1. sports
2. table tennis and ping-pong

OECD Review of
Family Friendly Policies :
The Reconciliation of Work and Family Life
;rT-
asmi1rT'ft,
AUSTRALIA'S
BA CKGR0IJND REPORT
ON
FAMILY
=RIEN-)LY
P011CIF5
s, COnlmMWedlth of Australia 21x1.
ISIN 06~12 -02N8
'llrls work is copyright Apart from any- u.se as permitted under the ('.L(q-nghl Act 14(18, no part
may be reproduced by any prcicess without prior written permission Imm the Commonwealth,
available from tile Depannient of Flnancr and Administration Reciursts And inquiries concerning
rcpruducbuu and Iights should her addressed to the Manager, Copyright see%kvs, Ink) Access.
CBPO Nix 19311, canlxtra ACT 2G01 or be e-mail Cwe;thhcnpyrightJCfinanee .g,v-uu .
Early in 2001 . Australia agreed to participate ht the otganisation lot Lcononue Co operaticm and
Development tOFC .DI three coutaly thcmanc review of - Family Frtendly Policies- The
Reconcilivion of WFhrk and I :tmily Life" . flit Conuno»wealtt f>epartment of Fanuly and C.onununiry
Scrviu.- cs (FiCs) funded participation in the, review and cullrborared with the Commonwealth
Dcpartnx nt of Fmplovnwnt Anti W 0rkpIA(Ae Relauun, CDL%k K) .
Participation to tile rrvtew included the preparation of this Australian hAt kground Repon roe
Cemntry Note) . It prrhcides a lawtm in Tune ovemew of key Commonwealth policivs :md programs
that ntpporl rcconc :iliation of work an<i family life The Work And Family life consortium was
rnmmismoned to a.,,ist PaC .~ and D"'IC with tile preparation of this Sac kground Report . Must of
tlx data prcsennenl in this report is current for August 2t%tl, As pan of the fv% icw, Australia also
hosted a visit by An OLCD Stud,lcain hunt 13 23 August 2001 The ream met with a ,vi<lo rmge
of individuals And organkitiuns including members of parliament. federal and state government
departments, enhployrr and uidu,ti, teprescntative groups, peak interest hod", trick, onions, best
prata i<a" employer,, sor\ ice piovidas and academics .
'file Coltuttorovralt11 avislics to acknowledge all who have been involved in this review_ [lie
hnrntbees of file Steering conurtittee, the contributors to the report and those who assisted in
Anattgin-,the study leaul, tLsas and meetings in the Australian Capital Tcrrilory, C)uernsland New
south Wales . Ytctutta and Aestem Australia
The Aumulian Backgrmind Report i, available in tile Internet at file following site,Cannmonweahh Deparunrnt of FanWy and Community Services, wuae,Jaccgot, aa
Conunonwealdt Depaitinenr of Fmploynnenl and Workplace Relations : reawarnrkplacegra:au
OECD : 1vuvr .oeed ci g
14tr further information ccaitact the Cornnton"alth Department of Fancily and Community Services
oft 1300 ri5j 23?
People with A hearing or speech iuipairittenl eau contact the Ucpartment 011 its trlelhhune
typewriter (TTI') on IFf Nt -161141 !2 .
AU
TP,AIIA
5
8ACKCR01 .ND
RFPOPT
ON
FAkiILY
rRItNDty
POIICI
ts
Contents
i.
Introduction and Overvie~A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Chapter 2 : The Australian Context .... .. .... .... ............... . ..... .......... .. ... ............................ . ... .. ... . ... .
Chapter 3 : Families and Work .. . ... .... ...... .... ......................... .... .. .... .... ............................. .. .... ....
Chapter 4 : Family Policy Sellings .. .... ... ... .... ._ ... ....... ... ......... .... .. .... .... ............................. ...... ....
Chapter 5 : Support for Families in the Workplace .... . ...-........ .... .. .... .... ..................... .... .... ...... ....
Chapter 6: Work and Family Workplace Practices .... . ... ......... .... .. .... . ... ...................... ....... ...... ....
Conclusion . . . .
..... ...... .......... ............ .......... ... .... .. ........ ............................. ... . .,
2
2
3
4
4
2.
The Australian Context . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ._ .7
3.
Families and Work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
4.
2.1 Basic Demographic Context .. .... .......... .. . ... ... .. .................. ...... .... ............ .......... ....... ...... .... 7
2.2 The Family Context .. . ... ...... ....... .......... ... .......... ... ._......._. ......._. ... ........_... ............. ...... .... 7
2 .3 Changes in the Labour Market and the Nature of Work .... .......... ............................. ........ 10
3 .1
3 .2
3 .3
3 .4
.
. . ... . .. . . . . . .. . . .. . . . .. ... . . ... . . ... ... . . . .. .... . ..
Support for Families in the Workplace . . . . . . . ., . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
5-1
5.2
5.3
54
6.
26
Family Assistance and In-work Benefits ...................... ...... ....... ... ....... .......... ...... .... .. ...-.. .. 27
Child Care ... ... . .. ...... . ... ...... . ... ... ... ...._. ............................. ....... . .. ................ . ..... . .... . . .. .. ... .30
Support for Returning to Work .. .......... ............ ..... ...... ...... ... ....... ... ... ....... ... ...... . ... . .. ... . ., . 33
Family Support .. .. ..._..._ ...... ... ....... ...... ........... ......... ... .......... ...... .......... ....... .... .. .._.. . 34
Community Support . . ......... . ...... .. . ..... .. .. . .... .. .. . . . .. . .. .. ... . .... ....... ... ...... .......... ............. .... ... 35
Child Support . . .. ....... ... ....... ...... ... ....... ... . . . ... .. .. ......... _.. . .. ... ... ... .. . ..... .... . .... .... .. ..._.. .35
Indigenous Australians . . . ... .. . ..... . .... . .... .... .. ......_.. . ....._.. ... .... ... ... .... ... .......... ...... .... .. .... ... . 35
Summary . . ... .... ......... .......... ...... .......... ......._..._... ...... ... ... .......... ...... . ......... ............. ....... .37
Family Policy Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
4 .1
4 .2
4.3
4A
4 .5
4.6
4.7
4 .8
5.
Joblessness and Families ... . ... . . .. .. . ... ... . ............................. .......... ................ ...... ....... ...... . 16
'Spillover' from Work to Family . . .... .. . _. . . .. ....................... .......... ................ ............. ...... .. 21
Patterns of Time Use . ... ..._ .. ._. ... ... ._. .._ .. ....................... . . ........ .. . ... . ......... . .... . ....... .. . ... ..21
Emerging Issues Shaping Policy Development ... ... ............. ....... ... ............. ... ...... ... .... ...... .. 24
Workplace Relations-the role of Governments .. . ...... ... ... ... . ... ... ...... . ...... ........ . . .... .. .._ ..
Employer. Trade Union and Non-government Organisations . ... .. .. . ... .... ..... .... .... _ ..._. Work and Family Measures in Workplace Relations 'Instruments' .... ... .... .... ............ ...... ..
Summary .. .. .. _.. . ..... ... .. ... ._. .... .. . ... _. . ._ .. ... .. _... . .. . _. .. . . . . . . ., . . .. . ...... ... . ........ .. .. ....... .
Work and Family Workplace Practices
.......
6.1
6.2
63
64
65
. . . . . . .. . .
....
.. . .. . ... ... . .. .. . ...
Leave provisions ....... ............ .... ... ... .... ... .. .. . ... . ......... . .... ... .._..._. ......._.... ... ......-...... ... ... ..
Flexible Working Arrangements . ... ... .... ...... ._.._ ..._........_. .._ ..._. ... . .. . ......... ....... ... . .. ... ..._
Family Care Facilities at Work . .. .._.. ._ . .. ....... ... . ...... .. . ... ... . ... ... ... . ... ......... ...... .... . .. .... .. . .
Trends Amongst Leading Organisations in Australia .... ...... ........ .. ......................-.... .. .... .. .Summary .. . .. .... .. . ..... . ... . ..... . .. . ... ... . .. . ... ............. ..... . . ... .. . ... . ......... ............................. .... ...
38
39
40
44
46
46
47
49
49
50
AUSTRALIA'S BACKGROUND REPORT
ON
FAMItY FRIIND-Y POLICIES
7.
. . . .. . . .. . . .. . . . . . ... ., . . . . . . . ... . . . .. ... . 51
Appendices . .. . . ., . ._. . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Family
Life
Consortium
Membership
and Steering
AppendixA: Work and
Committee Membership ... .......... ................ .... ...... .... .. . ...... .... ...... ... ... .... ...... .... .. 51
Appendix B: Federal Government Payments to Families .. .... ... . .. .... .. . ...... ... . ...... ... ... .... .... .. .... .. 52
Appendix C: Government Agencies with Responsibilities for Work and Family Issues .. .... .. . ._ .. 60
Appendix D: Anti-discrimination Legislation ... .., ....... ... ... .... ... ... .... ... ...................... .... .... .. .... .. 61
Appendix E: Government Work and Family Public Awareness Activities ...................... .... .. .... .. 62
Appendix F: Work and Family Provisions in Certified Agreements ......................... .... .... .. .... .. 68
8.
Glossary .. . . .. . . . ... .. .. . .. ._ ... . . . . . . . ... . . . .. . ... . ... . . .. . .. . . . ... . . . . . . . . . ... . . . . . .. . . .. . . . . .
71
Endnotes . ... . .-- . .... . ... .-- . . . . .. . ... . . .. . .... . ... . . ... . . . .. ... .. ... ... . . ... .-. . . . . ... ... . . .. . ..... ... . .. . . .... . ... . 73
References .., . . . . . . . . . ... . . . , . . . . . . . .. .
Figures
Figure 1 :
Figure 2:
Figure 3 :
Tables
Table 1 :
Table 2:
Table 3:
Table 4 :
Table 5 :
Table 6:
Table 7 :
Table 8 :
Table 9 :
Table t0:
Table 11 :
Table 12:
Table 13:
Table 14:
Table 15:
Table 16:
Table 17 :
Table 18:
IV
...
_. . _ . . . . . ._ . . . . . . . ... . .. . . . . . . . .., . . .,. . . . .. . ... . . . . . . ... . 76
Part-time Employment as a Proportion o(Tolal Employmeni, 1980 to 2000 .. .. ... . .. 11
Labour Force Participation Rates o(Women and Men at Different Ages . . ... ... .. .. 18
Age-specific Labour Force Participation Rates of Australian Women
According to Cohort Experience ..... .. ........ ... .. .. . .. . _. .
...... .
19
Per Cent of Children Living with Both Natural Parents by Age of Child . ..._.._ . .... .... 9
Proportion of Part-time Employees Receiving Standard Employment Benefits in Main
Job, August 2000 ... .. . ... .... .. ......... . . . ...... .. ..._.. ._ . .._.. ._ . . _... .. ... . .. .. . ..._. .._ .. 12
Average Weekly Hours for Full-Time Employees, by Gender, 1982-2001 . .. . . ... ... ... ... 13
Number i'000) of Children Aged Under 15 by Labour Force status
of Parent(s), June 2000 ... . . . . .. . .. ... . _ . . _. ._ . .._.. ._ .., . . .. .. ., . .. .... .......... ...... 17
Employment to Population Rates for Single mothers and
Married Mothers by Ago of Youngest Dependent Child (Per Cent) ... . .. .... ....... ... ...... 20
Household Supply of Paid and Unpaid Labour by Household
Composition (Hours per Week)_. ... . .._ .. .. . ... .... ... . .. .... .. . ... ...... . ... ......... .... ....... ... ...... 23
Proportions of Children in Different Types of Care, June 1999 .._.... . ... .... .. _.. ._ . ._ .. 31
Children in Formal Child Care for Work-related Reasons, 1999 .. .._... .. .... . .. ... 32
Paid Maternity and Paid Paternity Leave by Sector, 1995 _.. ... ... ... . . .... .... . . . .. _.. . . .. 46
How Lmployees Take Time Off to Look After Sick Family Members, 1995 .. . ... . .. . .. . ... 47
The Type of Work Arrangement Used to Care for Children, 1999 .. .. .... .... .. .... .......... 48
Australian Federal Government Payments to Families by Type. Eligibility,
Rates, Conditions and Frequency as at 30 July 2001 ... ... ... . ... ... .... .. .... ...... .... ........ . 52
Government Age ruies with Particular Responsibility for Work and Family
Issues in Australia-at the Federal and StatelTerritory Levels .. . .... .. ... . .. .... .... ... .... . 60
Anti-cimrirnination Legislation that Covers Family Responsibilities . .. .... .. .. .... ..... _ 61
Multiple Family Friendly Provisions, Federal Certified Agreements
2000 and 2001 . ... . ... .. . .... ..... ........._.. .. . ... . ... . . ... ._ ... ._.. .... ...... ____ . .... .. . ... ... . 68
Work and Family Provisions in Federal Certified Agreements,
2000-2001 Average . ..... ... . ... ... ..._.. . . ..._.. .. .... ...... . ... ... . .. . . ,. ... ... . .. .... ... .. .. ...... . 69
Work and Family Provisions in Federal Certified Agreements, 1997-2001 . .. . ......... . . 70
Work and Family Provisions in Australian Workplace Agreements,
1998-99 Average ... .......... ..._... . . . . ... ... .... .. .... ......... .............. .. . . . . , 70
~1U :TRALIA'$ BACK6RUU`J0 RIFP0Ri ON FAMILY FRIFN1:LY P0LICIF-,
1 . Introduction and Overview
1'he Australian Federal Government
These changes have , cuntcd against
welcomes the decision by the 0FCD
a background of major ininsformation
undertake a thematic
,ignrificancc of the service sector and
the imperatives of global trade have
Working Party on Social Policy to
FC\ i('\\
Of
Ix)licies to support the reconciliation of
work and fancily life . A, a strong
advocate for the reviccc . we look
forward to the opportunity that our
participation will
proviclc for a
contpnchensive study of Family-friendly
politic:, and their impact on (lie work
and family interface in Australia .
This
Report
was
prepared
in the labour market . The increasing
affected fit(- experience of employers,
workers . parents and children in
Australia, 'Women have made major
adjustments to balance work and
family responsibilities . :1lthough men
have had less change to their working
patterns,
as
background for the OECD Project
they
have
shown
an
increased willingness to be more
actively involved in parenting
The
Over the last two
decades, Australian
Life' . It is the result of collaboration
state:'territory governments-have
'Family
friendly
Policies :
Rcconriliarion of Work and Family
between the Federal Department of
Tamil\ and Community Services
(faCS)
and the (then)
governinctrts -that is, federal and
implemented a number of initiatives to
assist with the reconciliation of work
Federal
and family . This includes a range of
Workplace Relations and Small
commitment to 'faniily-tfiendl}-' polides
Department
of
Finployment,
ISuainc,s (1)FVfRSR), with assistance
from the Work and Family Life
Consortium (see Appendix A for
consortium membership .
In Australia, as elscwherc, profound
social changes h:n c occurred over the
last tiny ycai:s- lliesc change indudc
significant shifts in the patterns of
family lite in Australia, including a
transition fr<nu a s<xicty characterised
by high fcnility and high mortality. to
a society with Io%v fertility and low,
Mortality . As well, Australia has
exjtcrienccd changing patterns in
family formation and shifts in Ilte
gender division of labour.
reforms designed to implement a
across a range of portfolios .
The measures fall into three broad
areas-employment and workplace
relations, the tax transfer system and
support for parents . Policies that
assist families to combine work and
family life reflect broader social and
economic goals such as :
" supporting the well-living of Families
and early childhood development ;
" supporting growth in the labour
supply ;
" supporting choice for Families ;
" ensuring business can benefit from
a diverse workforce:
AUSTRALIA'S BACKGROUND REPORT ON
" encouraging mutually beneficial
working arrrngernent .s for employers
and employees: and
" addrrssit>,q joblessness among families
with children.
This report provides an overview of
key Commonwealth policies and
programs that support people to
reconcile their work and family
responsibilities . The way the
material in the report is organised is
set out below .
Chapter 2 :The
Australian Context
"this chapter presents information on
the social and demographic changes
that provide the contest for policy
settings, including changes in
household composition such as (he
increase in single person residences
and sole parent ftunilies, fcniliry trends,
and tlic increase in life expectancy.
Changes in the labour marl<ct and
the nature of w onk are also covered
in some detail . It is noted that over
the last decade the Australian labour
market has been marked by
employment growth and itxrcasingly
diverse forms of employment and
working
arrangements .
The
association between tire growth in
part-time work and the increase in
female labour market particllzation is
also noted. There has been susiained
growth in part-time employment in
Australia, both in the absolute
numbers of part-time employees and
the proportion of all employment
that is part-time . On average, the
number of people in part-rime
employment grew by 1 .5 per cent a
year between 1980 and :-1000 .
FAMILY FRI[NOI~ 'OLIS'!ES
flexibility and diversity of working
hours have also increased. Since the
1970s . average working hours have
decreased as part-time work
expanded . Whilst in the 1980s and
early 1990s the average working
hours for full-time employees
increased (with men continuing to
work more hours than svonncn), thus
trend has cased since the tnid 199os.
This chapter also provides a broad
overview of our system of wage
determination and changers to labour
market regulation . It notes that
employers and employees have
increased c'hoic'es under the
WbrkpdaceKelatiousAct 1996(XVIIA),
particularly with methods of
agreement making, It also notes the
decline in union membership over
the last decade .
It is against this background of
demographic: and labour market
trends that Australian government
policies on cruployment workplace
relations and family support are
considered throughout the remainder
of the report .
Chapter 3: Families
and Work
fit chapter three. the importance of
work and employment to family well
:11 as tlrc
being is considered, as w'
pressures on fantily life that they may
C(rUSC- Data on the incidence of
jobless fauulic, is discussed, togedicr
with <Lua on families with one or both
parents in the workforce . Tire
increase in vvonien's, and especially
mothers', labour force participation
and its implications for households is
A,1S
PALIA'S
BACKGROUND REPORT
discussed . The age of the yuunge>t
child has a major impact on mothers'
cnlploytnent . The lifetime earnings
gap between mothers and childless
wonk,n has dosed markedly over the
last twenty years, largely because
today's mothers return to the
workforce tnom quickly it) d frequently .
This chapter also discusses the
spillovcr between home and work.
which can he both positive and
negaine. Women commonly express
satisfaction with the rewards they get
from working, with those working
part time being especially satisfied
w ills work-family balance. Ilovveyer,
Llic majority of married women,
mothers of preschool age children .
and sole parents, report being under
time pressure'-always or often
feeling rushed or pressed for time.
The chapter concludes by identifying
a number of emerging issues that arc
shalnng policy development. These:
include the increased participation of
mothers in die labour market due to
increased Ilexibiliry in employment
conditions, and an increase in the
levels of family support services and
financial assistance available to
families with children . Changing
family structures and the ageing
population arc also emerging is
important issues shaping policy
Bevel Ulor urt u.
Chapter 4: Family
Policy Settings
chapter four examines the family
program and policy settings in
Australia . including the range of
family benefits and support services
ON
-AM~ .i
FRIiNUL}'
POLICIES
and resent welfare reform programs
including Australians lt'orking
Together (AVT). The goals of family
assistance are discussed . These
include horizontal equity objectives
(such as assisting with the costs of
children and redistributing income
over the life cvc c), and vertical
equity objectives (boosting low
family earnings and alleviating child
poverty) . As well . the Australian
family assistancv 'rSicin is designed
to boost employment, reduce love
income traps and increase incentives
to work_
Financial pressures can contribute to
relationship breakdown, which can
result in a poorer financial position .
reduced workforce attachment and
poorer outcomes for children .
Detailed information is provided on
the Family Tax Benefit and
Pawnfing
Payment . and Ito»v these income
sill )porr measures support the
capacity of families in a broad sense.
Support services such as child care
are also examined- T'he need to
manage work responsibilities is the
major reason colty children are in
formal care, and information is
presented on the usage of the
various types of child care . Recent
enhancements to child care provision
are reported . AISS data indicate a
downward trend in ill(' unmet
demand for formal child care in
Australia in the 1990s. BBy 1950 . only
6 per cent of children were reported
to be in need of additional care . The
fact that there retrains significant
(ICIrtand for out-of-school-hours car(is noted .
