17 May 2022
Mr Ben Morten
PO Box 6022
House of Representatives
Parliament House
Dear Ben Morten,
Did you know the gender pay gap does not just impact a woman once in her life? It has a compounding effect that results in a woman’s reduced earning capacity over her lifetime. On average, women are less likely to progress as far as men in their career and accumulate less money for retirement. It is clear that gender pay gaps in favour of men are a common feature of economies worldwide. This has been a chronic problem since the 1860s. Safety for woman is vital and I am deeply concerned about gender pay gap. It’s a national issue which effects millions of woman every year. You might be wondering; how can we help? Well, by promoting pay transparency, diversify interviewers and expanding paid family and medical leave.
I am asking you to implement pay transparency. Crucially, pay transparency policies give workers, employers and the public an important tool to combat gender inequality: they offer an acknowledgement of the existence and the size of gender pay gaps. Pay transparency offers a relatively simple and intuitive way to identify and address gender wage gaps when they occur in a workplace. These policies can function well in publicising wage gaps and incentivising employers to address the inequalities they find – but only with the right policy design and implementation.
The gender pay gap is the result of many factors, including race and ethnicity, disability, access to education and age. As a result, different groups of women experience very different gaps in pay. This is why we should diversity our interviewers, but also promote this so the message we can inform people about this problem and spread awareness.
Expanding paid family and medical leave is essential to close the gender pay gap. Paid family and medical leave help women remain in the workforce throughout their careers. In the year following a birth, new mothers who take paid leave are more likely than those who take no paid leave to stay in the workforce and are 54 percent more likely to report wage increases. By enacting a national paid leave program along with affordable childcare, we could add an estimated 5 million working people to its labour force. Paid family and medical leave will also help women provide for their families and save for retirement. Families lose an estimated $22.5 billion in wages each year due to inadequate or no paid leave.10. A woman who is 50 years or older who leaves the workforce early to care for an aging parent will lose more than $324,000 in wages and retirement.
Once again, I ask you to help implement pay transparency, diversify interviewers, and expand paid family and medical leave. Together we can close the gender pay gap and support the safety of woman. Make a difference with the gender equality in this world and encourage others to take a stand too.
Sincerely,
Michelle Thomas
Bibliography
Paid Leave Will Help Close the Gender Wage Gap – National …
Women’s Safety | Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
Why do women get paid less than men? – Faculty of Business …
The real reasons behind the gender pay gap – Timewise
1. Can pay transparency policies close the gender wage gap?
RESEARCH