Page 395 - Week 02 - Tuesday, 18 March 2014
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
59 per cent. While this is a strong indicator of ACT women’s economic security and financial independence, we know that this is not true for all ACT women, particularly marginalised groups and those who have experienced violence. Indeed, the majority of Canberrans who experience financial hardship are women. ABS data shows that in 2011, 15 per cent of all ACT families with children under 15 years were lone-parent families, and 85 per cent of these families were lone-mother families.
The gender pay gap is another strong indicator of how women continue to be disadvantaged financially in our society. In the ACT, we continue to have a relatively low gender pay gap, with men on average earning 15 per cent more than women, compared to the national average of 18 per cent.
I am pleased to again update the Assembly on the progress that this government is making to support women’s economic security and financial independence. We have invested in resources that assist women to live full lives, such as universal access to preschool and improved child care. These are important in supporting mothers to return to work. We provide grants, training, mentoring and support for women who want to embark on a career but lack the means to do so.
We also provide funding for projects that support specific groups of marginalised women to develop financial literacy skills. The ACT women’s return to work grants program is one of several initiatives that continue to assist women on their path to financial empowerment. The program, now in its sixth year, has helped hundreds of women achieve their goal of re-entering the workforce. This grant of $1,000, which was originally only open to mothers, can be accessed by any Canberran woman on a low income who has had caring responsibilities which have impacted on her ability to gain or maintain employment. After years of caring, it can be difficult to re-enter the workforce. Even in the early years of being a carer for her own children or for others, a woman who wants to work may find it impossible to afford child care or juggle work with picking up children from school and everything else that being a carer entails.
Another initiative which supports women on their path to economic security is the ACT women’s microcredit program, “Brilliant ideas”. Since its establishment in 2010, brilliant ideas has supported over 120 women on low incomes to establish or further develop an existing business through no-interest loans, mentorships, peer support and other educational programs. I am pleased to report that, as an increasing number of women pay back their loans, the initial investment made by the ACT government is now self-sustaining.
In 2013, funding was provided to the Women’s Centre for Health Matters for a project focusing on supporting women who are experiencing disadvantage to access targeted basic financial information to improve their financial security. One target group for this project is women experiencing violence. We know that domestic violence is a pervasive social issue in Australia, and the ACT is no exception. An estimated 15 to 17 per cent of women are affected over the course of their lifetime.
For women experiencing domestic violence, financial security goes to the heart of not only their freedom from abuse but also their recovery and capacity to regain control
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video