AUSIitA[iA'S 8ACKGItOUNP RcP0RT ON IAIAItY FRIEN ;)L't P3LICIE5
Other federal government programs
to assist families are also examined,
Including the JET (Jobs, Education
and Training) program, which assists
parents to re-enter the w'orkforc'e, the
Transition to \X'ork program under
A\PT, and family support services
which aim to prevent or resolve
parctuing or relationship problems.
Issues and programs specific to
Indi,;cnc,us Australians are also
t
0rn,idcrrci .
Chapter 5: Support
for Families in the
Workplace
Chapter five focuses on the
workplace relations policy c-" rtvirontnent and workplace practices. The
role of governments, employer's .
unions and community or;ganisarions
in creating family-friendly workplaces is considered .
Information is provided on ill(federal legislative framework and the
other mechanisms by which work
and family measures are delivered .
'rhe interaction of the legislation with
an industrial safety net of awards in
setting minimum conditions is
explained, and the role of the
Australian Industrial Relations
Commission (AIRC :) test cases in
dctcrinining parental leave and
pei:sonal ;'carcr s (and family) leave
provisions . Figures are provided on
the incidence of these provisions and
of regular part-time work in awards .
The focus then shifts to family
friendly provisions in enterprise and
individual agreements . A priority of
the Federal Government has be-en to
change workplace culiurc by
promoting ill(- aklvaiuagcs for
employers and employees of flexible
workplace practices that arc tailored
to their particular needs . Certified
agreements and Australian \Gcrkplaor
Agreements can provide family
triencly working arrangcnncnts
additional to those available through
statutes o dtc award system .
Data is provided on the inc'idenc'e of
key work and family provisions in
workplace agreements . It shows that
some -i2 per cent of federal
agreements certified in 2000 and
2001 contained at least one family
friendly provision and these covered
almost three-quartet:, of employees
who were subject to agreements .
'flits figure rises to 80 per cent of
agreements it flexible hours
provisions are included . I'll(- most
prevalent work and farnify measures
in lt'dcral collective agreenu-nts arc
those providing accc, to ,onrc forth
of (paid) Icavc for curing; purposes.
Chapter 6: Work and
Family Workplace
Practices
Chapter six prt"scrus evidence of ilic
incidence and distribution of fanuly
friendly working arrangcuicrtts more
broadly, drawing on data from the
1995 Australian NC'orkplacc Industrial
Relations Jurvev (AWIRS) and a
range of Australian Bureau of
Statistics (ABS) survc=vs.
As with many r>therr family friendly
work arrangctucnis, provision of
paid parental leave is more
widespread than indicated by formal
AJSIR .ALIA'S B*ACK3R0UND R P0 R1
R-orkplace agr(-(-ment analysis . In
3000, 38 per cent of terrerle employees
responding to an .AISS survey" indicatrcl
that they were entitled to paid
maternity leave - 51 per cent of hilltime employees and 21 per cent of
part-tithe employees . Keep-in touch
schemes that assist in maintaining
workforce attachment arc also
increasingly widespread .
lust over half 4 families with one or
more children aged under 12 use
family friendly provisions to assist
them to combine care for their
children with employment . The most
common resource for these Australian
workers is the use of flexible working
tine- arrangements . Relatively few
workplaces provide child care or offer
child care assistancc (.AWIRS found
that only 3 per cent of larger workplaces had on sit(- child care).
Concil.l5ion
Over the last two decades, measures
to assist workers with family
responsibilities have become a more
pronounced feature of rile Australian
workplace relations system . There
has been steady progress tlm->ugh
workplace relations l:nv, agreement
making and the award satcry net in
prcwiding access to family-related
firms of leave . Access to unpaid
parental leave for an increasing
proportion of the workforce has
been important in encouraging
women's rercntion in the workforce
after their children arc: born . The
economic costs to women of having
children have diminished significantly- through the 1990s, partly
au.sc. worsen are returning to
w,,rk more often and rrtorc quickly.
014 FAMILY =RIENULV POLICIES
The entitlement to paid leave for
caring purposes is becoming
increasingly- widespread, as are
arrangements for paid parental Icavc .
FItese arrangements are a significant
factor in maintaining workforce
attachment for the first 1 :, months
after the birth of a child or in easing
mothers' return to the workforce
during or after this critical period .
The range of government activities to
promote family Iriendly w'orkplac'es
is contributing to the creation of a
positive climate, with workplaces
becoming more flexible and family
responsive than analysis of (It( .
formal regulatory system might
suggest .
Successive Australian governments
have also placed a significant
emphasis on supporting families,
including in their engagement in
work, through long standing policies
such as child care and income
support. Increasingly . a dynamic
focus is being adopictl which
recognises the 'pants' people take
through their life courses. and the
unp ortance of tnaintaining workforce
attachment in periods out of the
worktorce to care for children.
lire social security syslctu provides a
range of targeted assistance in the
form of Family Tax Benefit, Parenting
Payment, maternity and other
allowances . a wide range of family
support services, pharmaceutical
benefits and housing assislanceCouplcd with the provision of high
quality, accessible and flexible child
car(- options and the payment of
Child Care Benefit, this assistance
pulps parents to combine their caring
responsibilities with paid work .
a , .sTRA.IIA s RACKGRQUN11 ? ;P'0RT
Many of these paymcnts and
allowances are in recognition of the
additional costs of raising c-hildren
from the time of the birth of a child,
and importantly, as the child .grows .
Overall, the o-orkplace provisions
and government paymcnts, detailed
in this report . offer a range of
options and a significant level of
support to families, allowing diem to
make choices about how they
manage their work and family
responsibilities according to their
neeels and circumstances. Governmcni policies in this area form part
of a complex system and work is
continuing to improve the system's
capacity to help families reconcile
work and lamily effectively.
UN rAMILY
RIIFO,r P0LICIES
4JSIRAIIA'S
3AI :K(,ROUND
REPORT ON
=Ah11LY
FRIENDLY
PO LII~
2 . The Australian Context
2 .1 Basic
Demographic Context
Australia is a diverse, pluralist society
of one or more children=. By making
'family" ' co CxtCrtRl(e kith 'household',
it excludes families with
members
living
in
different
of 19 million people . Australia's
households-for example, ,grand-
1 per cent a year. Like (flier developed
countries . Australia's population is
the definition, it excludes childless
population is growing I)v :round
demographically ageing, albeit more
slowly than in other OECD countries.
This trend will
continue
to be
important over the next 50 years.
Around 9 million Australians are
c urrently employed, with a national
participation rate of ?3 .8 per cent .
Australia has a high rate of yvcancsi s
participation-65 .5
per
ccru-
compared to the OACA) average of
()1 .3 per cent . Howc\er, the rate is
lower than in most North American and
SCttrt(IRIaVidtt countries and the frilled
Kingdom (Us--~0.8 per cent . Gmada?( .5 per cent Sweden- ?6 . 1 per cent,
United Kingdoms-i8.9 Ixr cent) . In
recent years. the unemployment rate
stood
has fallen and
at 6 .3 Ixr cent tbr
311(1(1' . Australians are working in an
increasingly diverse range of employ
men( types and patterns, as the data
presented later in this report shows.
2 .2 -lTv., Family
Context
parents or non resident Irtrcnrs-'- As
well, by making children central to
households . Some of the latter will
also be households where reconcil-
ing work and family is of pressing
concern
for example households
with elderly members or disabled
adults needing constant care .
Given that the OECI)'s emphasis is
on families with children, and that it
explicitly
excludes
'family car(-
arrangements for the elderly' from
the scope of family work reconciliation policies', this Background
lieport lakes the" same approach .
"bile these broader caring issues are
encompassed within the Australian
%vork and family Iw)licy agenda . they
are either not covered here or are
mentioned only briefly.
2.2.1 Long-term Trends in
Australian Household
Composition-Ageing and
Fertility
Over the last three decades . the
The OECD defines 'family' as 'each
household of one or more adults
average household size has fallen
responsibility for the care and rearing
the
living together with and taking
substantially . '1 'he number of onuperson households has grown . a.s fuu
number
of
sole-parent
AjS_RALIA'i 6AC<6ROII^10
?I =OAT ON FAMILY
households . Couples having Icwer
children have also contributed to the
fall in household size.
Family households still stake tip the
majority of Australian houschol(ts . AT
_tune 2000, there were around
2,(119,9(10 couple families with
dependants and 549,1(10 sole-parent
families with dependants (defined as
families with children aged 0 to 15 or
dependent students to the age of
2i)`. However, single person
residences are Ili(- fasrest growing
type of household . Over the last
thirty years . they hacc- almost
doubled in number and are projected
to continue this rapid expansion"_
The reasons ti,r this are the ageing of
the population : the continuing
pattern of falling fertility rates,
together (kith rising divorce rates ;
and a higher proportion (-if people
%% f to will never marry.
In 1911, the age pyramid of the
had
a very
Australian population
%vas
low
to
height
.
broad base and
This reflected a high birth rate and
short life expectancy . Since then . the
base of the pyramid has narrowed .
This occurred because in the last
twcniv years, the relative size of
some age groups (particularly the
young) has declined, while life
expectancy has risen markedly . This
narrowing will become more
pronounced as the fertility of those
born in the 'baby bootn' is lower
and
than that of their parents,
expected to be lower still among
(heir offspring.
IRIEAU-'P POLICIES
At the other end of the life course
there have been remarkable
increases in life expectancy in
Australia. Male children born in 20oo
call expect to live for an average of
76 teats. and female children for 82
years. This is 10 to 12 years longer
than their counterparts born in 19- i7,
and 20 tct 22 years longer than [host.
born at tlic beginning of ihc
twentieth century- . This historical
trend towards greater life expectancy
is elongating the age pynninit It is
expected that I)crween 1991 and
2011, the population aged aver 65
will grow at I\\ I(-(- the rate of the total
population". The ;ugc hyranud has
started to resemble o pear, and the
bulge representing the baby boomers
can be expected to rise up the
pyramid in the coming decades.
Following the rise it, the total fertility
rate to 3-6 Children per woman from
1948 to 1961 (the habv boom years) .
the rate has been declining to reach
its lowest recorded level of 1 .7-i in
1998. The rate varies considerable' by
education levels and geographic
areas, although the trend is to a
decline across all social groups . -this
reflects a delay in family formation
and an increase in the percentage of
worsen remaining childless.
Since 1971, a pattern of postponed
birth has become evident, and 'the
percentage of first births occurring to
married women aged 30 and over
rose from ?-6 per cent to 31 .1 per
cent*"- In 1999, women aged 30 to
3 , 1 years exhibited the highest
fertility rate, overtaking the 2S to
~u5INALtA'S BACKGR^hND REPORT ON FAMILY FRItNULY POLICIES
29 year-olds, at 108_5 babies per
women'" .
1 .000
The birth rate
amongst teenage mothers was the
lowest ever in 1999, at 18 .1 births per
1000 females, a reduction of 3'-4
births from the 19'1 peak of 55 .5" .
9'ltere are likely to be many factors
involved in the decline in fertility.
1Secause
of
a
more
uncertain
over the next 30 years . it is estimated
that tine in three marriages will end
in divorce`
I)espite recent trends . \i(9)onald
has calculated that 100 years ago
the percentage of couples still
together after 30 )'ears (taking into
account both
widowhood and
separation) would have been about
more
ah per cent, while tile proportion
children until careers are established.
O0ur factors could include the high
In Australia, sole-parent families
economic
environment.
couples may be delaying haying
rate of relationship or marriage
breakdown in the peak child lw :iring
years . Thc:ae issues are canvassed in
FaCS' Occasional Paper Number 2Low Fertility: a discussion paper"'.
Sole Parenthood
Rates of divorce" in Australia rose
steadily from a low base at tlcc turn
of the century until the introduction
of the 1wmill , Lrzu , Act 19?S, when
the divorce rate was 4i .5 per lo,000
of the population . l3\' 2000, ilcc rate
was
2' .2
per
111 .000
of
now comprise around 21 per cent of
all family households . the vast
majority of these arc sole mother
families . By 2000, approximately
one out of every five children aged
11 10 14 lived in a single-parent
family' - . h has been estimated that
Family Breakdown and
.? 2
today is 53 per cent'" .
rite
population". If current rates continuo
over a quarter of Australian children
will spend at least part of their
childhood
in
a
single-parent
fancily''`_ however, most Australians
will spend their childhood living
with both parents- The proportion
of children still living with both
nancral parents ha, been calculated
using 1986 iota Trout \GCNlern
Australia Isce Tirblc l i
TABLE 1 : PER CENT OF CHILDREN LIVING WITH BOTH NATURAL PARENTS BY AGE Of CHILD
Age of child
/0
living with both natural parents
1 year
91
6 years
85
12 years
80
15 years
77
1 1" ,
Vdw. .c,~1i7
~ . . . ., : .4n,ralm
av,cud,k" nrtx7raN~lCIwIV.'tin : .A(F],199)
AUSIRAIIA'5 SA.CKCROUND REPORT ON FAMILY IRIEN'DLY POLICIES
2 .3 Changes in the
Labour Market and the
Nature of Work
Since the 1991-92 recession, the
Australian labour market has been
marked bY overall entplc,ymrnt
growth and increasingly diverse
forms of employment and working
arrangements . Between 1992 93 and
2000 01, nearly 1 .5 million jobs were
created and the unemployment rate
declined relatively steadily to 6.9 per
cent (seasonally adjusted in June
201111''_ Overall labour force,
participation rates remained stable .
However, iltc participation rate
increased slightly for w'ornen and
decreased for men isee Section
1.3.7) . Long-term unemployment
(unemployed for ;? works or more)
has dropped sire-e the early 1990s. It
was 23 .6 per cent (seasonally
adjusted) of total unenlployrnenr in
June 2001 . This was 3.9 percentage
points below its average level since
April 1986 (the starting point f'(-)r the
latest consistently dclincd series) .
2 .3 .1 'Oomen's ?al'ticip,ation
Rates
As in other OECD countries over
recent dccadvx, a most striking change
in the Australian labour force was the
dramatic increase in fcmalc labour
force participation. Between May 1970
and May 2001 . the seasonally adjusted
female participaiion rate increased
front 37 .9 per cent to i5 .5 per cent =°.
This increase is as.sociared with an
increase in part-time work (see
( For (urtber
Section 2 .;3 . .3) .
discussion o/'/intents' participation
rules sex" Section 3 .)
Z .' .2
Cn~10", .rleltr prof"IE'
]*he employment profile in Australia
has experienced changes over the
past decade . However, ABS data
indicate that .Australians remain
overwhelmingly employed on a
permanent basis tie receive paid
annual or sick Ica%c) . In August
1000, -3 per cent of all wage and
salary earners were reported to he
permanent" . Ilowever, casual
employment has increased its share of
ill(, total nundwr of employ-eCS, front
16 to 27 per cent between August
196;=1 and August 2000== . In .Australia,
casual entployn1cnr is very divelsc.
This has led to considerable
misunderstancling of data on the
extent and nature of 'casual
employment 0tvSection 2.3 1).
Permanent and casual cml)loyccs
can work either on a part-time or
full-time basis. Over 30 per cent of
casual ernployecs work full-time .
()vcr one-third of all pan-time jobs in
August 2000 were permanent.'
) .3 .
Charact n~,tics. o1
Part-time Wotk
From 1980 to 2000, there was
sustained growth in part-time
ernployrncnl in Australia, both in the
absolute numbers of part-time
employees and the proportion of all
employment that is part-time.
" ()n average, the number of people
in part-lime employment grew by
4 .5 per cent a year 1.-10 per rent
among %omen and ; .9 per cent
among men). This compared to
overall employment growth of
1 .9 per cent per year (2.8 per cent
among tvonx"n and 1 .1 per cent
among men) .
AtISTRAI]A'S BAC:KtIiCUND REPORT ON [Al,111'( tRIEND .V POLICIIS
" the proportion of cn1ploy,nent That
is skirt-tune increased from 16 lxr cc tt
to 27 per cent (from 35 per cent to
rl 1)<.'r cent among women and from
5 per (cm to 13 per cent among men)
IscY" Figure Yl .
Parents, particularly mothers with
dependent children, are more likely
to work pat'(-tulle='.
Among
parents
of
dependent
children in June 2000 :
" ;' per cent of employed partnered
mothers worked part-time. compared
to 53 per cent of employed sole
mothers:
" ; per cent of employed partnered
fathers worked earl time, compared
ro 18 per cent of employed sole
fathers.
A
large
majority
of
part-tinge
workers (about 70 per cent of men
and 80 per cent of wcrttlen) report
being satisfied with their hours of
wonwn aged
work .
Married
between 25 and ;4, tn :lny working
part-time to balance work and
family, report the Icast dissarisfaction with their part time hours.
with fewer than 1 ; per cent
preferring to work more h(AUS" .
In may 2000 . part-time employees
were paid an average of $3111 .00 for
an average of Is . I hours per week .
The average hourly rare of pay was
516 .90 for male hart-timers and
516 .'0 for lc" nlale part-timers . By
comparison . full-tinge employees
earned in average of $8-21-00 for 39 .8
hours of work (average hourly
earnings of shout $21 .70 for men :md
$18.80 for women) . In terms of
hourly w'agc rates . women earn
much the same whether they work
men
full-time or part-time, while for
this is less lik(av ."
Data
cm
receipt
of
'srandard "
employment benefits (a1111ua1 leave,
sick Icave and long service leave)
show plat some .3-t per cclu of part-
FIGURE 1 : PART-TIME EMPLOYMENT AS A PROPORTION OF TOTAL EMPLOYMENT, 1980 TO 2000
50
45
z
rO
d
U
4)
35
30
-' FPIIWIPf
25
IUId
20
15
IC
S
19811
1985
1990
1995
YEAR
tiar<r AB.e. La(a'ror F-,nz" Anstmii4, IbIlt srr2c gwrndd~n t,. !41A6 G29/O, Avguq ~Wib )¢wr
2000
AUSIRALIA'S BACKGROUND RE70R
0N FAMILY tRIENDLY P0LICI',S
Table 2) . Female part timers are
Over half of all casual employees
(7 ; per cent) in Australia have
access to various forms of paid leave
Compared to male part lirncrs.
have been with their employer for
time employees arc permanent (see
[note than twice as likely r<-> have
(For details abort[ arrangreinents jbr
part-time tt'c»11 see StsYinrt ~. _ .I
2.3.4 Characterisl :s of
Casual Work
system, inosl federal and state awards
give 'casual' employees a loading
of
certain
more than five years" .
There is also a great deal of dicersin
between it)dusrrieS in Icon much
they rely oil casual employees as an
integral part of Their worktorce .
Under Australia's workplace, relations
instead
worked for their current employer
for over 12 nTOnllm and 13 per rent
employment
conditions, such os paid annual leave
and sick Icavc. "Ilie :RS relied on this
feature of the award system to define
Cign :rl employees as those 'who were
not entitled to either paid holiday
Icave or paid sick le .rye"' .
Casual unlployees arc generally
employed oil rlic basis that they do
not necessarily have :ill expectation
of ongoing continuing employment .
At law, each engagement is regarded
as a new contract of en,ploynlent .
Casual work nrav be caller regular or
irregular. and it rnay" he temporary or
seasonal, or last for longer periods .
Those industries with the greatest
reliance arc acco[nntodation . cafes
and restaurants ; agriculture . forestry
and fishing; retail trade; and cultural
and recreational services .`
In part, the grcnvtli and diversity in
casual employnrem reflect changes
in the economy and in family and
s<x -ial choices
About half of casual employees have
a regular working pattern in terms of
working a sat number of days a
week or fortnight or on a rosler or
shift system While 16 per Ccnr have
access to a formal system of flexible
working hour,, i2 per cent have
some say in their start and finish
times (compared with 21 and 4? per
cent, respe(tively, of permanenl
employees) ."
