussions, the pair said there will be a mechanism in place to overcome this.
If either Bock or Bradlow decide they no longer wish to remain in the role, or for reasons out of their control they can no longer commit to the role, both women will step down, and a by-election would be called. It would be treated as any other MP who falls ill, dies, is found guilty of a crime or, for whatever reason, can no longer continue their duties.
Why?
Job-sharing is slowly becoming more common in the private sector. Research shows it can boosts productivity, skills and experience in the workplace, plus many other benefits.
According to a study from The Job Share Project, 87 per cent of respondents said the ability to work in a job-sharing capacity meant the difference between staying with a company and leaving.
In Australia, workplaces in the private sector were more likely to offer flexible working arrangements for employees in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to WGEA, 64 per cent of workplaces in 2021 offered job-sharing for employees.
Having two people sharing a role allows people, particularly women, people with caring responsibilities and people with disabilities, to be considered for leadership positions, greater responsibilities at work and more.
Whilst the current Australian parliament is the most diverse it has ever been since federation, there are still a lot of barriers for women, people with disabilities and other underrepresented groups.
This has resulted in 56 per cent of the parliament being male, with an average age of 51 years old. Just one MP has a visible disability.
Allowing job-sharing for MPs would not only reflect the growing trend in the private sector, Bock and Bradlow argue, but it will also get more diverse people representing what is an increasingly diverse nation.
Is it even allowed?
So far, the only obstacle Bock and Bradlow have come up against is fitting both their names on the ballot paper.
Working with constitutional law expert Kim Rubenstein, the pair can see no legal barriers stopping them from pursuing the shared job. Section 163 if the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 outlines the eligibility characteristics of prospective candidates, yet does not specifically outline it must be one person or “single” member in the role.
Part III of the Australian Constitution also states that the number of members in the House of Representatives can be changed to “accurately represent constituents”, Bock and Bradlow said. What’s more, in Section 34, there are only two eligibility limitations for prospective MPs in the House of Representatives: that is, they must be 21 years old, and they must be a citizen of Australia.
Should they run into further legal barriers, the pair may put forward the legal argument that disallowing the job-sharing system they propose could be in breach of the Sex Discrimination Act 1984, as it discriminates against women and all potential candidates who cannot commit to working full-time because of caring responsibilities or health reasons.
To nominate as a candidate with the Australian Electoral Commission, there is space to list just one name on the nomination form. Bock and Bradlow will bid to have this changed in order to pursue their campaign as joint candidates for the role of MP of Higgins.
Job-sharing in politics has been explored in countries such as England, Wales and Scotland, but has never eventuated into an elected candidate. If Bock and Bradlow are successful in their campaign, it would be a world first.