Women’s organisations have called upon the Federal Government to take immediate action to redress growing inequality in wages between women and men. Equal Pay Day on the 1st September women will be wearing red and Women’s Electoral Lobby will deliver red roses to politicians and employers because women workers are in the red compared to men’s earnings. A red rose is a way of reminding us all that life is about bread and roses, but fair rewards are important for both.
The Women’s Electoral Lobby is calling on the Federal Government to immediately appoint the new Fair Wage Panel and asked them to start the process to increase the Federal Minimum Wage. The now disbanded Fair Pay Commission failed to grant an increase in its final decision. This Decision went against increases granted in State tribunals. The Federal Minimum Wage is important for women as women rely upon it more than male workers and women are more likely to be low paid.
The wages gap has actually increased. The latest Australian Bureau of Statistics data on earnings indicated that men’s wages are growing at a higher rate than women’s wages and that the gap in average weekly earnings between men and women is now about 18%. Full-time ordinary time earnings rose by 6.5% for males and 5.2% for females. Women now have to work an extra 62 days to make up the equivalent wage earned by a man. Wage rises in industries where men work such as construction and mining were almost double those in industries were women work such as retail, accommodation finance and communications sectors.
The wages gap also puts women in the red in their retirement. Not only does it mean lost wages over a lifetime of earnings but when women get to their retirement they have far less superannuation.
There are also other factors that have ensured that women stay in the red. Skills in much of the work that women do are undervalued. They are more likely to work in low paid undervalued part-time work, and are more likely to be on short term contracts, despite improvements in educational qualifications they are under-represented in company board room. Awards have become minimums for women and this has meant a leveling down of wages and conditions. Women are more likely to be clustered in low ends of the pay structure and often appointed on lower rates than their male counterparts. Child care is expensive and women still do most of the housework. No wonder we are seeing Red. We are calling upon women workers to wear red on the 1st September to remind all that with equal pay we are not there yet!
Suzanne Hammond
Women’s Electoral Lobby
Contact 0422122416.
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