TABLE 2: PROPORTION OF PART-TIME EMPLOYEES RECEIVING STANDARD EMPLOYMENT
BENEFITS IN MAIN JOB, AUGUST 2000
Proportion of part-time employees entitled to benefit(%)
Standard benefit
Males
Females
Persons
Annual holiday leave
18 .7
39 .3
33 .6
Sick leave
18 .6
39 .8
34 .0
Long service leave
14 .3
33-9
28 5
None
35 .6
20 .1
24 .4
sw .rce ass, frrq~t.~rr ." Iumhp;+. drr><y+s rn'Tnuk I;4*," Alerrrttlrbgt r.rr :1i, 53r20
AUSIRA-IA*S BACKGROUND HE P03' ON FAMILY FRIFNOI'r ROLICIE5
About t++'o Thirds l6' per cent) of
casual employees report +vorkiog
regular hunts each week in their
main job, although -f1 per cent report
being
guaranteed
a
minimum
number of hours- when further
prompted, 18 per cent of this group
report that a guaranteed minimum
number of hours is actually a
condition of their employment . Sixty
per cent say that their earnings vary
from veek to week-"
2 3 .5
'~"vnrkinq time
Flexibility of working hours has also
increased . The proportion of workers
working Monday to Friday in their
.q per cent to
main job fell from 69
00 .2 per cent between 1993 and
199"=. \lore +workers now report
hours
so
being able to work longer
tllev can take time off later. Also
relevain u> work and family time is
that, in 2o0o, t?o per cent of workers
reported ha+ing done *sonic work on
weekends or at night over the
previous four weeks " .
since il l(: 1970x, the average length
of working hours has (let reascd as
part-time +Fork grew, panicularly for
female employees. In the 1980s and
early 1990s file average length of
hours
working
for
full-time
employees increased, with men
continuing to work longer hours
than women. Ko+vc+cr, this trend
has eased since the mid 1990x .
Average weekly hours for full-time
employees rose by 1 .4 hours
betwccn 1982 and 1988 and 1 .9
hours between 1988 and 1991, but
dropped by 0.2 hours between 1994
and 2001" .
2.
o IP~.':y!`
Do IF'IinIn'!i1(1,
The development of social policy in
Australia has taken a quite different
path than in many other OECD
countries . Australia has historically
chosen
to
pursue
its
equity
objectives through a balance of
labour market regulation and the
social security system . l or much of
TABLE 3: AVERAGE WEEKLY HOURS FOR FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES, BY GENDER . 1982-2001
Year
Males
Females
All Persons
1982
39.1
36.3
38.2
1984
39.8
37.1
38.9
1986
39.8
36.7
38.8
1988
40.7
37 .2
39.6
1990
41.3
37.9
40.2
1992
41 .4
38.1
40.3
1994
43.1
38.5
41 .5
1996
42.5
38 .4
41 .1
1998
42.5
38 .6
2000
43.4
39.3
41 .9
418
38.7
41.3
2001
41 .1
AUSIPA .'A'S BAC ".GROtJND R_RORT Ot4 YA!d :CY FRIENDIY POLICIES
the last century, Australia had a
unique system of industrial tribunals
As well, there was a heavy reliance
on wage fixation for the male
'breadwinner' as the method of
securing improvements in living
standards for loco-paid employees.
The male breadwinner model was
effectively removed with a National
Wage Case decision in 19'7 when
the commission explicitly rejected
the continuance of a family welfare
rationale for minimum wage
determination . For the first time, the
commission also determined a
minillItun wage to apply equally to
both male and female employees .
x .3 .7
Federal BlininaumWage
In ill(- April 199' National Wage
Case, a federal minimum wage was
determined The federal minimum
wage in Australia is just under 60 per
cent of the median wage, This is a
much higher proportion of median
earnings than in comparable OECD
countries and second ( .}nly to
France-for example, the same ratios
in the Unilcd States, the (-sited
Kingdom and Canada are 36.4 per cent,
il - per cent and 42. 5 per cent
resle~-tn'ely.';
i.D .8
f,1 .y Equity
As, with other countries, in Australia a
pay- gap exists bcmeen male and
female workers_ In play 2000,
women's total average weekly
earnings were 67 per cent of men :s.
The ratio of fertmle-tormale average
weekly ordinary time earnings for
full-tune adult non-managerial
When
employees \\a? 90 per cent .
the longer average working hours of
males are taken into account this
nrtio rises to 92 per cent".
Because of national equal pay
decisions in the 1970s, significant
reductions in the non-managerial
gender pay gap occurred . The gap
closed further in the 1980s and
remained rclafvcly stable during the
1990x. As at February 2001. the ratio
of female-to-male full-time Adult
average weekly ordinary time
earnings w-as 8 a .' per cent".
The reasons for the pay gap are
complex and result from a range of
factors. Women tend to work in
industries where pay scales are lower
than in male dominated industries
with equivalent skill requirements
lie women's work is undervalt:e(I in
areas such as librarianships, mtnsing,
hairdressing, child car(- and either
care areas etc) .
\\omen's pony, and especially Ilrcir
earnings over a lifetime, are
significantly affected by having
children . The time \+- UHIen take out
of the workforce to have and look
after children, and the high incidence
of preference for part-time work
among mothers, contributes to the
pay and earnings gap between
women and men- On average, child
rearing has a much bigger impact on
mothers' employment and earnings
than it does on fathers' employment
and earnings . Child rearing also
affect, the hourly wage rare in a
number of ways . For instance, it
impacts on women', labour market
experiences, often restricting career
progression for those with family
rcspomibilities . Periods of absence
AUSTRALIA'S BACKGROUND REPOR1 0N
from the labour market are also
assoc-Fated with a lessening in value
of labour marker skills, and there is
evidence that this decreases women's
wages relative to men's wages tape
i.I 2fiarfirrtherdelrih/.
.? .3.9 Chan,eS to L3hOUr
Market Reauiatior in tl , Q 1990S
The 1990s saw the focus of the
workplace relations system move
away from centralised determination
of wages and conditions through
industry and oc'c'upational -level
awards, to the setting of wages and
condition; through agreerneixs
raaclied at the enterprise :and
workplace levels .
The federal MorkplaceRelations Act
19<Xi 1 u 1L1 i extended the emphasis
tit agreement-making . Awards and
formal agreements are legally
binding industrial instruntcras made
;it ilic federal or state level . Awards
usually cover multiple eutpIoyerS
and are intended to set a safety net
of ininiinurn wages and conditions
ac'rUSs substantial Sections of ail
occupation or industry . Awards are
limited to twenty allowable matters
which include parental leave :and
personali'carers (cave. and provisions
to
working hours.
relating
Agreements are negotiated al the
w'orkplac'e to cover tile mutual needs
of employers and employees.
1)cvclopnients through tits 1990s
included :
" increased chokes through the WRA
for employers and employees,
particularly with methods of
agreement making, including
individual agreements (Australian
FAMILY
IRIENoo' POLICES
Workplace Agrcentcnn) and colleclivcagreement, (negotiated with or
wit}rvut unions);
" a drullatic fall in award reliance since
die introduction of enterprise :'
workplace level bargaining (some
two-thirds of employees were paid
at an award rate in 19% compared
to less thus one-quarter in `slay 2t7C10i' ;
an increasing use of collective
:agreements since the early 1990s
lover 10.500 federal wage agre vinents
were current at 31 Marclt 2001,
covering an estimated ( . million
employees I;
an increasing use of collec9ive "
agreements negotiated directly
between employers and employees
(at 31 March 200 1, 11 .I per cent of
agrccinentS made under the NVRA
were made directly between
emplorycrs and employees under
s . 1'01.1`) : and
" a decline in trade union membership
from -10.5 per cent in `990 to 25 .6
pet cent in 21100'°.
It is against this background of
demographic and labour market
trends that Australian government
policies on employment and family
support should be considered .
AUSTRALIA'S BACKGROUND
I1EPORT
ON
TABLE 4 : NUMBER ('000) OF CHILDREN AGED UNDER
OF PARENT(S), JUNE 2000
Aged 0 to 4
Couple family
Both parents employed (%)
One parent employed/one
parent not in labour force (%)
One parent employed/one
parent unemployed 1%)
Both parents unemployed (%)
One parent unemployed/one
parent not in labour force (%)
Both parents not in labour
force (%)
One-parent family
Parent employed (%)
Parent unemployed (%)
Parent not in labour force (%)
Total children
1 . 11
IAIv11LY
III
BY LABOUR
15
Aged
5
to
9
ItNDIY
POLICIE5
FORCE STATUS
Aged 10 to
l4
Total
1,123 .2
1,126.3
1,034 .5
3,285 .1
434
55 .2
62-6
53 .5
44 .9
32.8
26.4
34.9
3 .2
4 .1
3 .2
3 .5
0 .5
0 .7
0 .6
0.6
3 .9
2 .9
2 .2
31
4 .1
4 .4
4.9
4.4
202 .0
263 .3
267 .3
732 .7
26 .7
45 .6
55 .2
43 .9
7,6
7,5
7 .2
74
65 .7
46 .9
37 .6
48.7
1,325 .2
1,389 .6
1 .301_8
4,017 .8
In,=.as4,rhn .c,u,xj,kMLhont,nux . ."(lamdj, :mV,O1J .ule ,
3 .1 .1 Parents' Participation
in the Paid Labour Market
Figure 2 illustrates the labour force
attachment of Australians aged 15 or
more, in relation to t1tc presence or
abscnee of dependent children" .
( :omparing the participation rates of
men with women at diffcrcnT ages
highlights the diffcrctuial effects of
parenting".
Tit(- participation rates for rnen
between tit(- ages of 20 and 5"T were
betty con 80 per cent and 100 per
cent- These varied little with Iltc
presence of dependent children . The
participation rates for men under the
age of 20 and over 53 were
substantially lower, especially if the)*
did not liavc dependent children . In
the case of younger men . the lower
participation rates are panty bccause
they arc " liken' to be studying.
The participation rate of young
mothers aged 15 to 19 was close h,
25 per cent . The participation rate of
women with dependent children
increascYl markedly to a high point of
about ?0 per cent at age 45-5a but
fell 10 about S(1 per ccrtt for those in
the 55 to 0-i age group . This pattern
reflects a range of factors . A
significant number of Australian
women still exit the paid labour
market when their first child is born.
They gradually re-enter the paid
labour market at sonic later date. As
well, the younger the woman is the
less likely she is to b e attached to dielabour market when her first child is
born . This is because she will have
spent fewer years ill education and ;'
or be less attached to a career path
than older mothers" .
UST RAII .A'S
3.
BAC<'ROUND R! PORT
FAMILY FRILN0LY POLICIES
Families and Work
Employment can help build the
independence and self-reliance of
families, increase the resources
available to meet their needs and
protect against social exclusion and
inter-generational disadvantage On
the other hand, pressures created by
work can make eftective parenting
more difficult- The incidence of
joblessness, the balance of work
Ixrween parents, Irocv rime is used
and the allocation of caring
responsibilities are all key issues in
managing work and family for
Ausnalian families .
3 1
OA
) .ii .
- ;m- ;s and Fawih s
For sole-parent tamilies, employment
is particularly important given there
is only one potential breadwinner
within the household . For couple
families, being employed is an
important protection against future
family joblessness, especially in the
cast- of separation or divorce . In
June 2000, 10 ,8 per cent of children
aged under 1> lived in a family
(either a couple or sole parent
family) [hero no adult worked in the
pail labour market". Over the last
20 years. there was a marked increase
in jobless families ." although there
have been small hnprovemenls in the
Ias1 two years.
As well, in Junk. 2000, a little over
half of the children living in couple
families were in families w'Itere both
parents worked (see Table 4) . A
tutther 38 .4 per cent were in families
where one parent worked . In the
majority of these families the nonworking parent was not in the labour
force . Less than 10 per cent of the
children lived in couple families
where neither parent worked.
The proportion of children living in
jobless two parent families varied little
with the age of the child. In contrast,
drc proportion living in (nnilics wlrcrc
both parents worked increased with
III(- age of the child, from 43 per cent
at age 0 to 4 to (i3 per cent at age
10 to 1-t- The proportion living in
families where only one parent
worked decreased from j8 per cent
at age 0 to 4 to 30 per t=ent at age 10
to I i years . 'fltese figures highlight
the balance between ntotltcrs' childcar(, and paid work roles. and the
increased tendency for nioilrcrs to
combine those roles as dcpcndcnt
children ,ton' older and progress
through the school system .
Table i also shows that almost onefifth of children lived in sole parent
families, less than half of there
1'34 per CCTIU with a parent in a paid
job . The proportion of children living
with an unemployed parent varied
little eying Ilrc age of the child . The
proportion of those living with a
working parent increased markedly
with the child's age, from 27 per cent
for children aged 0 to 4 to i; per c-cnt
when (It(- (-hill was aged 10 to 14 .
AUSIItAIIA'S
BAC < ;R0Ut.P
R -P0RT
Old
FAPA':LY
-1RIEV01s'
?OEICIES
FIGURE 2: LABOUR FORCE PARTICIPATION RATES OF WOMEN AND MEN AT DIFFERENT AGES
100
80
- P.IW
wimOUt
deprndants
Wamen
60
mthan
dependants
- Nown
with
dependants
- blen with
dependants
20
15-15
20-24
25-34
35-44
4554
55 64
AGE
Scmrc'e^ "7RSMoltL~dmrTv~rteibtb
mid(NUe"rt;1-gRKkT'A/fsffFnMllk<.Gv\bb13Qnrab4'26
The pttrlicipation pattern of women
aged I ; to i i without dependants is
close to men's participation patterns .
However, the participation rate of
women aged 4 and nver without
dependent children declines relative
to tltc participation rate of men of [It(sane" :1}1c group.'l'his decline inay he
because older women approaching
worktorce retirement age tend to
lake on caring responsibilities for
eldcrly relatives. These Wor1ICnt also
belong to an earlier generation who
were less attached to the labour
market during their parenting years
than sulmcqucnr generations,
Figure 3 shows women's labour
market participation for a range of
birth cohorts. Eacli line in the figure
describes a birth cohort . the first
horn in 18,89 and the last in 19,9. As
a whole, the figure captures the
labour market experiences of
different generations of women.
As Young suggests, 'the 1929 birth
cohort is the first to show evidence
of the bimodal pattern of labour
force participation, with a slight peak
at the young adult ages followed by
a later peak at around -4' years of
age'" . Later cohorts follow' this
characteristic A4-shaped pattern,
although the trough between the
peaks has become smaller.
\Vonlun in the older cohorts tended
it-) leave the lalxxtr force when thcv
married, stayed out during their
child-rearing years and returned
when their children had grown .
There was often a second exit
initiated be the need to care for older
fancily Incmbers_ By contrast, later
cohorts tended to remain in paid
work until the hitch of the first child .
although Ilic tendency to leave on
the birth of the first child also
decreased art(] the rio ughs in the yI
have become less pronounced in
recent seats. As well. women in lice
more recent birth cohorts have
typically returned to work after birth .
so that both the first and the second
peaks indicate a similar rate of
participation ('? per cent) .
ALISTRALIA'5
9A(KGR0UIJO
REPOR-
ON
rAA4IIY
FRIENUIY
POLICIES
FIGURE 3 : AGE-SPECIFIC LABOUR FORCE PARTICIPATION RATES OF AUSTRALIAN
WOMEN ACCORDING TO COHORT EXPERIENCE
Bu
1889
1894
70
1899
1904
1909
a
T
1914
SO
1919
c
v
;=
m
a
a
u
m
0
0
m
1924
40
1929
I9+1
30
1939
1947
20
19"79
1954
1959
1914
17
27
27
32
a,
42
47
52
57
62
v
MID-PUIPIT OF AL -E GROUP IN YEARS
Gwr[R liNLlp1???gnJvLnaaBrutnratkNhtlrwngin2 70 / 1
3 .1 .2 Comparison of
Employment to Population
Rates for Single and Married
Mothers
Table 5 show's employment to
population rates in 19,85 and 2000 for
single mothers and married mothers
in relation to the age of their youngest
child"'. In both yearn, the employment
rates for single mothers were
substantially lower than those for
married mothers, regardless of the age
of the youngest child- Mr all axxhcr:,,
employment to population rates
increased with the age of the
youngest child. In 2000, the
employment to population rate of
married women, %airh a voungcsl
child less than 5 years of age, Was lens
than ill per cent, increasing to almost
70 per cent evircn their youngest child
was aged hcnveen > and 9. Thc cntploymenl to population rate of single
mothers was less than 30 per cart
when their vourigcsr Child wits agtrl less
than i, increasing to over 50 per cent
when their youngest child was aged
bem'ccn 5 and 9.
over the last li years . employment to
population rates have incre ..rsed . %lost
of the growth in employnrern for
mothers of preschool age a-hildren
was in part-time work . Arnong single
mothers e\ ith older children, the
growth ha, I>ecn " hared ioirk, eccnly
betweer, dull time and part-time work .
AUSTRALJA'S
BACKCROVNO
REPOR - ON
rAA11LY
ERi EN71Y PO LI(itS
TABLE 5: EMPLOYMENT TO POPULATION RATES FOR SINGLE MOTHERS AND
MARRIED MOTHERS BY AGE OF YOUNGEST DEPENDENT CHILD (PER CENT)
Single mothers
Working Working
Working
full-time part-time
1985
0 to 4
5 to 9
10 to 14
With dependants
(including those
aged 15 to 24)
Married mothers
Working Working Working
full-time part-time
12-0
10 .0
22 .0
10 .9
19 .5
30 .4
15 .7
17 .0
32 .7
22 .8
30 .9
53 .7
277
15 .5
43 .2
28 .3
297
58 .0
21 .0
14 .3
35 .3
20.1
27 .0
47 .1
9.0
19.5
28.5
16.1
31 .9
48.0
22 .2
30 .0
52 .3
25 .9
40 .8
667
31 .4
30.3
61 .7
36.7
36,7
73 .4
23 .2
26-0
49 .2
26 .1
35 .1
61 .2
2000
0 to 4
5 to 9
10 to 14
With dependants
(including those
aged 15 to 24)
sowres'di,; ndllx>l thh~u-IAC1-C4Nxel-[v2tu"F
Both single and married mothers
with dependent children %%-ere t1101'e
likely to work part-time rattler than
full-time in 2000 . SSingle mothers
whose youngest child %vas aged
be(wcctl 1(1 and 1-i were Iltc only
group more likely to work full-time
than pan-time (married mothers %with
a youngest child aged between 10
and 1$ were equally likely to work
part-time or full time) .
A detailed analysis of eirploytncnT to
population rates demonstrates the
importance to women's employment
the
in small c 1mnges in the age of
Voungusl child . ( :ensus data show
that in 1996 the employment to
population rates of married mothers
whose youngest child %vas aged less
than one , year, ranged from 2(1 per
cent to 3(1 per cent, depending on
tla- number of children Itwy had . 'fhe
20
1 :era .rnAr4hrrr:haru<rertak:orhgmof+~s,T 64=N,. ; r
rates rose to about 50 per cent when
the voungcst child was aged I to 2.
and further still when the voungcst
child was aged 3 to 5'-. Mothers were
more likely to work part-time when
the youngest child was in the early
year, of primary school (aged ;-9),
but were as likely to he working full
time as part-tinge when the children
%were older.
These patterns are reflected in
woman's lifetime incomes- Mothers
from all educational backgrounds
were likely to earn less than twothirds of . the earnings of their
childless peers over a tifetinw" .
Mothers' daily living expenses a"crc
also considerably greater. However,
at the end of the 1990s (:compares) to
due situation in 19861 workforce- and
social infrastructure changes had
affecred the future prospects of
AUSTRALIA S BA( KGRCUND REPORT ON rAMIIY FRIENDLY
mothers . Largely because today's
ttto111Cr5 return to the workforce
more quickly and frequently, the gap
between childless women and those
with children has closed markedly".
For example, in 1986 a woman with
completed secondan - education and
two children was likely to earn
55 10,004) (199' $At'Sl Icss than her
childless peer over her lifetime . By
199,, this woman was twice its likely.
t o return to the workforce while her
children were of preschool ngc. As a
consequence, the lifetime earnings
gap between her and her childless
counterpart had narrowed to
$1'2,000 . This gap remains
significant, lu»vcver . and is partly
explained by the likelihood of
reduced career opportunities for
employed Ino(hers .
3 2
;,
`St
y
It.) ~'a)r' 4 ; (11. 11 0toik to
Being in the paid workforce
influences parents' lives in a number
of ways'"'. Recent qualitative research
has found berth positive and negative
perceptions of the effect of
employment on women's f:unik lives.
