Page 998 - Week 03 - Wednesday, 25 February 2009
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women having, on average, a higher level of education attainment than the Australian average. This high level of workforce participation contributes to the Canberra economy, provides household incomes, reduces the number of families living in poverty and assists in increasing economic independence for women. Without these women, our skills shortage would be even more acute.
So we do all of these good things and then we say to those highly educated, productive, valued employees, “If you have your baby then you’re on your own. Make your decision. It’s your career or your baby.” This is the choice that many women who do not have access to a generous maternity leave scheme and an understanding employer are faced with. These are the hard decisions that these women have to make, and they make them every day. I do not see how, in our economy, that is a productive use of our educated, talented and productive women.
I understand that employers do not all have the capacity and the capability to support a generous maternity leave scheme, and that is precisely why we support a national scheme paid for by the commonwealth. This is not about giving women a holiday at taxpayers’ expense, although I am sure there are some in the community and some—a few—in this place who just cannot back away from that notion. In fact, it is not really about mothers at all; it is about babies. It is about babies and families. What can we invest as a national community in the development of our families and babies?
Let me provide the chamber with a practical example, particularly for the education of those opposite. The World Health Organisation recommends that babies be breastfed exclusively for six months, but research led by Melbourne University, La Trobe University and the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute based on a 2004 longitudinal study of Australian children shows that six months after giving birth, 56 per cent of women who were not performing paid work were breastfeeding. This compared with 44 per cent for women who returned to work part time and 39 per cent for those back in full-time work.
Lead author Amanda Cooklin, a researcher at Melbourne University’s Key Centre for Women’s Health, said lack of paid maternity leave and workplace support were interfering with many women’s capacity to breastfeed. Other issues included lack of privacy, fatigue, inflexible work schedules and unsupportive employers. Ms Cooklin said:
It’s clear from our findings that in Australia working reduced hours every week doesn’t contribute to a mother’s ability to continue breastfeeding. Further support for the current call for paid maternity leave, because the lack of paid maternity leave means women resume work earlier than they would like to.
Let us invest in stronger families, more support for our families and more support for our babies. And, yes, that does mean providing support through women.
While I am on the point, the Productivity Commission interim report did recommend that eligible mothers be allowed to transfer the entitlement to eligible partners who would also like to take on the role of primary carer. That is one recommendation that I would like to see carried through and implemented. As I have said, this is not about
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