For example, women who are
asked why they had chosen paid
employment hay c emphasised the
pct:sonal reward, they experienced
wcrc
front
working-these
than
more
important
considered
the financial benefits" . Indeed,
women are more- likely than men to
report that paid cniplen"ment has a
positive effect on their self-esteem.
This also holds true for care-givers
w tw find working a source of relict'
And a new interest".
POLIO
;
S
On iltc other hand, there can also be
ncgatM, spillover effects from work
to family . The Australian living
Standards Survev, conduCICLI in
1991-92, suggested that Owse effects
were felt most keenly by women
working htll-time, who were far more
likely than part-timers to feel that
work interfered with their domestic
lives. For exarnplc, >? per cent of
women working full-rime felt that
'working hours interfered with slate
for children"' . l1tis compares with inst
under one-third of part-tinny women
workers who were of the same view .
Failict:s were less likely to consider
that work affected their abilitv to be a
good parent (around 27 per cent).
Studies show consistently that
negative spillover O'letts are felt
most keenly by those working long
hours, employed in high-status jolts,
and by those who have lore levels of
work satisfaction" .
~ .3
Paldec~t, of Time Use
In Australia, as elsewhcrc, an
apparent stability in average weekly
hours spent in paid work masks a
significant change over time in the
dispersion of those hcutrs . Information on how- people spend their
time is zvailable from limy use
surveys that were carried out in 19-4 .
198', 1992 and 199'". The surveys
show that working times have
beconxr more dispersed for both
men and women (see Sectton 2. .;, 5) .
Depending upon individual family
circumstances, this can have either
positive of negative effects .
AUS'RALIA')
3ALKGROttP1U
RI'ORT
3.3 .1 Changes in lire householdl
Labour Supply
The biggest influences on women's
time use are employment and
transitions between the different
stages in life such as marriage, the
birth of a child, retirement or loss of
a spouse. The official ABS (into* use
stm cys, which collect data for every
rcsidctn in a household aged over
I i, provide an opportunity to study
rile situations of whole households
and hoc% these have changed
between 1911' and 1997, Using these
surveys, it is possible to produce
good estimates of time spent
(volume of labour supplied) in both
paid and unpaid work.
To improve comparability," only the
data on metropolitan prince-age
heads of household and their
spouses (cohere applicahlc) were
analysed .
Table fi shows that Australian
households alter the balance
bcrcveen paid and unpaid work in
response to children and schooling.
Childless Couple 110LISCIMId5 allocate
on average m(.)rc (ruin ?0 hours a
week to paid work, or nearly twothirds of their total work time. In
contrast, households whose youngest
child is preschool age devote over
-0 hours to unpaid work . reducing
their paid hours to less than Ell a
week, in couple households cohere
the youngest child is at school,
average cceekly paid and unpaid
work are almost equal .
Sole mothers' lot :Il hours of labcxtr"
are greater than the total hours
worked by single women without
ON
FAh11tY
tRI :ND-'Y
P0-ICI(,
children . the total hours of labour for
couples with children exceeds that of
the total labour of couple. without
children by afxrut the t;unc ratio .
Among single wrnnen cvitlr()lrl
children, paid work accounts for
two-thirds of the total weekly work
hours. whereas among sole mothers
it accounts for one cighlh . Sole
mothers with children attending;
school devote one quarter of their
total working hours to paid w'or'k .
The households with the longest
hours of total work . paid and unpaid,
arc those with preschool age
children, while those whir the
shortest are childless cotiplcsCouple households with children at
school occupy an inlernrcoliatc
Ix>sition.
These 'total hours' mask the fact that
a lot of time is devoted to child care
as :t simultaneous activity accont
panying another 'main' or primary
activity . There arc four times as many
hours devoted to child care as a
background or secondary activity
than are devoted To child care as a
foreground or primary activity. This
gives some idea of the marginal time
costs for households of raising
children of different ages-time costs
that might be thought of as part of
Ilrc costs of children .
AUSTRALIA'S 6ACK17R0l.ND It tl'OIIT ON : AM ILY FRIENDLY' P011CIiS
TABLE 6: HOUSEHOLD SUPPLY OF PAID AND UNPAID LABOUR BY HOUSEHOLD
COMPOSITION (HOURS PER WEEK)
No children
Married
1987
Paid work
Youngest
71 .4
43 .2
114 .6
Youngest
aged 0 to 4
aged 5 to 14
56.3
66 .5
60 .7
76 .8
133 .1
127 .2
119.3
58.0
76.7
134.7
65 .2
62 .8
128.0
7 .9
Unpaid work
36 .6
18 .4
56 .7
15 .8
41-4
Total work
55 .0
64 .6
57_1
Unpaid work
Total work
1997
Paid work
Unpaid work
Total work
76.1
43-1
Single
1997
Paid work
u
3.3.2 Estimates of Time Spent
in Caring for Children
doubled since 19'4 . At the same
time, fathers share of the household
in recent years, longitudinal research
has shown the critical importance of
one third . Importantly . on average,
for every hour of primary child care .
the first three years of children's
lives . however, it is otter) in this
period that the capacity of parents to
create a positive environment for
their children is most under stress .
The time use survcvs show that the
caring work associated with rearing
children is substantial and falls
disproportionately upon mothers,
re-
parents report four more hours of
child care :)s a secondary or
background activity to son)(' other
primary activity .
3 .3 3 Perrei ,! d Tim(t Pressure
Survey data indicate t1wt %%omen
working Icss than full-time hours are
satisfied with work
and fancily
there
some
diarihuticm to fathers between 19-4
and 1997 . The time parents' im est in
balance in 1995 . the AV7II6' found
that women " and those of both sexes
significantly over this period (front
satisfaction with their working
hours""' . A year later, tl)e Australian
although
was
child care has risen front one fifth to
their preschool age children has risen
21 to (I hours per week) . [Iota-ever,
the average time a father spends in
child care with preschoolers has
working fewer than 2S hours a
week)
expressed
the
greatest
Fantily Life Course Study (AFLCS)
found that nearly 80 per cent of
21
AUS'RALIA*S 8 .4CSGR00ND RI?0 al
women working half-time hours or
fewer were content with their hours
of work, while satisfaction decreased
with increasing working hours. Most
women with children under 12
expressed a preference for working
fewer hours"'While only 10 per ccrrt of both men
and women in tlic .AFI.CS said that
family demands interfered with
work. around -t-i per cent of nien and
28 per cent of wontcrt said that work
interfered negatively with family .
Whatever kind of household women
live in. wcxncn experience more time
pressure than do rncn . Both women
who live alone and men in general
sometimes feel rushed or pressed for
time' . However, married women.
mothers of preschool age children .
and sole parents,"' are always or
often rushed or pressed for tune'. with
a small proportion reporting that they
rarer"' or'never felt rushed.
Among men, iltc perception of time
pressure is little changed between
the proportions of single men,
married inert and fathers who always
feel rushed or pressed for tune .
Nevertheless, there can be little
doubt that couples feel under greater
time pressure than single men and
women . and that parents feel under
greater time pressure than couples
without children . Sole mothers are
the group that feels under the
greatest time pressure .
4
Emerging Issues Shaping
Policy Oevelt :p ntcnt
A number of key issues emerge Iron
analysis of information on workforce
participation and tittle use in Auslraliar .
or, FAMILY rRIrND_r R0LICIE5
For the most part . Australia has
been highly successful in creating
an environment where women
participate in the workforce . 0%cr
the last 20 years, iluc increase in
female labour force participation has
been rapid- This has been largely a
function of rhc increased participation
of ntolhers supported by" a significant growth in part-tithe work:
" the substantial and increasing
provision of child can;
" the ex fxtnsion of trcwork bcencrts and
levels of financial support for families
with children ; and
" increased nexibility in employment
conditions in the workplace relation,
system .
On the whole . .Australian mothers
have made most of the adjustments
to reconcile work and fatnily
responsibilities . They are increasing
their lifetime attachment to Ill(labour force, lowering fertility.
postponing childl>inh, and managing
the rearing of voungcr children with
a combination of pcricxh out of the
labour force and c'onsidcred use of
part-time work. The tntruber of rncrt
making List' of workplace flexibility is
rising [)it( retrains small" .
Family structures have continued to
dtangu with an increasing number of
families where neither parent work .._
FVIdenCe' suggests outcomes for
these families are better when ihce
can access work . This raises the
policy challenge of creating jobs willi
adequate flexibility for this group
and designing income assistance in
wavs that encourage active planning
and parridparion .
AJS-,RALIA'S BACKGRO ..ND
REPORT ON
Australia Inns an ageing population,
with implications for caring; needs in
the future, and a declining fertility
rate . Unless women increase their
labour force participation even
further, this has consequences for
the labour supply. Analysis of the
linl<s between work and family
issues and fertility levels is still at a
Very" early stage .
The combined effects of all these
influences on xvork and family have
Icd to new demands for policy to
make reconciling work and family
easier. In particular, there is a strong
clemand for increased support for
working parents and more family
triendly employment practices.
fFor et more detailed discussion of
the Australian cal--trar4er system
ttnd recent relurms, Child core
./am,di'stepports
services, and other
see Chapter -t. i
(For more information opt the
Workplace retalions enrironmeni
mid emplo1-meal conditions, see
Chapter 7.)
FAMILY FRI ;tJDL!'
POIIC1I S
AUSTRA1tA'5 BACNGR0UND R=POq' ON rA%,l'l'Y FRIE'!')I't POLICIES
4.
Family Policy Settings
Unlike many outer OECD countries,
Australian social sc(tcrity arrangements are flat rate . means-tested
government support pavntenis for
people unable to find work or fully
support themselves from work . not
cxl)ccted to work or unalcle to work.
Government income support is
funded from general taxation
revenue rather than a contributory
system
hased on insurance
pre ncipicsthe Department of Fancily and
Community Services (FaCS) was
created in i99R. The new department
integrated :
" functions fmtn the former 1k7)amnent
of Social Security :
" child care, disability services and
landly services fronn the (then)
Department of Health and Family
Services :
" fancily relationship services from dw
Anorney-General's Department ; and
" the Child Suplx)n AgenCY from the
Awstralian Tax OfficeFaCS lists three key social policy
outcomes-Stronger Families. Stronger
Con)munitics, and Economic and
Social Participation-as the main
focus of its activity, to be achieved
by ,lace key strategies :
" preventing social problems arising
through capacity building and early
intervcrntion;
" promoting inciepenclcnce, choice arid
self-reliance: and
26
" maintaining ., strong and sustainable
social safety net .
For nc:ncv years, Government child
care politics, financial assistance
through tax transfer systems, allow_
antes and concessions for youth and
students, the child Support scheme
for children of separated families and
family support services generally
have hcen an important feature of
work and family policies . More
recently, the Government's Stronger
Families and Communities Strategy,
established in 2000, identified work
and families issues as priorities .
in the 2001-02 fcdcral Budget . the
Government announced major
changes to Australia's .social support
system through tire Anstreiltans
Working, lbgetber package, "the
package is the first step towards
reforctt of the social support system .
The Government believes that Ow
. . . . Ausiralieors Working Togetber
Ipackagel will sec more people able
to achieve independence ; more
families with jobs : stronger, more
robust communities and a willing_
ness for everyone to plat' their parC' .
Australians W'orkirrg 7ogedber is a
whole of government response to
improving Australia's social support
system for %% corking age people . The
objective, of the reforms are to
significantly reduce Ore incidence of
jobless families and jobless
II(ntscholds, increase the extent of
self-reliance among the working ago
population and build stronger
Al1STRAIIA'S
3ACKCROUNU REPORT
communities that generate more
opportunities for social and
economic participation. The package
will be implemented over four years .
The new system will maintain the
social safety net and provide
improved, personalised assessment
and .service, more opportunitics for
training and work cxpvrience, better
incentives,
and
reasonable
requirements for people to find
work, increase their earnings. Or
contribute to their communities . A
key feature of the package is the
balance
between
assistance,
incentives and requirements .
The Australians Working Together
package includes a range of
measures to assist people of
workforce age. Specific initiatives for
parents include:
individualised assistance through
Ccntrelirk"~ Pervmal Advisers . to help
lxmaits on P:amving Payittent to plan
and prepare for a return to work ;
promotion, through new claim
interviews and Participation Packs,
of the advantages of work and the
assistance available to help parents
prepare for a rcyum to work;
a new Transition to Work program
which will bring together ;t range of
individual and Ocxible transitional
assLstancr for people who have been
away from the workforce for a long
time. and for those w-ho have n % cr
had paid jobs ; and
access to a range of expanded
training, employment and support
sen"ices. including additional outside
sclic"-"[ fic-,r . , luld care places and
child c;3rc i,, .c"ntance
ON 1AMIIY
FRIENOtY P0LICIE S
A number of other initiatives
contained in the Arwrahans Working
P)getherpackage are:
" a Working Credit to encourage
workforce age people on income
support to take up full-time, substantial part-tirne or irregular casual
work by allowing them to keep more
of their income support payment
when they first start work or have
intermittent work ;
" Training Credits worth up to SWX) to
gain work-related skills for eligible
jobseekers ; and
" a Literacy and Numeracy Training
Supplement to assist people who
scant to improve their skill. as part
of their plan to go back to work .
4 .1 Family Assistance
and In-work Benefits
Since the early 1980s, Australia has
progressively. expanded assistance
for low income families in general
and low income working families in
particular . Rather than employment
conditional hrnefits offered by a
number of MCU countries, family
assistance is part of the general
system of social assistance . (See
Appendix I3 jot derails o% Federal
C:ott "rrtrrrerrl pr7Vnteuls 1o farnilir'c .I
In the Australian context, family
assistance has a number of goals .
'these include horizontal equity
objectives such as assisting with the
costs of children anti redistributing
income over the lift- cycle. They also
include vertical equity objectives of
boosting low family earnings and
alleviating child prwerty- As well, the
11,1STRALIA*S BACKGROUND R_P0q - ON fAiaILY :RIrNOL!' "'0LICIIS
Australian family assistance system
over the last two decades has been
designed (et boost employment .
rcclue c
low
income
traps
and
increase incentives to work''" .
In any means-tested system . for some
Iwilcht recipients higher payments
can also mean Inghcr effective
marginal tax rates as the larger
benefit is w-itlrdrtmn- I lowever, these
income support measures support
the capacity of families in a broader
sense . Basic financial pressures can
paralyse
the capacity
of
some
families to manage any of lficir
affairs, including the invc .strnent
needed to return to work in the
longer term . Financial pressures can
relationship
breakdown, cvhicli can result in a
poorer financial position, reduced
also
contribute
to
workforce attachment and poorer
outcomes for children . At the same
time, (he choice made by dual
income families for both parents to
work
is
not
tlcc':tN,s driven
by
financial need . Some people choose
to work for stimulation, challenge
and social connection
4 .1 .1
F-:uni11lax B, Ief t
The inain form of financial assistance
is Paniily 'fax Benefit (FT1S) . A
recipient , may receive benefits as a
fortnightly cash payment or through
tine taX systern. In the liner case this
is achieved either through a lump
surn payment at the end of the
financial year or In a reduction in tax
payments withheld frorn income
throughout the financial year. FTB
ITB Part A and FTl1
has two parts
Part B. The latter is targeted to
single income families, including
note parents The amount families
receive caries according to the
number and ages of the children
and their income .
When FIB w'as introduced on I July
2000 . it increased the amount of
assistance available to families by
51 -i0 a year for each dependent
child. 'there was also an increase in
assistance for single income families .
and an increase in the level of
income at which assistance is income
IC'ntetl . These increases were further
boosted with a ; .H per cent indexation increase from 1 July 2001 .
C:overnment expenditure oil family
assistance has increased Iry more
than $2 billion a year (over 20 lxT ceno
since the introduction of FTB .
to 2001-2002, tlic maxiinunt rate of
FIB Pan A w :ts $320 Co per year per
child tinder 13 years. while rltc base
rate of FIB Part A wan 5102 ").30 per
year per child under 15 years .
Different rates applied for other ages .
Fl'B Part A is means-rested on the
family income, with the maximum
rate reduced by 3(.1 cents for every
dollar of family income over 529,tii'
(_this is higher than the mininnin)
wage :) until the base rate of
MI Part A
is reached . The previous arrangeIncirts applied a withdrawal rate of
50 cents for every dollar . Now,
families with incomes up ro S -- .23-i
(plus 53,13!) for each eligible child
after the first) can receive the base
rate of FTB Part A with . once again . a
cvididrawal rate of 30 cr"tls to" every
dollar over dear amount .
The taper cncs for these payments also
mean that families can cam .sipriG<ant
extra income and still benefit . In a
A-iS - ItALIA'S EACKGRO-ND REPORT ON --AWLY FR'INDL'Y POIICIIS
dynamic sctr c, the benefit, provided
for low to middle income earners
provide an incentive for jobless
families to strive for enrployrnent and
income rises over time .
I-1'B Part B is intended to give extra
assistance to families with one main
income. including sole parents .
particularly to those with a child
undvt' five, In 2001-2tNT2 the
maximum rate was S2-S2.10 per year
per family with a child under five and
$1919-90 per year for families with
either a youngest child five to fifteen
years or with slightly older children
who are full-time students . It is not
means tested on family income, but
on the income of the secondary
earner-that is, the one whose
income is less . In sole parent families
and single income couple families,
the family receives The whole amount
.
of PTB Pan B regardless of income
:in
The secondary earner can have
annual income of $l,ti'9 in 2001-20(.)2
fxIRore I'l'B Pan B cvas withdrawn at a
rate of 30 cents for every dollar of
income above that amount",
There are 2 trillion families eligible
for PTB . In all, over 1 .8 million
families are receiving 1, I'B Part A as
fortnightly payments, while other
I :cnrilies have claimed or arc
expected to (-]aim their benefit
through the tax system . There are12 million families receiving PT1S
Part B, almost all of whom also
receive Pan A. Total FIB expenditure
is estimated at Sl I billion a year .
4 .1 .?
Parenting Payment
Parenting Paytnent is delivered
through tire income support system
It provides income support to
parents who have primary care of a
dependent child aged under 16. The
pavtncnt is available to both sole and
partnered parents who are either
tnrtside the labour force or in low
paid employment . It is paid either to
one partner in a couple family,
usually the woman (Parenting
Pa)rnenr partnered-PPp) or to sole
parents (Parenting Payment single- ITS) a-ho are also mainly women
Income and assets tests apply both to
claimants, far ITS and PPp and to
their partners, for PPp . Like other
pension-based payments, Parenting
Paytnent single is indexed twice a
year to the Consumer Price Index
(CPD and bc-nchtnarked each year so
ilcrt it dcxs not fall Ix-low 25 per cent
of Malt- Total Average Wt-c-kly Earnings (NITAWP)- Parenting Paytnent
partnered is indexcd to C:PI only .
PPs recipients have access to a
Pensioner Ceoncc.ssions Card that
entitles tire cardholder to Commonwealth health concessions, including
reduced costs for medicines under
the Pharmaceutical Bcrx-fits scheme.
and a range of other concessions
available front state and local
Government authorities such as
reduced utilities, transport and
educational costs. PPp recipients
receive a llealtli (Care Card . All
recipients may be eligible for an
Education Erttry Payment of 5208 and
single recipients may he eligible for
an Employment Fairy Payment of
x104 (using figures Currcru at I July
mw, Additional assistance for Study
is available to PPs recipients through
the Pensioner Education supplement .
Al1SiRA'.'1A'S
HA C<CROcjND
RI PORT
Patenting Payment recipients are
encouraged and supported to reenter the labour market through the
Jobs, Education and /'raining (JET)
program . From September 2002,
parents with high-school aged
children will Ix" required to a(tend an
annual planning interview' with
Centrclink to develop a return to
work plan . 'These requirements to
plan for a return to work will be
extended to all recipients with school
age children front July 2003 . A
modest part-time activity requirement for parents with teenage
children will also be introduced (see
se tio)t 4.3 for niore detail) .
4 .2 Child Care
Child care has been an important
element of Federal Government
support for working families for
many years. The polio' and funding
for preschools . schools and some
occasional care centres have been
the primary responsibility of State
and Territory governments- A
detailed description of child car(.
policies and practices is in the
background report prepared for a
recent OECD Thematic Review of
Early Childhood Education and Care
(ECEC ).
Until 1990 there was an emphasis on
providing funding to non-profit child
car(* services to incrcmsc the nUMIWr
of child care places available . In
1990, as the number of children in
child care continued to increase, the
Government extended fee subsidies
to families using lot-profit services .
Shortly after this, a quality
improvement and accreditation
ON
FAN111Y
IRIiNDLY
F
0 ._
C
1
r S
system was introduced for long day
care centres .
During the 1990's the majority of the
,growth in child care was from forprofit child care services . Responding
to concerns about the distorting
effects of Ongoing subsidies to one
part of the child care industiy (that is,
m non-profit child care centres), tit(Govcrnnient removed operational
subsidies and moved to subsidising
families themselves through Child
Care Benefit (CCR)- From 19`)6 to
July 2W1 . Government assistance has
increased by over 21 per cent with
the introduction of CCB, nearly
double the increase in CPI. For-profit
child care services now make up a
significant pan of the industr%
According to the most reccrt data .
_3 per cent of children in ccntrebased long day care arc in private
for-prolit centres'`.
The trend to more private sector
involvement in providing services is
likely to continue, with new places
for family day car(, iFDC) and
outside school hours care (05FIC)
open to private operators- Changed
OSHC funding arrangements took
effect from April 1995 when
Operational Subsidy was replaced
with improved Child care Assistance .
Many families were able to access
Child care Assistance for the first
time as a result of this change .
Tit(- total budget allocation for child
care in 21101-02 is just under $1,4 billion.
Most recently, Go<'crnment attention
has shifted to the role child care has
in providing opportunities for
children's development, learning and
socialisation. 'Fit(- Government also
IS TAALIA'S BACKGA0"'ND AIP0RT
TABLE 7 : PROPORTIONS
ON
rAMIIY
IAtFNDi_Y
OF CHILDREN IN DIFFERENT TYPES OF CARE. JUNE
P01
C
f'
1999
Proportion of children I%)
Formal care only
14.0
Informal care only
Both formal and informal care
Children wn0 used nnrther formal
27 .7
9.50
rlof ~nfornial rare
Total
recognises the role of child care in
supporting parents and families
within the wider community.
Despite the significance of the
formal care sector, the largest
proportion of children are still cared
for by parents and by informal
arrangements_ informal care is the
most common torni of non-parental
care (see 7hble 7). used especially
hv part-time, casual and shift
workers' who need to access care
outside standard hours .
In 2000, the Federal Government
announced 7,7`70 new places in more
flexible child care arrangements,
particularly in hrnne care . The
initiative was designed to assist shift
workers. families working outside
standard hours, families with a sick
child and families in rural and
regional areas.
1188
100
1I y 1999, only 6 per cent of children
were reported to he in need of
additional care - ` Since 1996 there
has been an increase of 221 per cent
in support for outside school hours
care with places in these services
increasing from '1, 800 To around
230,000 in June 2001 .
In the 2001-02 Budget Illc
Arrslrvha»s Itbrilrlnk Togetber paclctgc
included SIh million over four vrars
to fund additional OSH( : places for
i,300 sch(xil age children and extra
financial help for families with child
care fees . The new child care places
ITecatne available from July 2001- By
providing; letter a((css to child care
and assistance with fees, families,
particularly single parents, will have
greater flexibility and more options
when they look for work or undertake training;.
Within the formal care sector . the
need to manage work responsibilities
is the major reason why children are
in care . Table 8 shows the
distribution of these children across
the range of formal care options.
Despite these increases, in some
locations there is still unmet demand
for OSHC, which is used almost
solely by working parents . (7f
families wanting more child care,
one third needed ( )SI IC.
AIIS data indicate a downward trend
in the unmet demand for formal
child care in Australia in the 1990.5 .
In I'ebruary 211112, families could earn
up to 529,8i7 a year and still be
eligible for the maximum rate of (VII
AUSIRALIA'S B .ACe6R0UN0 FI~0R1 0t, fAMIIY IRIEFIDLf P,0LICIE :
TABLE 8: CHILDREN IN FORMAL CHILD CARE FOR WORK-RELATED REASONS, 1999
Type of care
Children in child
care for work
related reasons
as a proportion
of all children
in child care (°"v)
Description
Long Day Care
centres:
community-based
private
84
83
For children under school agegenerally open for at least eight hours
a day, five days a week, 48 weeks of the
year. These may be run by private or
public operators, or by employers. Some
centres provide OSHC and vacation care
for a limited number of primary school
children .
Family Day Care:
89
For children aged 0 to-12-provided by
individuals in their own homes, who are
recruited, trained, and supported from
a central coordination unit . These units
receive an operational subsidy from the
Federal Government .
Before/after school
care :
98
Available to primary school children .
Vacation care :
93
Available to primary school children .
Occasionallother care :
50
For preschool age children, for short
periods of time on a regular or irregular
basis to allow parents to attend to
personal matters . Other care includes
for children in remote areas, most of
which operate in Indigenous
communities, mobile services, JET
creches in remote communities,
in-home care for children with special
needs or where standard forms of care
are not available .
twm- rwZ . 1 tiX)Gi+ms :jr_:MNGin" sm"4 :~.
About 38 l>cr cent of families receive
mastiinum CC13, a clear indication that
low- income families are not priced
out of the child care market in
Australia . The maximum weekly MB
rates were 5129 for one child, 5269 .6-i
for two children and S-t2C1 .86 for three
children" . About 13 per cent of
families receive ntinimtun CY:13. About
49 per cent of families receive part
CCB . Additional child care assistance
is availahle for children with special
ticeds and for children at risk of abuse
or neglect. \\ here a child is at risk of
abuse or neglect. child care services
can apply to Centrelink for Special
Child Care Benefit which covers the
tull cast of child care- -this can be
paid for up to 13 vvc "cks.
AJSTRALIA'S BACKGROUND
4 .3
REPORT
Support for Returning
to Work
helping people maintain their
workforce aum limcnt when they
have taken time out for family
reasons is incruasingly recognised as
a critical asIxxt of the social suplx>n
system . In this context, flexible
working arrangements, access to
part-time work ind employer
sponsored 'keep in toucfl' sclicnies
for employees on parental leave, are
important . The Federal Government
also provides support with specific
labcnir market programs .
Introduced in 1989. the IET program
aims to help participants to enter or
re-enter the workforce . It provides
structured assistance including a
'return to work plan', and
information, advice and referrals to
educational institutions . child care
services . labour market programs
and state territory or local services.
Participation is voluntary and does
nol attract additional payments,
although there may be assistance
with child care and training costs.
JET' is open I(> all those who receive
Parenting Payment, single and
partnered, Carer Payment, Vvidow H
Pension, Widow Allowance, Partner
Allowance and Special Benefit" .
The JIM* program has been operating
at full capacity for several years_ In
ISxl9-2000, there were around 61,000
newJET interviews, As vvcll, almost
56,000 participants were placed in
education and training courses and
over 28,1100 participants had earnings
from employment .
The Return to Work program was
launched in March 2000 . It is a
ON IAMIIY
FRIENDLY
POLICIES
voluntary. non-means-tested labour
market assistance program for
parents with school age children.
who have been out of the workforce
for two years or more because of
their unpaid caring responsibilities,
and who want paid employment of
15 hours or more a week . At
December 1000, there had been
2,3'3 entrants to tltc program . of
whom 3"1 per cent had gained
employment three montlt .s after
leaving the program (5 per cent full.
time and 29 per cent part-time)"
Through the Australians Working
7i;getherpackage, additional support
and incentives will provide opportunities for people on Parenting
Payment to pr(7l)are for return to
work, and to help them with services
to acquire or Improve their work
skills . Panunts will be able to access a
range of expanded training,
employment and support services,
including improved child care fee
assistance and more outside school
hours child care plac'cs.
Reasonable activity requirements for
parents receiving income support
will be introduced and will he
carefully designed to Like account of
each person's needs, capacities and
circumstances. For example, people
will be able to chextse between work
experience, community work, parttime work . study, training or a
specific job-readlne%s progrun .
From September -7002. people who
receive Parenting Payment and
whose youngest child is aged 12 to
15 will need to attend an annual
interview with a Centrelink Adviser.
From July 2003, people who receive
At! STRAti,A S AACK ,ROUND R ; ¬ 0RT ON
Parenting Payment whose youngest
child is aged 13 t() 15 will undertake
a modest level of pan lime activity of
around six hours c:r(-h week. Parents
will be reminded of their
requirements after six weeks and
Centrelink Personal Advisers will
review activities each three months .
Financial penalties for not meeting
these activity requirements will be
used only as a last resort . Froin july
2003 . all people who receive
Parenting Payment and whose"
youngest child is aged b to 15 years
will be required to attend annual
interviews at Centrelink . People who
are finding it difficult to meet
requirements will be offered
additional hell) and suplxr)rt.
A new Transition to Work program,
announced as part of .4u.stralians
Working 7ogelber, commences in
July 2002 . The new program will
assist people who haec been away
from the workforce for a long lime,
or have news' had paid jobs . It will
bring together the return to Work
program and pre-vocational training
elements of the current JFT program.
It will also provide assessntenr .
training and advice afxmt hc)w to get
into the job market . Transition to
Work will help people whether or
not they are receiving income
support. To be eligible, people must
be looking for paid employment and
planning to return to the workforce
after a lengthy absence. Transitkm to
Work will use existing funding of S39
million from the Return to Work
program and tlic pre-vocational
elements of gr
Prom July 2002, aadditional funding of
S62 million over f(x)r years will be
tA111LY
=PIEN91'r
P011CII S
provided to establish a new Personal
support Program-"' This will help
people ca) inccnne support payments
who have severe or multiple
personal obstacle;, to erilploynacnt,
such as homelessness, drug or
alcohol addiction, mental illnes, or
exposure to ck3tnc:.tic' violcncv . It will
assist around 45,(_)00 people each
year by 200+1-05-up from 15 .000
places in 2000-01,
4 .4 Family Support
The federal and state territory
governments provide a range of
relationship and parenting support
services . At the federal level these
include relationship support and
education . parcming support and
education, sc" rvic-c, to help rebuild
relationships between Imrcnts and
between parents 2nd children and:' or
adolescents and financial counselling.
Usually. the non government sector
is funded t(.) provide tl)eSV services .
Increasingly, relationship and parenting problems are recognised as
contributing to poor work performance_ However, there is potential for
itnprovenients in work perfortuance
if relationship difficulties can be
resolved early . There are strong
arguments for asnisring families to
build skills and to resoIva their issues
as such assistance can hell) reduce
negative social and economic 1low~0n
effects such as toss of employment .
marriage breakdown or financial
difficulties particularly associated
with being a sole par¢nt .
Programs are increasingly offering
and promoting their services through
workplaces so as to provide support
[IS IRALIA'5 BACKGROUND RE P0111 ON ; AtvlIIY rRIENOLY P01
for men vvho would not othern'ise
access then, A number of these are
funded under the Federal Governincmt's Men and Family Relationships
Initiative.
4.5 Community Support
The community support base has
ero,ded partly because of changes in
working time patterns, increases in
workforce mobility and high
workforce participation by women
(who traditionally formed a major
component of cunununity Volunteer
cflort) . As a result, there are often
weaker support networks available
for people cvlren they face personal
difficulties or %% oak problems (including the problem of finding work
when unemployed) .
Recent policy initiatives, particularly
the Federal Government's Stronger
Families and Communities Strategy .
aim to help reinvigorate local
c cnttmunities. The strategy includes a
range of initiatives to recognise and
encourage volunteering and the
value of community leadership, as
well as providing additional family
support through community identification and management of support
programs.
ts
support arrangements, including
those made privately, to assess the
child support payable and to collect
payments wlu-re requested . as well
as providing an information service
on child support matters,
1n 1999-?000, $1 .I billion cva+
transferred between Parents As chill
support is only one of the many
issues facing separated parents, tlw
agency has developed a range of
support products' and is working in
partnership with communities to
provide better integrated support
services. Of particular interest is the
work-based model developed u)
deliver support to separated parent ..
in the w'orkplac'e .
4 .7 Indigenous
Australians
4 .6 Child Support
In 1996 . Aboriginal and Turn-., Strait
Islander peoples accounted for 2 per
cent of Australia's population-^.
although they represented a much
higher proportion of the population
in many regions of Australia,
especially non-capital city, locations .
In the Northern Territory, for
example, the Indigenous population
made up one-quarter of the
population and ;accounted for nearly
Ilirce-quarters of the population in
centres of less than 2.000 people-
In Australia, a child's parents have a
responsibility to support the child
financially whether they are living
together or not The Australian Cliild
Support Scheme %%as established in
1988 and is currently administered by
the Child Support Agency within
FaCS . Its purpose is to provide a
central agency to register child
Research suggests that compared to
Wher Australian families . Indigenous
families are experiencing substantial
and multiple forms of economic
hardship' . Indigenous people tend
to live in larger households than
other Australians and have smaller
household incomes'. Compared to
other Australian households, Indig-
.
AUSTRr1LIA S BACKGROUND
R :PORT ON
CmotrS households are likely to have
more than one family, and they are
more likely to he tnulti-generational
with older people living with
younger people in extended
families .
Studies have found that Indigenous
Australians are just as likely to be in
work or to want to work as other
Australians, bur they are far more
likely to be discouraged from
looking for work . This research
highlights the 'difficulty in inc'rcsising
participation rates given the
feedback between the concentration
of unemployment in indigenous
families . . . and labour supply and
cuiplovment prospcc ts'"'. Other
research shows that tire monetary
incentive from entployrnent for many
Indigenous Australians to work is
low, given the low Icvel of income
the[ - can expect from paid work" .
Replacement rates" are highest for
those with partners and dependent
children
.'lliey are higher for women
than for menI aCS manages a number of projects
developed in cooperation will)
Centrelink to improve the accessibility and quality- of service to
Indigenous Atr trrlians"- for example,
in man\* Indigenous families,
parenting is provided by a wider
range of kin than the biological
parents, and it is unusual for a child
to remain permancruly with a
primary carer" , '1'he Statement of
(:are pilot scheme allowed F TB
recipients to redirect family
Allowance monies to others within
family groups .
FAMILY
R11 1 .1)-f
POLICIES
I'nder the (:ommunity Development
Frnploytnent Projects (CDEP)
scheme, Indigenous communities can
receive a grant of a similar sire to
their collective unemployment henclit
entitlement to undertake conmtunitvdefined work. Unemployed conrnrunily rnernbers can choose to
participate in the sdtcnle by working
part-time to receive their individual
unemployment entitlement'" CDEP
participants can qualihI for additional
payrncnt .s through Centreltnk,
including Rent Assistance, Health
Care Cards, and the t:DEP
participation supplement, which is
paid at tilt: s:mw rate as the \\ork for
the Dole' supplement
Under Austnalrans Working Together,
job outcomes for Indigenous people
participating in CDEP will be
impr(-)ved in areas with good job
opportunities- Since Fehrrtary 2002,
(A)IT organisations Dave been
funded to take on the role of
Indigenous l:mplovnrent Centres,
aeslstlng ill) to 10,000 p;jrlicipanls
make ill(- transition from CDFP work
experience to paid etnploytnew. The
Government is providing new
finding of up to 531 million over four
years, bringing total spending oil this
initiative to around $-18 million .
Indigenous Employment Centres
offer work experience, job search
support and access to training, and
provide support anti mentoring
assislantz to Indigenous jobscekers
outside CDEP. The centres also work
with local employers and lob
Network" members to find people
work and help them keep it.
All 5TRA1
a'~
3AGKGRGUNP HE flu RT ON rAMIIY FRI E'aft" PO LICIFS
The Aboriginal and 'tortes Strait
Islander
Commission, which
is
Australia's national policy making
and service delivery agency for
Indigenous I)e0ple, will work with
1110 rernOIC Tndigcrtous communities
to develop Connnunity Participation
Agreements . These agreements will
involve the community in identifying
prtetical ways people can contribute
to Ilicir families and communitics in
return for their income support .
4 .8
S111T111"i<1ry
Successive Australian governmcnrs
have placed emphasis on supporting
families, including in their engage-
ment in work . 'this is refleoed in long
standing policies such as child car(-,
income suplx)rt and a range of other
policies
and
Support
services .
Increasingly, a dynamic tocus is being
adopted which recognises the' paths;
people take Ihrough their life courses,
and the importance of maintaining
workforce attachment in periods out
of the workforce to care for children .
i;overnment policies in this area form
part of a complex sysa"tn and work is
onrinuing to improve Ilic system's
capacity to help families reconcile
work and tamily effectively .
t!JSTR .411tt i
B .\CK .~ R0UDID
HE'OH
or, tata~ir IRiEfit`t'; RoticiF
5 . Support for Families in the Workplace
'I lie Department of EmploN merit and
\\'orkplace Relations iDERR-which
replaced DE\VRSR aficr the 2001
federal election) is re..sponsiblc for
workplace
employment
and
relations, including promotion of
work-fancily balance . As well,
cmploycr associations, individual
employers, trade unions and
community organisations have
adopted policy cornaritirwrils arid
programs to assist workers with the
reconciliation of work and family
responsibilities As a consequence.
there has been progress in
introducing larnily friendly measures
into Australian workplaces .
U'Jotkplace Relalioril,-
:he role of Governments
policies to encourage family friendly
arrangements exist at both federal and
.state territory levels of government . :\I
the federal level, policy orientation is
enshrined in the Morkplace Relations
,"1 c1 t1XXl\\"ILA) .Anutntcrofspecialist
agcmic :s at both levels of government
plan, coordinate and implement work
and fcrnily strategies in the workplace
relations field. 'fhe Work and Family
Unit (V'F( .') in DEWR coas first
es(ablishcd in 1cXN) . as pan of a series of
initiatives following ratification of
Intemational labour Organisation MO)
Convention No. li(; on It orken with
Nanrilr Rts~xrrt.,ibiliticn. I kt" :1~fCxvulir L'
forgot w- trnentagmcicsroIxoxcihlefiw
rr em(" ttntl untilr iicra~. i
Federal and state! territory antidiscrimination agencies also directl?
and indirectly address work and
family issues . The federal Sex
Discrimination Commissioner, for
example, undertakes research, policy
and educational work designed to
promote greater equality between
rnen and women, In August 1998 the
Govenlment asked the Commissioner
to investigate pregnancy discrimination in the workplace and the
report of that inquiry is of Irrrticular
relevance"`, (See ~V gwwll-r r)fr)r a 1&1
gfjederal and statee4en"itory anti
dimerierrirstion kgislatlon heal comer
family or caring resimnsibitifle+ .)
Work and family issues arc also
addressed in part by the federal I'clual
Opportunity for Women in the
Workplace Agency (EO\X'A) . (.See
Appendix G' jor itrjbrntalion about
F()ifA's pteblic tttuttrerrre~;c aclir~ifies.)
During the 1990s . most governments
(including federal, state and territory
govertunenls) intrexlru cd initiatives ir1
the key areas of enrplop cr education
and information, recognition and
promotion of best practice across
industry . the provision of information
to workers. discrimination protection
for workers, and researching current
work-family issue" \inn' of these are
ongoing Is0CA/rpcnrii.VFC" :
,AU :TRAI-IA'S 6A(KGR0U14D
RE PO RI
focussed
and Non-government
strategies .
Organisations
Australian unions and employer bodies
arc organised along boilt federal and
statc:''territon' lines, with one rtatiomal
peak union Ixxiy and several national
organisations .
peak
employer
Increasingly, work and family issuers
were on the+c organisations' agendas
during the 199(1s.
1
IR'CNDLY
PO IIC
ES
equitable employment
It provi(le" s training .
resources and support for employers
on eliminating discrimmalion and the
implementation of diversity manage-
ruent strategies . including work and
family .
5,' 7.
Tad
Australian Council of
Unions (r,CTl11
As a peak body, the ACTL' seeks to
Employer Associations
A number of peak employer bodies
advice
on
equal
integrate
Citlploytllent opportunity' (.LEO),
including work and family- measures .
into their workplace relations advice
program. In yeptembur 2000 . the
Australian Chamber of Commerce
and industry (.ACCT:) Ilublished the
:7
.4C
!lest Pr'actic'e Paper No 7:
Encouraging
FAMILY
Australia. CEDE promotes business
Employer, Trade Union
5 .2
ON
Work
acrd famdv
1ierisauws in Australian TT'orlyrtaccs
It is part of a series in which ACCT
influence mininutm award conditions
through its submissions to the
Industrial Relations
( :onlmission !AIR(:) . ComnlUnilV
Australian
education and campaigning through
the media, as well as education work
with affiliated unions, have also IX'c'rr
important union strategies . A recent
policy cktt untent gives priority
to work and lamily balance" . These
policies arc aimed at improving the
ability of workcr:s to combine their
work and family responsibilities by :
'seeks to encourage best practice on
important labour relations issues' .
" sextrnng increases through bar)4auling
to paid leave entitlerncrtts, such as
include a discussion of work and
family measures introduced during
rostcrcd days off; craps on hours
Worked ; rosters that lake account of
fhev also lxrblish quarterly reports
on federal crxerptise agreerm "nts that
paid maternity leave, increased
personal carer's leave :in(] extra
that quarter.
family responsibilities ; and improved
rights for workers in devek)pitig and
The ACCT National Work and Family
Awards
are
facilitated
Commonwealth
by
Department
the
of
Employment and A'orkplacc Relations
l\lork and Family Unit), together
impleutenting rrtrstering; and reduced
standard working hours to 3(; per
week (at enterprise-level and in
appropriate industries) ; and
with tlrc (:ouncil for Equal Oppor-
irnprc» ing award standards for leave
A\IP . 1:stablished in 194 ; by ACCT
;end incre asing acx'c :ss to carers leave
!sr"e .Siktion >.3 .-5 fx "tntgl'" .
tunity in Frnployrncru T.td (CLOE)
(see 4pjvnehx E) and sponsored by
and
the
Business
Council
of
and part-tinge work, with test cases
on extending unpaid parental leave
:". US TRALIA'S
BACK6RpUNO RE
'O AT
5 .2.3 Non-government
Organisations
non-government
historically,
organisations Icsve played an
important role in raising public
awareness about workplace issues
for families in Australia, in patticttlar
in rckftion to work-related child care
Working Women's Centres in
Q>ueensland, New South Wales,
South .Australia, 'fasmania and the
Northern Territory and a national
neovorli of community legal venires''
are important in providing an
indepcnclem source of advice and
information to employees on work
and family entitlcsnents.
vuork am Fr;lllilu
in Workplace Relation
'Instruments'
'i,
asttri~s
The workplace relations system has
been important in workers access to
work and (:artily provisions in
Australia, providing a vehicle for
entitlements that in other C(usruries
are often delivered through
dedicated parental rights legislation
Aod,,or through social security .
There are work and family provisions
in the three main types of formal
industrial instruments- ;swards,"
collective enwrlnise agreements,",
and individual agreements" . In
practice there is considerable
interaction, with legislation and
:maids providing a basic set of
provisions extended by collective or
individual agreements . Ilie terms
and conditions of employment under
federal agreesnoncs must be at least
as good as the overall terms and
conditions that would apply under
ON
FA'dIL'i
=RIIAU_Y
I'CL'.
the relevant award Ialthough the
agreement may im,ease or decrease
individual tmard cniitlemenrs)
5 .3 .1 The Federal System of
Workplace Relations
Federal law- is the major regulator of
workplace relations arrangements for
employers and employees under
federal awards and agreettlents .
Since new federal workplace
relations legislation was introduced
in 1996, it may now be possible for
employees under State awards To
hank access to federal agreements .
.)
I . ei.l~l " ai l.+t~~lSlaflnn
Tire Workplace Kelathms .Ac/ 1996
(WRA) is the primary legislative
instrurncnl at federal level . One of its
principal objects is 'assisting
employees to balance their work and
family resportsibiliries effectively
Through the development of nuauttlly
beneficial work practices with
employers' (:;. ill)). A further aim is
'respecting and valuing the diversity
of the w'orkfor( c by helping to
prevent and eliminate discrimination', including oil the basis of
family responsibilities ;utd pregnancy
. The federal tribunal
.)
ts. iii)
established by the Act-the
Australian Trtdusirial Relations
Conunission-is also required to
take account of ILO Convention 156
(s. 93A) .
The Act includes provisions that are
designed to prevent and eliminate
discrisuinatory provisions in federal
awards and agreements oil a range of
grounds . including family responsibilities . It further pro,cribcs
USifiALIA'S
Eri :Ku30 u r, f, RFP0RI UN FAMIL` " FIEt1 iL'Y POLICIES
termination of employment for a set
of reasons including family
responsibilities and absence from
work during parental leave is .
17OCF(2)(f, fill . The ohic(ts Of some
state workplace relations Icgislaticnt
also rcter to work and family
considerations'" .
since the early 1990s, the focus of
laic federal workplace relations
system has moved away from a
centralised system to promoting
b ;irgaining and agreement snaking it
the Icvel of the workplace and the
individual . while retaining a salett
net of wages and conditions through
awards- [n addition, the WRA
legislates for some minimum
conditions, for example, an entidement to unpaid parental leave and
unpaid adoption (cave of 12 months
for perntancrtt employees who
have been with their employer for
12 months continuously- A priority of
the Federal Government has been to
change workplace culture by
promoting the advantages for
employers and employees of flexible
workplace prac'tic'es, which are
tailored to their particular needs.
5-3 .3 statuluty Provisions,
Award Entitlements and Test
C'l ;os
['tnploytnent conditions, including
parental leave and paid maternity
leave, ntay be derived from a
number of source's including federal
and state labour laws, industrial
awards and industrial agreements,
both federal and state_ historically,
the award system has been the main
vehicle through which many forms
of leave have been provided in
Australia- Through test cases run
before the AIRC, general standards in
tile federal jurisdiction have been
established that result in standard
clauses available I-or import into
federal awards on a case-by-case
basis. In some cases, legislation has
picked up or adapted Tile rest case
provision, thus creating wider
tot-crage ;tcr-,the %~<n-kIorcc .
parental leave-including
maternity, paternity and
adoption leave
()\rer the pa's 1%krr decades. the
existing parental leave provisions
columned ill federal awards have
avolved through a process of test
case decisions of the AIR<.lmprovcmerus in these provisions
were in response to social and
economic developments. 'hhe most
important test cases in relation to
parental Icave have bc(, Tl tile
nliacrrnry leave for women test case
in 1979, the adoption leave test case
in 1955 and iltc parental leave for
seen and women test case in 199(1.'In May 2001, an AIRC Full Bench
decision granted access to unpaid
parental Icave to federal awardcovcrcd casual employees cntploved
on a regular and systematic basis for
several periods of employment or on
a regular or systematic basis for an
ongoing period of cntploynient
during a period of at (cast 12 months.
and [with] a reasonable expectation
of on-going employment"-" ]*Ills
new provision will I>c inserted into
federal awards on application by the
award parties on an award I)%
award basis.
AliSTRALIA's PACKGRoufiD REPORT 04 fAMit" :R
The WKA provides that lwrtneinent
full-time and part-time employees
who have 12 r11ori111 .e continuous
service vvith Iltcir employer have a
minittutn) cniidcrnent to >2 weeks of
shared unpaid parental leave to care
for :1 new IW)rn child or following the
adoption of a child aged under five".
Parents are also entitled to tike one
week's unpaid parental leave
simultaneously at the time of birth .
Fmplovces taking parental leave
have a right to return to the position
they held prior to taking leave. or to
one similar in status .
Where paid maternity leave is
provided, it is generally provided
through c-errified agreemcnts . 'fhe
average duration of paid maternity.
Icaee provided through agreement
making is around six weeks ssith the
duration ranging from less than one
week on full pay in some agreements
to twelve weeks leave on full pay
followed by a further forte weeks at
sixty per cent of pay (see sv(-tion G-1
forfu)-lber details)
Paid maternity leave is a common
entitlement for women employed
permanently in life public sector, both
federal and State. While the durnion
of paid maternity leave varies across
Commonwealth, State and Territory
public sectors, mast public scr-ants
have an entitlement of bt-meen two
and twelve weeks paid maternity
leave !soesecliou 5-_i-yi.
Personal/carer's (family) leave
Carer's or family leave en .dtles
employees to take time off to care for
and support an inunediate family or
household member who is sick .
Entitlements to cards leave tn:n Ire-
~no_v Robe Es
contained in awards and,' or
workplace agreements- Thc: .standard
established by the federal Personal''
Cat'er's Leave 'lest Case decisions in
1991 and 1995 provides that
cinployces may use up to a mxxitnum
of five clays from their own personal
lconlbined sick and bereavement)
leave entitlement to care for a sick
family or household member.
Additional measures were also
introduced into awards that provide
greater flexibility-for example
.tllocving annual leave to be taken in
single cLtys for caring purposes"" .
In 2000 . DFWRSIS carried out a
survey of the top lull awards to
estimate the incidence of a number
of employment conditions. 'the 100
selected .+wards are a sample of
major aw",trds in the federal
jurisdiction and all provide the basis
for the conditions of employment for
large numbers of cmplovees . These
awards include public and private
sector av-ards, and single employer
and tnulti-emplovcr awards within an
industry . In October 2000 . it a"as
estimated that 75 per cent of the top
1(10 federal awards contained
personal' carer's Icavc provisions .
Family carer's leave is also one of
the most widespread fanuly friendly
provisions in federal agreements" .
Regular part-lime work
The availability of regular part-time
jobs with secure conditions is
important in helping families to
combine
work
and
family
part-time
responsibilities . Permanent
employment provides employees
with reasonably predictable work
patterns, continuity of employment
AUSTRALIA'S
ACKGR0UNU R :P0RT OF; FAMILY iRIIDIi?tY PULICIFS
and access to pro rata conditions
associated with permanent full-time
ctnploy" nrcnt (for example, paid
nnual leave and sick leave xttd
forms of leave to assist \corkers with
family responsibilities, such as
parental and caret's leave) .. . . . These
arrangements are able to reflect the
of
particular
circumstances
employees, including their work and
family responsibilities . Through the
WfUN . the Federal Government has
removed restrictions on regular parttime employment, including quotas
on the number of employees able to
undertake regular part-time work in
awards . and minimum or maxinucnt
weekly hours of work .
The \ARC is also required to ensure
that, \vherc appropriate, awards
provide for regular part-time
employment, bolls through award
reviews and in tic creation of new
awards . 1n \ocentber 2000 . some
75 per cent of the top 100 fcclcral
awards provided for regular parttime work . In One sixth of those
awards providing tl~r regular parttime work, the provision was
limited to those returning from
parental leave"'' .
5.3 .4
Provisions in Enterprise
(Collective] and Individual
Agretntents
Agreements can provide family
friendly working arrangements
additional to those availailc through
statutes or the award system Formal
collective agreements (federal and
state) currently cover some 35 per
cent of Australian employees, while a
Rather 1 .8 per cent are covered by
registered individual agrcctments"" .
While tire d;ua derived from analysis
of enterprise agreements are useful
indicators of the extent to which
enterprise level agreements are being
used as vehicles for fatnily friendly
measures in the workplace, sonic
caution needs to be exercised in
interpreting the data".
Twenty eight per cent of employees
covered by federal agreements had
access to regular part-time hours,
with provisions being most common
in the reudl industry ; the accommodation, cafes and restaurant
industry: and finance and insurance
. Overall, permservices industry"
anent part-lime employment is
widespread, being included in agreements covering close to ;i0 per cent
of agreement-covered crtnployees. It
is also a common award provision .
T$Irles 15 to 18 in Appendix F show
the incidence of selected work and
family provisions in collective and
individual agreements. The inclusion
of a number of family friendly
provisions in federal collective
agreements has increased since the
introduction of the Vf'RA .
Table 15 shows that overall, sonic
i2 per cent of federal agreements
certified in 2000 and 2001 contained
at least one family " friendly- provision
and these covered almost threequarters of emplovccs who were
subject to agrectncttts . This figure
rises to 80 per cent of agreements if
flexible hours provisions are included .
Table 16 shows that the most
prevalcrrtt work and family measures
in federal collective agreements for
2000 to 2001 are those providing
access to some form of (paid) leave
AtISIRAiiA'S RAC<6RUUND R-PORI ON FAMILY I41END0 PO LI(IrS
for caring purposes Family, carer's
leave provisions were included in
27 per cent of a;preements covering
59 per cent of employees under
agreements certified in 2000 and
2001 . Provisions enabling access to
other forms of leave for caring
purposes were found in 19 per cent
of agreements and reached -to per cent
of employees . Nearly one third of
employees were covered by an
agreement which contained paid
maternity leave provisions .
!able 17 show's the comparative extent
of work and family measures in
:wrectnents from 1997 to 2(x11 . As with
Table 1(i, the most prevalent are
measures dealing with some form of
caring leave (ranging from 24 to it) per
cent of a .grccrnents certifies! in each
year)- Similarly, access to part-tune
work is a widespread feature of fedccil
agreements which has steadily
increased over this periodWhile data available on Australian
\x'orkplacc Agreements (AWks) and
collective agreements cannot be
directly compared, it is clear front
Table 18 . that again provisions for
carer's and associated leave are among
the most frequent to be concred in
individual agreements . Twenty"-sip per
cent of employees under A\VAs had
provisions more generous than the
relevant award in respell to this type
of leave- Paid maternity and paternity
leave w vie available to I' per cent and
15 per cent re'slx "tiively of employees
covered by AWAs .
Figures for AW':Ls approved as at the
end of 1999 show that -2 per cent of
e "ntployees on AAAs had access to at
least one family friendly provision,
not including flexible hours . 'hhis
figure rises to 7 % per cent of these
employees when flexible working
hours arrangerncttts are included"" .
5 .3 5 Australian pubic Service
Ari .ingernents
The Australian Public: JerviceAct
1999, federal agreements and the
Australian Public Service Award set
out fit(- terms and conditions of
employment for federal public
service employees. These employ_
rneni conditions support work and
family balance, such as personal
leave, Imrr-time work and flexible.
working hours. Many certified
agreements and M\As extend and
tailor employment conditions to
meet the needs of individual
agencies and employees . The
alalernill' Leave (Commonua"altb
Em(rlovuvs)Act1973, which applies
to the Australian Public Service and
other Federal Government agencies,
provich's for twelve wccks paid
maternity Icave for federal public
service ernplo~ ces_
5 .4 SUnirnary
The material presented in this
chapter illustrates that governments,
employers, employees and their
associations, and c-ommunity
organisations all have a role to play
in providing support for families in
the workplace . It describes the
range of formal mechanisms by
which work and family measures are
key
cklivcred, and details NOTHC of the
provisions and employee cmitlentents
in the federal jurisdiction in particularThe incidence of these provisions in
'.tIi1RAIIA
S
iACKGRG"U ND
RE FORT
workplace agreements is monitored
by the federal goycrnmcnt and data
showing the significant range and
spread of work and family measures
in these agreements has been
discussed here 77te nest chapter gc~s
on to prcscnr evidence of tltc
incidence and distribution of family
friendly working arrangernenis
more broadly .
ON FAMILY FRIENDLY POL,
AUZTRAI IA's 3ACKGR0UNn ?-F0U 01, FAMILY =?1 fNDIY ?0LICIE5
6 . Work and Family Workplace Practices
Formal
provisions
in
awards,
agreements and legislation offer
important leave entitlctnenis and
underpin flexible workplaces that
help with balancing work and family
lift:. 1k :nclits may also be availahle as
a result of custom and practice .
company
polii - y.
or
individual
negotiation .'" Access may depend
on employer good-will, o supportive
workplace culture and fo-avourable
business operating conditions . this
chapter summarises the available
data on Australian workplace
praetit-cs that assist employees with
family responsibilities .
1
that private sector organisations arc
increasingly keeping in touch with
employees who are on parental
leave, wlletlicr paid or unpaid .
Since 1994, the number of
organisations keeping employees
on parental
leave informed
of
vacancies or other opportunities
increased by 5? per cent "' .
In 2000, 38 per c-crir of female
employees responding to an AIIS
survey indicated that they' were
entitled to paid maternity leave-this
included ;1 per cent of full-time
employees and 21 per cent of part-
6.1 Leave provisions
G, 1
Reports From the EUv'A indicate
linac employees. Industries with iltc
highest incidence of paid maternity
leave included govertuncnt adniin-
pail] P,aental L-ave
1995 A\\ IR S found greater
provision of paid parental leave than
The
istration and defence (:689"0 and
communication services (594.:,, which
indicated
by formal workplace
agreement analysis, though with
significant differences by sector .
is predominantly public sector),
lable 9 shows its frequency in the
cafes and restaurants industries had the
AWIRS workplaces with more than
. l'lm average
2(7 employees!'
lowest incidence of paid maternity
amount of paid leave provided w'as
leave a1 only 13 per cent . follow'cd by
the retail industry (20Th) and cultural
four weeks .
and recreational services I28"ii) .
finance & insurance (59`7' .) and
education (5''>o . The accortutioxlation,
TABLE 9: PAID MATERNITY AND PAID PATERNITY LEAVE BY SECTOR, 1995
Sector
Paid maternity leave
% of workplaces
Paid paternity leave
as of workplaces
Private
23
13
Public
59
lblalnumhre ..r41d<aass;m.'tud -I, .kiGmrt r: .1'14716, < ht1(a .4lureh.rul e; . of 11)9 -r p 716
46
31
AUSTRALIA'S
BACKGROUND REPORT ON FAMILY
Occuparions with the highest
incidence of paid maternity leave
include managers & administrators
(65%) and professionals (54"/0) .
lease. while others indicated other
arrangements including unpaid
leave"'. Women were more likely
than omen to rely on unpaid leave as
revealed by lath .A\\ IRS data and in
data from llic AIIS survey"
Additionally, 18 .1 per cent of female
employees do not know w1willer or
not they are entitled to paid
maternity leave."I
6.1 " 2 PersonaliCarer's
(Family) Leave
The AWIRS found that most
employees said that there was at
least one form of leave usually
available to care for a sick family
memlx-r (.sit, 7i7ble 10) .
The AWIItS was conducted prior to
the federal Personal,'<:arers Leave
'Pest (vase decision and the incidence
of paid family leave has increased
since then- Other data indicate that
access to paid family leave may be
considerably higher in large
organisations . For example, in 1997,
:approximately 72 per cent of
organisations reporting to the E0VGA
offered paid leave to employees for
the care of ckpendams"J.
FRIENDLY POIIC'1L!
6.2 Flexible Working
Arrangements
*file use of flexible working time
arrangements (lmJadly defined) is the
most common resource for Australian
workers who are combining work
.s over half
)
and family ohlip itions " .
of families with cmc or more children
aged under 12 use family friendly
provisions to enable than to care for
their children"', This figure has stayed
roughly constant during the 1990s .
'fable 11 chows the most common
provisions or work arrangements that
are used to assist with caring for
children.
Similar findings emerged from the
New South V'ales ABS survey which
shosced that some 70 per cent of
those who used a specific work
arrangement to enable them to care
for any dependant used either flextime, tiulc-off in lieu, an informal
arrangement or part-time work"',
Surveys asking employees what
leave they had actually taken to care
for a sick famik menlher, show
approximately tat third using paid
TABLE 10: HOW EMPLOYEES TAKE TIME OFF TO LOOK AFTER SICK FAMILY MEMBERS. 1995
Type of leave
% of employees
% of females
Own
Annual
paid
leave
sick leave
Leave
without
pay
Timein-lieu
Paid
family
leave
Can't Other
take
time off
43
43
36
16
15
4
7
41
37
44
15
16
4
8
Rrx,Ja,kxi : AJf rnq,Lna+!+m vm~~l rea. x"xh XJxr nwrv rmJ,hn~xx.Y- JS,JKM
~,mrAl7a51445E9rpbfm5xnmofrWvr d-IJmMrhrR. 1f9471,.1J7
AUSTRALIA'S
RACi6R0UN0
RI-PORI
ON
[AM IIY
fRIEN-)L'f
POII_'ILS
TABLE 11 : THE TYPE OF WORK ARRANGEMENT USED TO CARE FOR CHILDREN, 1999
Type of work arrangement used
of mothers
in families with an
employed mother
of fathers
in families with an
employed father
Permanent part-time work
Flexible working hours
Work at home
Shiftwork
Job-sharing
Other
Total families where mother or
father used work arrangements
36.8
33 .7
15.4
18-0
3.9
0.5
1~ ,- : .uss
8.5
1 .9
7 .4
5 .3
3.5
1-2
67 .8
26 .7
xwfin;Ll ;."rl~. r"nn~,TNm" .9i
\\'orking part-time is a contnion wav
in which women in particular
accommodate work and family, but
its incidence varies across industries.
In a recent survey, one quarter of
employees (and only 12.5 per cent of
male employees) said it would he
easy to arrange to work fewer
hours"'.
6 .2 .1 Flexibility in Startlnn
and Fmishing Times
The AVv'IRS found that about half of
ernployces in workplaces said Ihcy
had 'sonic' or 'a lot' of control over
starting or finishing hours''- . 'this is
consistent with more recent survey
data that found that just over half of
employees said it was easy to vary
start and finish hours""_
Control over start and finish times
caan c losely related to occupation
and industry, and significantly more
full tittle than part-time, and slightly
more male than female employcca
said tlrcy had a lot of control"", In
2000 . flexibility in working litric was
the n1casure nominated most by
employees who wanted additional
arrangcrnenLs ro help with raring'='.
tvrrangelt)ent;
In 2n(H), some 12 per rent of carers in
the New South Wales workforce
reported using home based work to
facilitate their caring arrangernenLs"` .
In 1997. one-fifth of employees said
that they could work at home if thcv
needed to . A smaller number of
employees reported having o regular
arrangement with their employers to
work from horns. In 2000, around 6
Ix-r cent of workers (typically higher
paid and high status employees) had
this arrangcmcru . working on
average one-third of their total hours
at homy" .
AIDS surveys on parcnlal caring
arrangements in families cvirh at
least One child aged under 12 found
that mothers' reliance on working
from )tome as a child care siralcgy
had decreased over III(- 1990s (from
"115TRAI IA'S 3ACK(:ROUND REPORT ON FAMILY FRIENDLY POLICIES
18 per cent to I percant).Over the
same time, men's use of work
from home had risen slightly to
- .-i per cent'' .
6 .3 Family Care
Facilities at Work
In Australian workplaces, there is a
growing recognition of the
importance of family care facilities .
Although these are increasingly
being considered in workplace
negotiations . workplace provision of
family Car( . facilities is still less
widespread than flexible working
arrangements . A recent .survey in
\K'estern Australia asked employed
family carers about (lit- provision of
child care assistance, special
arrangements when family members
are sick or during school holidays,
and a family room in the workplace.
It found that more than two thirds
(68`?:J of respondents were satisfied
cc ith their employer's support for
their family responsibilities, with a
smaller proportion ( i0'%) being
satisfied with the family care
arrangements at their workplace .
were
Amongst
those
who
dissatisfied . the majority said this was
because there was limited or no
care)-"
provision
for child
1 Wnlkpi
-ice Child Care
Tit contrast to the widespread
availability of working time
flexibility and leave provisions, it
appears that few workplaces
provide child care or offer child care
assistance . In 19')5, only 3 per cent
of larger workplaces Ics,vering some
S per cent of workers in workplaces
with over 20 employees) reported
. In 2oOo.
having child c -;ire on site'-'
there were fi5 employer-sponsored
child care services . As well, employers
had reserved over 600 thold care
places for their employees in cenlrebased or family day care services''.
6 .3-` Ar_f t,s- ic .--, Te~tl)hon,tiorne three-quarters of employees
surveyed for A\\'IRI, believed they
could have access to a phone at
work for family reasons . Those in
locv"cr level occupations and part
time workers had least access'-"' .
6.4 Trends Amongst
Leading Organisations
in AUstralia
Characteristics likely to be associated
with family friendly practices include
industry sector, workplace size, and
the degree to which human resource
practices are Formalised . Public sector
and very large private sector
workplace" (cvitII over 500 employees)
tend to be more family friendly" than
smaller private sector workplaces .
In the private sector, organisations
with more structured management
practices and' or high status
occupations are more likely to have
family friendly provisions . Organ
isaaons with an explicit gender equity
commitment (as indicated by (lu"
existence of a \\ Often LEO) policy) are
also more likely to be family
.Leading organisations are
friendly'`
recognised :end promoted in the
annual \attannl work and Family
Aw;r ads r sn " .4;;nc,ut lti L'l.
AUSTRALIA'S
BACi;6PCJND
RE 'ORT
6 .5 Summary
The data presented in this chapter
trom the Australian Workplace
industrial Relations Survey and the
ABS demonstrates that workplaces
are more flexible and family
responsive in practice than analysis
of the formal regulatory system might
suggest . Considered together with
the material presented in the
previous chapter, it also highlights
IIIC itnpurtance of flexible working
arrangements for employees seeking
to combine work with caring
msponsibil it ics.
Over tile last two decades, measures
to assist workers with family
responsibilities have become a more
pronounced feature of the Australian
workplace relations system- There
has been steady progress through
workplace relations law, agreement
making and the award safety not in
providing access to family -related
forms of Ica%c . Access to unpaid
parental leave for an increasing
proportion of tllc workforce has
been important in encouraging
%vornen's retention in the workforce
after their children are born .
The entitlement to paid leave for
caring purposes, again increasingly
widespread across the workforce, is
also significant. Surveys indicate that
carers leave is well used and highly
valued .
The federal legislative framework
and the range (if government
activities to prornow family friendly
workplaces arc conuibuting to the
creation of a workplace environment
that supports employees with family
1a
ON
FAMILY
ERIENDL'I
PQ] ICI :S
responsibilities . It is now' widely
acknowledged that hevond certain
minimum conditions, approaches
need to be tailored ac=cording to dtc
needs and charaocristics of ;in
organisation and its workforce . Onesize does not fit all. either in terms of
the range of employee needs and
Itow these change over the life-cycle,
or in terms of the operational
imperatives of different industries and
workplaces . 'there is no doubt that
work arrangements that assist
employee, with family responsibilities
arc increasingly on the bargaining
agcnc4r in hoth rile public and private
sectors. For many organisations, there
is a compelling 'business case' .
Offering family friendly practices can
be an effcct9vc means of attracting
and retaining stall', especially in a tight
labour market, and lead to improved
morale and higher productivity. There
is ample scope in tire agreementmaking process for employers and
employees to make mutually benefictal arrangements at the workplace,
whether this is clone on a collective or
an individual basis.
AUSTRAIIA'S 3AC<CROLND RIPORI
ON FAMILY FRIENDLY POLICIES
7 . Appendices
Appendix A: Work and Family Life Consortium
Membership and Steering Committee
Membership
afemlh-rs of //?(- Work and 1-imidY Life
cortsor7irrm.-
?uci :~l I'nlia c Iwsearch Centre ai tltc
L'njXci~ity nl \uw South \'ales
fir Michael Bannan
Dr Bruce Bradbury
Ms,lenny Chalmers
Nls Jacqueline Tudball
Dr Denise VYompson
>ustr21imt (.entre for Industrial
1<elaOous Rcsear~h and TrainirrlNis Caroline Alcorso
Nis Betty Arsovka
his Kristin Van Barneveld
,tIs Nierilyn Bryc -c
Dr lohn Buchannan
~I :rcIu:Iric I'niN er " ity
Associate Professor Graenic Rn"ell
t -nip cicir, - o d ( I mctisland
1)r Gillian Whitchousc
Members of rbe Sl e vriotg Corm rrt irree:
Ms Elizalxth Broderick,
Partner, Blake Dawson \'aldron
\is I1clinda Curtis . Corporate
Divcrsay Manager, AA1P 3r Marriage
and Family Council Repwscntative
Ms ltobyn Mchay, Iaecutive Director,
Department of Fanny and Community
Services
\ir Mark Iasprizza . Assistant
Secretary, Workplace Relations
Implementation . Department of
Employment and A'orkplacc
Relations
Assistant Secretan'.
I)r Bruce Smith,
Department of the Printc Minister
and ( :abinet
Appendix I., : i ede : an
E~t'J~'C'1'~1f11Ci1 : !''
yflle.`?{S
G `anlihes
TABLE 12: AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL GOVERNMENT PAYMENTS TO FAMILIES BY TYPE, ELIGIBILITY, RATES, CONDITIONS AND FREQUENCY AS AT 30 JULY 2001
Payment type
Eligibility
Rate
Assets Test
Income Test
Income Unit
Income Period
Family Tax
Benefit A
(FTB Part A)
Dependants <21yrs ;
dependant, full-time
students aged 21 to
24 not receiving YA
or similar payment .
Base/it: Dependant
<18yrs-$39.48;
Dependant 18 to
24yrs-553,06 .
None
$29,857 per annum
to receive
maximum rate .
Assistance reduces
by 30 cents for each
dollar of additional
income until base is
reached .
Family
Fortnightly OR
financial year OR
via tax system .
Family Tax
Benefit B
(FTS Part 8)
Dependants < 16yrs ;
Dependant full-time
student <18yrs not
receiving YA or
similar ; Single
income families;
Double earning
families with
second income
threshold-
Max/ft : Under
13yrs-$122 .92;
13-15yrs-S 155 .82;
16 to 17yrs-$39 .48 ;
18 ; 24yrs- 53 .06,
Max/ft : Dependant
<5yrs-$105 .56 ;
Dependant 5 to
15yrs (and 16 to
18yrs if full-time
student-$73 .64,
Maintenance
Income Test also
applies.
None
Primary earner/sole
parent-none;
Secondary earner $1,679 per annum
to receive
maximum rate .
Assistance reduces
by 30 cents for each
dollar of additional
income .
c
Secondary Earner
Fortnightly OR
financial year OR
via tax system .
Pay menttype
Eligibility
Rate
Assets Test
IncomeTest
Income Unit
Income Period
Maternity
Allowance
Parents/guardians
within 13wks of
birth/care .
$780
None
As for FTB Part A.
Family
Lump sum
through
Centrelink .
Maternity
Immunisation
Allowance
Fully immunised
babies, 18 months
to 2yrs; Eligible for
FTB(A) or paid
Maternity
Allowance,
S208
None
As for FTB Part A .
Family
Lump sum
through
Centrelink
Double Orphan
Pension
Child <16yrs, with
both parents
deceased ;
Payable in limited
circumstances-for
example, where
one parent is dead
and the other is in
prison .
Ft : S41 .10
None
None
Personal
(dependant)
Fortnightly
Carer
Allowance
Daily carer of a
person with
disability (can
receive more than
one allowance if
two or more people
are cared for) .
Base/ft: $82
None
None
Personal (carer)
Fortnightly
Payment type
Eligibility
Rate
Assets Test
Income Test
Income Unit
Income Period
Large Family
Supplement
Families with four
children or more .
For 4'^ and
subsequent
children-$8.40tft .
None
As for FTB Part A.
Family
Fortnightly OR
yearly
Multiple Birth
Allowance
Families with 3 or
more children born
in same birth <6yrs.
Triplets-$102 76/ft;
Quadruplets or
more--$137,207ft .
None
As for FTB Part A.
Family
Fortnightly OR
yearly; Payments
cease when
children turn 6.
Carer Payment
Carer of a
'profoundly
disabled child' or
one disabled child
or an adult and that
adult's dependent
child .#
Same as Age
Pension, Singles$402 .00; Couples$335 .50 each,
Carer-As for
Parenting Payment
(PP) ; Person being
cared for-as for PP
if beneficiary,
otherwise Special
Care Receiver test .
If recipient is not
receiving a pension
s/he must meet the
Special Care
Receiver income
and assets tests
with limits applying
to adult and child
recipients .
Personal
Fortnightly
0
Payment type
Eligibility
Rate
Assets Test
Income Test
Income Unit
Income Period
Parenting
Payment (PP) and
supplementary
payments
Qualifying
dependant <t6yrs
(rules apply as to
which parent is the
recipient in the
situation of shared
care)
For PP, Sole
parents-5402 .00!
ft ; Partnered
parents- $332 .Mft
(5386-90 it couple is
separated due to
illness, respite care
or imprisonment);
Pharmaceutical
Allowance: Sole
parents-55 .80; For
eligible partnered
parents-52 .90
each (or 55 .80 each
if couple is
separated due to
illness, respite care
or imprisonment).
Education Entry
Payment-5208
Employment Entry
Payment-5104 .
For PP! Sole parent
homeowners<5133,250 to
4269,250;
Partnered parents
(combined assets)
homeowners$189,500 to
$415,500; Sole
parents, nonhomeownersS228,750 to
1364,750; Partnered
parents (combined
assets), nonhomeownersS285,000 to
$511,000,
For PP : Sole
parents, 1 child$130 .60 to
St 150.10rft ; Sole
parents, >1 child$24-60th: extra for
each additional
child: Partnered
parents, when
partner not a
pensioner and
claimant's income
<S62/ft and
partner's income
<S546/ft .
For PP : Personal
(sole parent or one
parent of a couple).
PP-fortnightly
Pharmaceutical
Allowance
Education Entry
Payment and
Employment Entry
Payment-lump
sums through
Centrelink .
Payment type
Eligibility
Rent Assistance
FTB Part A
claimants receiving
>base rate and
paying private rent .
Rate
Sole parent, 1 tot
children- max of $103 .04 if
renVft >$240.01;
no payment if
rent/ft <S102.62;
3+ children : max
of $116 .48 i f
renVft >$257.93;
no payment if
rent/ft.
<5102.62 couple,
1 to 2 children
* max of $103 .94 if
renVft >$289.29;
" no payment if
rent/ft <$151,90 ;
" 3+ children : max
of $116 .48 if
rent/ft >5307 .21 ;
" no payment if
rent/ft <$151 .90.
Assets Test
Income Test
Income Unit
Income Period
None
As for FTB Part
ANo payment if
rent/ft is less than
$98 .70 for sole
parents; $146 .02 for
couple parents.
Personal (claimant)
Fortnightly
i.
c
u
0
r
n
"'r"~11 ! ~.'!
'f~r
Iff
Payment type
Eligibility
Rate
Assets Test
Income Test
income unit
Income Period
Health Care Card
Claiming rnax FTB
Part A by
instalment,
Newstart
Allowance, YA, PP,
Carer Allowance,
Austudy, low
income earner.
Entitles claimants to
reduced cost
medicines and a
number of other
services ; No max
use conditions .
None
As for FTB Part A.
Personal/ family
Card issued every
6 months .
Child Care
Benefit (CCB)
Using approved/
registered child
care ; Children born
on or after i
January 1996 must
be immunised, be
on a catch-up
schedule or be
exempt ; Parental
work/study/t raining
test for registered
care or >20hrs/wk
per child approved
care,
Approved care for
non-school child in
50 hours of
care(max rate
payable for incomes
under $29,857 per
annum or families
on income
support)-S129/wk ;
Registered care for
non-school child in
50 his of work
related care $21 .50/
wk;CCB is limited to
20 hours of care per
week for non-workrelated care .
None
Approved careminimum rate
payable
" over $85,653
per annum for
1 child ;
" $92,904 for
2 children ;
" $105,554 for
3 children, plus
517,618 for each
additional child
Personal
(dependant)
Estimated each
year; Benefit for
approved care paid
via subsidies to
parents or directly
to service providers;
Benefit for
registered care paid
to parent on
presentation of
receipts .
nQQQ ~ .
,}y .
.r u
VAN
a
0
V
"
:.f. Iiti"~U~fi'I" :. I
:-~UT`MY~SHl+
'~l1iL'
~ilii 1n"^
Payment type
Eligibility
Rate
Assets Test
Income Test
Income Unit
Income Period
Newstart
Allowance
Unemployed,
21yrs+, capable of
work .
Newstart
Allowance: Sole
parent- 5386 .901ft .
Partnered parent
$322 .80
Education Entry
Payment-5208
Employment Entry
Payment-$104 .
As for PP
Sole parent$62 to $63757
Partnered parent$62 to $546 .00.
Personal (claimant)
Income Unit .
Fortnightly
Resident of remote
region within
special tax zone
determined by
Australian Taxation
Office (visit
wwwato .govau ).
Single$18.20 ;Couple$15.60 + $7 .301
dependant.
None
Full-time student
16 to 24yrs;<21,
unemployed ;
Independent,
15yrs+ and above
school leaving age.
Max/ft: Sole
parent-$380.10;
Partnered parentS318 .60.
Remote Area
Allowance
Youth Allowance
(YA)
6s?1RrAi
r
c-
n
w
x
A
0
c
None
Family
Fortnightly
c
a>
0
0
z
Ia
Family assets test<$424,750;
Independent-as
for PP.
Partnered parent :
" students $236 to
S660A3/ft;
" unemployed$62 to $525 .86/ft
Sole parents" students $236 to
$785/ft;
" unemployed$62 to $611/ft.
Personal (claimant)
Fortnightly
s
Payment type
Eligibility
Rate
Assets Test
Income Test
Income Unit
Income Period
Abstudy
Student of
Max/ft : Sole
As for YA
As for YA
Personal (claimant)
Fortnightly
Strait Islander
" <i6yrs-$380.10
As for PP
<$236 until
Personal (claimant)
Fortnightly
Aboriginal/Torres
descent.
parent-
" 16 to 20$380 .10;
" 21+-$386,90;
Partnered parent, 16 yrs-5318 .60;
" 16 to 20yrs$318 .60;
" 21+-5322 .80.
Austudy
Student 25yrs+
Maxlk Sole
parent-$380.10;
Partnered parent-
payments are
affected .
6318 .60.
.e .u
"\V8evr
r : t . : <.def C
r'
u«rautf~Lr~" rribrter.I 1,moefY ~(lrifm71 2 , 01 1, "r J,,CJOIP(M ;S«r ;r7liw7reiirJrett" JU7«4
hpr9" IrJ . . . . ..<'!.b:fGrrrYIXruc7nlrAf7.eco :rfrNrnten ;PSVrrl4rrme«f .
r us «re cur nv« rrt ;O PO e 2tKJJ . W'her<' «u rSeror m :e { 1, hJ, Jx!Ynuo«.c «re nrkermf «s aasxf mNJ fAr" jxn . .real roavav7 afu<d1 zem .
fai " 'J1rrga<grL'lrvvr
(b)
1', . . ... .
AliSTRA114'S HACKC3RQIIND
RF'4R-
ON
FAMILY
FRIEND.+
I'ULICIE ."
Appendix C : Government Agencies with
Responsibilities for Work and Family Issues
TABLE 13 : GOVERNMENT AGENCIES WITH PARTICULAR RESPONSIBILITY FOR WORK AND
FAMILY ISSUES IN AUSTRALIA-AT THE FEDERAL AND STATEITERRITORY LEVELS
Federal Government
Work and Family Unit
Department of Employment and Workplace Relations
www. workplace . go v au
New South Wales
The Women's Equity Bureau
Department of Industrial Relations
wwwdir.nswgovau
wwwdirnswgovaulrightslwomen
Victoria
Effective Organisations Unit
Industrial Relations Victoria
wwwfrvvic.gov.a u
Queensland
Work and Family Unit
Department of Industrial Relations
dirgld.govau
www.irgld.govaulwork&familylindex .htm
South Australia
Workplace Relations Policy Division
Department of Administrative and Information Services
www dais .s a. govaul
wwwericsa .govaulpolicylwork_familyhtm
Tasmania
Women Tasmania
Department of Premier and Cabinet
www, women. tas. gov. a u
western Australia
The Family and Children's Policy Office
Ministry of Family and Children's Services
wwwdoplar wa.govau
www doplarwa.go v aulsearchlindex.htm
www. familyone . wa .govau
Australian Capital Territory
Chief Minister's Department
Australian Capital Territory Government
wwwact.govaulcmd
Northern Territory
Office of the Commissioner for Public Employment
Northern Territory Government
wwwnt.govaulocpel
;,IISIRAIIA'S 3ACKGROi1ND REPORT ON
IAtdILY " RIENDIY PD_ ~. E
Appendix D: Anti-discrimination Legislation
TABLE 14 : ANTI-DISCRIMINATION LEGISLATION THAT COVERS FAMILY RESPONSIBILITIES
Jurisdiction
Legislation
Areas covered
Federal
Sex Discrimination
Act 1984
Family responsibilities
(termination of
employment only)
1994
New South
Wales
Anti-Discrimination
Act 1977
Responsibilities as a carer
2001
Victoria
Equal Opportunity
Act 1995
Status as a parent or carer
1995
Queensland
Anti-Discrimination
Act 1991
Parental status
1992
Western
Australia
Equal Opportunity
Act 1984
Family responsibilities and
family status
1992
Australian
Capital
Territory
Discrimination Act
1991
Status as a parent or carer
1991
Northern
Territory
Anti-Discrimination
Act 1991
Parenthood
1992
Tasmania
Anti-Discrimination
Parental status, family
responsibilities
1998
Act 1998
Date most
recent
amendment
introduced
AU
stitAIia's
8ACKGR0UND RI'art
oN
fAMI LV
Fe EN)IY v0LICrE5
Appendix E: Government Work and Family
Public Awareness Activities
Federal and state' territory ,gocernnients have run extensive public
awareness activities to proinow work
and family issues to both employers
and entploycc .s and the benefits of
tarnily friendly workplaces . This
promotional work includes research
and publications, information sharing
forums-such as workshops and
conferences, and using the Internet .
Deliartment of Family and
conununity Services
A literature review prepared pry
Graeme Russell and Lyndy Bowman
as a background paper for the
National Families Strategy .
trrt ir .iacs .gnu .uu,'interrteU
faccirtlerrtet .
iisfabotrrfctc i "prograrn s t
/amities-Itesenrc-bPa/rt"ta .btm
1`antllt'errulIt( , Ik- IbeF,Imdt' ."
I'erNlicclits . thii , 2rh01
A report of research commissioned
front the Australian Institute of
Family studies by FaC.S and the
.Marriage and Family Council to
explore children's views of their
parents' Nvorking.
u iett ,fitc s.got-wla''i nternet ,
'
/acsintei-net-rrsJ jaorilt ; ,
familf-and n orkhtnt
)trurt,Qe"r Famaics and t:orntuunities
s't attc;t{l' I
vt hs ~bvefs
A series of facts sheets are available
that provide information about:
the Strategy ;
what makes families and communities
strong ;
Ixttrn0Ship approaches to commultiR"
protects ;
engaging multicultural Collittionities:
targeted help for indigenous coniniunities; and Strategy initiatives.
Information on case studies that
showcase the many innovative and
effective community-based ideas
which can address local social and
economic problems is also provided .
A fact sheet on hovv to apply for
funding; is available and details of
protects that ha\'e ])Cell approved for
funding under the Strategy in each
state and Territory can also he
accessed via this silt :
rr .'rt-u'Jacs .got' .cut
Department of Employment and
Workplace Relations
rt eru . « virtiblucea ;toz . art
Rclmr- t on .-igreentent making in
Attstrt+iia under tire tt°orkplace
Relations Acl . 1998 and 1999
A biennial report on developments
in enterprise bargaining with
particular emphasis oft file effects
on \%-omen, part-time employees,
people from non-English backgrounds and young people . It
reports on the incidence of family
friendly provisions in agreements .
A-STRALIA'S BACKGROUND REPORT ON FAMILY FR :NDLY >OLICIF5
;u'1" aradlamili R."conr(cKit
Contains fifteen information sheets
that provide basic information on a
range of work and family is ..sues,
including caring for older people,
relocation, breastfeeding, teleworking, issues for older Nvorkers,
and rile presence of children and
other dependants . The kit is available
free and is widely distributed
through conferences, workshops,
other information sharing events and
via tile deparlrncrit's web site.
It
It u4, nitr) ],,loth),Rua~!n,-r-rI~!,k'r
A set of practical booklets containing
more information than that contained
in the Resource Kit. guides aimed At
policy rnaker:s and 1111111311 resource
managers in employer organisations .
The guides provide advice on
developing family friendly policies,
best prJCrice case studies and
Australian and international research .
Tit(- folder And or the guides are for
sale. Subjects covered are:
" ICnl;of(tce(itnileloif'iufaudlvul :ifa'
Provides advice oil issues to consider
in developing policies and initiatives
to help workers combine work and
family respcn .sibilitics.
" Gm(lc' to
lvalklll(ll
Flrirr
c
(arc lssraw
ll7
the
Deals with developing policies and
initiatives to help worker combine
eating responsibilities for older funity
members Nith work .
" Rrf kamou and Fultah(,:: A Glnde D,
I'(tnldi,,/rlerlef' Rrlcrcfilioals
is erased on A study of relocation
policies and practices in Australian
workplaces and contains case studies
of workplaces that have introduced
family friendly measures as part of
their relocation policy and pra(tices.
Grade to (.innbrniRE; Brcctstferldo)lk
Rlicl tvi)lk
Provides low-cost options to help
employers and breastfccding women
negotiate workplace practices to
support breastfeeling once women
return to work after parental leave.
!-teat !'p ((t ice- It brk (r n, d Fn » ! il r
Penis guide lists National \\ork and
Fann1v Award winners and finalists
since 19913. It suronaarises each
organisations kev stnrcturrl features
and family friendly measures. Also
contains A list of family friendly
provisions in federal agreements .
(Jade f, , Ti"Ic fl,lkir ;r<
Provides information oil developing
and intplefnerning tele-working
Arrangements .
G:rrde In Pori-'lirln , ltolk (out
. )oh-Shurill"'
Provides information cm developing
and iriplcnrchtting pan-tune wink and
job-sharing.
Cuide to Ftwlturtitt,Q it'(')* (olrl
Fowl) P%.di(ics
Provides managers and supervi>in's
with essential information to conduce
effective evaluations of work and
family stnrwgies .
Fcdelii, In(btstri(V Relnlintcs ulid
Let!irl(7lr(%u Frtrlnelowi I lTi>rl,,
l711d 1"timilf Pra,JK'(tit~c
An introduction to the VfRA, which
outlines the federal workplace
relation, frannework, canphasising its
work mid family aspects . Includes
details of slate and territory legislation
" lirtl:1lr Ro,ulas . (:i'lk"ll-j'l! (rud
(J7l" cr
1h'j)Ohl(MI-~ Ill the ItiN'kfrl(I( :e
1)iscusses issues relating to
establishing faintly roonns, including
STRALIA S AACKGR0
Nrl R--PORT 0'd FADAIIY tRIENDLY P0 i ICiiS
a 'how-to' guide. benefits and legal
issues that can arise from bringing
dclx-ndants into the workplace.
" Gtode lo lswrc~fiv-U1der 11 orkos
Provides information on work' life
issues affecting older workers and
suggests policies and initiatives to
oddness these, including car- studies
of aoliruucs that hate introduced
initlatnrc, Icn' older worker,
well as al cYtnfcrcnccs, workshops . and
other i tforniation sharing events and is
available on the dcl tanntcTtts welt site .
1S,danctn2 tba" 7ill in -'!)U/
A pamphlet that outlines the initial
findings from the nationwide study
of retail workplace practices . The
stud) was conducted jointly by the
\\'FU, EOWA and the Australian
Retail Assocknion . Launched in Alav
2001, the pamphlet was widely
A free publication aimed at small
businesses (less than 20 employees)
to raise awareness of family friendly
options and the benefits for bout
employers and employees . The guide
recognises lhal small employers arc
unlikely to employ human resources
specialists and cttnseduently work
and family measures- that suit this
-sector trust be low-cost, practical and
simple to implement
and 7ttruill' AtrWrzl " 1 i!ux?: Us
Rmdrlel
Ifirrk
1'he first of this series was published
in 2000 to showcase National \\'ork
and Family Award winners and
finalists. (For more igJormation about
the awarcLe, sec '7Ses1 Practice IV'ork
and Family 7nitialiue;' and 'AtrsIrcrl(ctn C'bambercf Commerce and
/ndasir-1 rValional Work and Family
dtlards' below). This free booklet is
distributed and is part of an ongoing
project designed to improve work
and family practices in the retail
sector. The full report vvas published
in February 2011'2_
R ark andFanxllpISibIin,~ralxbo
Published on the DE\\'R's web site,
this bibliography lists Australian and
international publications on work
and family issues, which focus
largely on the implementation of
work and family policies in
workplace's. Last updated in 2000,
some major research is also included
on the site .
It ork and Famdv titatc of Play 1 ?17$
A statistical artd cjualitative analysis
of progress in the spread of family
friendly provisions in Australian
workplaces .
with
emphasis
federal workplace relations.
LtalanrRl'easgcofirr~ t ( 11 c'rk
on
distributed at the end of the awards
presentation and is also available
Aimed
u'srA±crrr( l"untih - -\euslalter
includes facilities and arrangements
front the Department .
'I he Work and Family Unit IWPI.)
publishes a free newsletter thnr times a
Year. It i> distributed to 2 .100 addressees
on the work and tamely mailing list, as
at
both
employers
and
employees to raise awareness of
issues for brcastfeeding women,
for brcasifeeding breaks and flexible
work practices. The publication was
a joint project between the Urtivcrsit~
of Adelaide . South Australian
AUSTRAItA,'S 3ACKCROUND
RE ?ORT
Employers' Chmnhcr of' Commerce
and Industry, the ACTC-, the (then)
federal Department of Health and
Aged ( :are, \\ FL I and the Nursing
Mothers' Association of Australia .
Published in 2000, 21,000 copies
were widely circulated .
:\aliorttr! It ork and FwnilY An ards
'the ACCI National Work and Family
AkNarcls are supported by the Federal
Government as a means of promoting
best practice in family friendly
arrangements in Australian workplaces . The Awards have been an
annual event since 1992 .
fire awards are facilitated by tfte
Department of Employment and
workplace Relations and the Council
of Equal Opportunity in Employment
Ltd (CEOF Ltd) and arc sponsored by
AMY Ltd and ACC1 . Award winners
and finalists are promoted through
three DEW publications--the Work
uud hamily Xetrsletrer, the Finalist s
the Best f'twcllce" Guide
"
The Aa ards are also promoted
through the media and the DE\\'R
Booklet and
cvcb site and prcnide case studies for
other WI-L! publications . The CEOE
Ltd and the EO\WA also prorTIQW The
award winners. The Afiniswr for
Ftnployment and Workplace Relations
officiates at the annual presentation
held to announce the award winners
and finalists . This event is always
w'cll attended, A conference is held
in cx>njunction with the awards every
secotId year .
ON
FAMILY tHItNDLY POLICIES
Wvh Site
The WFU maintains several pages on
the DEWR web site . These: are used
to promote general issues around
work and fanulv, the National Work
and Family Awards, and WFt' pub-
lications, events and projects- In
February 2001 . visits to the, work and
hrnfly pages averaged 1'11 'hits' per
clay . The above publications can he
fount) at : :cttYO .uerkplace .gov.au
4ustralum Mor*uu lPamtlr
L?i"crrs<km Li.ct
An e-mall discussion list managed by
Wet', which includes around 200
subscribers .
including
human
resources professionals, researchers,
consultants and academics. The list is
used to distribute surnmanes of
media reports on work and family .
publicise work and tamily events and
request%share information on policy
dcvclopmen and intplernenuttionu r>r,(>and/it milv?s'rtett'r~got' .crrr
Equal Opportunity for Women in
the Workphwe Agency (EOWA)
Tire 1:0\\':1 administers the
Equal
Clpfror'tt4Wty for. Women in the
It'orkplacedcl 1999and educates
and assists organisations to achieve
EEO for women.
IV cir
The EOWA maintains a web site
about the organisation and how- to
stake and report on Workplace
PLum The site also includes useful
guides and case studies for developing LEO policies . Some of these
include features relating to work and
family . utctu.csttragotcau
AUSTRALIA'S 8ACKGIt0UNL% REPORT ON PAPAILY TRIINU_Y POLICIES
office of the Employment
Advocate (oE.A,)
IhNC' 1n frcylt
/n~nl I aI)iilt'rnentllN
lfor(rjrhn'r",c I21N .)tl t
A publication aimed at informing
employers ;rnd employees about
how to use AWAs as a means for
introducing innovative working
arrangements, including family
friendly provisions,
If 0) :11( .
I'he OLA has a web site that includes
information for employers and
employees on the process for
making .4\\As . The wch site also
includes sample clauses and
information promoting family
friendly clauses.
7['it'tt' .nl'ft . "4ri2' .t7tG'Li11{~a'
LinIsTitle FdntiltYnarullrTCiniphu:as.Eltnl
The Australian Institute of Family
Studies (AIFS)
AIFS i, Aunnalfa'~ national centre for
research and information on families
and is located within the Family and
Commumty Services Portfolio-'1 -he
Institute researches issues that affect
family stability and well being and
plays a key role in the development
of family policy and informed debate
in Australia . Its research program
falls into three streams : Children and
Parenting : Family and Marriage ; and
Family and Society . Work and family
has long been a focus of research for
the Institute in particular areas such
as parental Icave, work related child
care, flexible working hours and
tamfy friendly workplaces . Copies of
a wide range" of publications are
available from the AIFS library via
the interlibrarv loan s(-r\ ice, More
information about the AIFS and its
activities can Ix, found on rl-icii web
FITe at a'IclcalYS .r-rrg au
Human Rights and Equal
Opportunity Commission
(HREo(:)
Pw;,na!,1," md I'rr,rlla,arr , 1cp-)'~)
Report on the results of the national
inquiry into pregnancy and work in
the context of' disci inunation. The
inquiry was set up by the federal
Attorney-General and conducted by
the Sex Discrimination Unit in the
I11(EOC in 1998 and 1999. With ili
recomriiencknior,, the report anal):ses
the results of a wide range of
subnussions and discussions held as
part of the inquiry.
t,itidcahnc~ i 20111 i
Recommendation 2 in the Pregnant
and Productive report was to
develop a set of guidelines for
employers on managing pregnancy
in workplaces . Tlic guidelines are
free from the HRFO(: and can be
downloaded from their web site at
wirit-humarlr-f;~hlc
"~c}t".au
,
L'rc llllni .- t
llarnb 1lealitles
Two sets of case studies on
discrimination Complaints That were
settled before they reached a formal
hearing in the commission . The case
studies ;tint to educate employers in
particular on their responsibilities
under the various anti discrimination
laws. Some of the case studies refer to
family-related discrimination issues .
Al1SIRAL A'S 3A(KGRO~6D RFPORI ON " AMILY FRIENDLY POL
Statelterritory governments
It rn'k a nd Fair d l' (hodclxa,k t 20o I )
Published by the New South Wales
Government for small business
employers.
llrrfr or-02000)
Published by the New South Wales
Government to provide information
on the management of pregnant
employers- The publication explains
the rights and responsibilities of
employers and employees.
alarrrruirr,s; r:iirrul; Xealu,rrcrhililrri
ulull'uid Fntlnlr~aruerll lOtN), VS'1l`
Conducted by the ABS on behalf of
the New South Wales Government
ISrndn"s.c cs licrlhlinu " i 2i x x 1
Published
by the
Victorian
Government, an analysis of a
qualitative research project on the
availability of family friendly
practices in Victorian enterprises, and
the issues women and men face
when using the practices.
11Sari" erred Funnih . lArf mf13oti~
Itur1d512(1W7
A Queensland Government kit aimed
at both employers and employees to
raise awareness of balancing work
and family responsibilities .
l`7uo"rrskrml_1001 %%orkaralTiaw :Ir
-Itrarrla Pn~frler !/thetrill rrers
Part of a series of case studies of
each award winner from the 21101
Work and Family Awards in
Queensland.
Family Police lkv0elrmenl Retc+an'h
(2(9)11
Survey results published by the
Qucensland Government from a
survey of Queensland households to
find out the attitudes of families in
relation to working life issues and
attitudes to families generally .
Balrarrbttr tl`olA! urld cisrirrn
ReSl)rntSihlltlle, ilr lilcUlanlal I90'7)
Conducted by the AAS <n behalf of
the Tasmanian Government
l2rmilvOn "
A brand name and logo introduced
by the Western Australian Govern
ment as a marketing tool for
companies that demonstrate genuine
commitment to family friendly work
practices, or whose customer
services cater for familiesL7rn"vrlslarrd S1ink and Fanrilr
Awards
In 2001, the Queensland Govern
ment introduced its own work and
family awards to recognise
employers who have bcst practice
family friendly workplaces and to
acknowledge organisations that
contribute to the developlncrit of
work and family practices in other
organisations.
Tfonrarrian I7eyxtrrmew ofh1vallb
and 1licnlarr ticrr irrs
Introduced a number of activities to
help individuals reconcile work and
family . including a work and family
policy, and guidelines for breastfeeding at work and programs for
suplxrrring families and children.
AUSTRAIIA'S BACKGROUND
RI ~CjRf ON
-RICND .Y
lA111LY
POLICIES
Appendix F : Work and Family Provisions in
Certified Agreements
TABLE 15 : MULTIPLE FAMILY FRIENDLY PROVISIONS, FEDERAL CERTIFIED AGREEMENTS
2000 AND 2001
Certified agreements with
family friendly
provisions "'
No .
of Provisions
Number
Percent
of agreements
Certified agreements with
family friendly provisions
and flexible working hours
Number
16
#
2
15
#
3
14
#
#
8
13
13
Percent
of agreements
"
'
27
12
1
11
12
10
11
`
24
"
8
67
*
200
1
7
106
288
6
159
1
1
2
3
5
336
2
454
3
4
592
4
722
5
3
892
7
1 155
10
2 270
9
38
69
162
413
'
1
1
8
17
2
1 348
1
2 244
16
5 079
37
Total
5 792
42
10903
80
w .Jf.. . . . .
a, rlrrrxtk, " aw'n', . t
"'e :lrt l~
ksrnt ;xrid/xdrnmlY
Jiv[aWrr;jorrzUts.nr :(mulJinnifriP:7!'e', .a," na:rJur.PtldjwrHraibvnv,/xrhl ....
." hsr.^, u "." r4.. Iamiir rcy.m>ibflales, nm1 r hrtri :nn" .
.
b "ar.Y" i rtd ad'-'Wn katr . /rvrn tune unit. r"b th"muX. E-
rhrIhsibkLnur<j~nua.>ruunmMl tilt-,nvdpi>aremake!prom'.rimerVinllanrof~(lWvord:mnmhoraptu0trsrtr, . boars atrrygv" r! r rrv a>r ctn+ukvljrn.d~ umrJrnase:llwtrrs./4:rMk " atoreJ/nvb lime"./krln+u" ~lourrn. >a" ynvmr4 Mnn> rfnrdt.Lroond,cidwIrenrafmtl'rr/r , w4la,midi14)nlifng>x<nmfofna>rt'!'eddgN'y(l
mr ~ .lgnmnarlsnerr~n4darnatlrnurrr~/llJumilo/Hamd1,1 "Vrtvlsurru
adi ' Xrpcvmw Gs mMrn o. i jrr tart
STRALIA " 5 BACKGROUND REPORT ON FAMILY IRIENDIY POL!c =5
TABLE 16 : WORK AND FAMILY PROVISIONS IN FEDERAL CERTIFIED AGREEMENTS, 20002001 AVERAGE
Provision
Family-related leave
Fartiilylcarers leave
Access to other leave for caring purposes
Paid family leave
Unpaid family leave
Paid maternity/primary carer's leave
Paid paternity/secondary carer's leave
Paid adoption leave
Extended unpaid parental leave
Access to single days annual leave
Flexible annual leave
48/52 career break
All purpose paid leave
Unlimited sick leave
Assistance with children
Child care provisions
Other family-friendly provisions
Part time svork'°
Regular part-time work'*
Job sharing
Family responsibilities clause
Home based work
Per cent of
agreements
Per cent of
employees covered
27
19
3
59
40
7
4
2
2
13
6
15
23
32
16
14
6
23
10
3
3
1
17
9
2
1
7
25
67
3
17
7
3
28
16
1
10
son, 1)IATR. Nur4p&7ca :knr "nu"rtir Ik7c7MUe
V,ar
l'/tln-(Iln('Vrrlt nlr"OIDl711f\Jl7-IfnnvT(Olul..X"nPnV"mux, KL'R"Y101'(47Ir-0InrItvrF
bIM" uuL~Hn; hop"
lu and'i)I'P,l1M" ns ihu1,rvl"qu:jx2 r~gulrmly "MIStd,ri19l MI ."
f`ISM,ICUIIrN(IM'nl
AU5TRAIIA'S
R .AC{GROUND
R1PORI Or, FAMILY FRIEN71Y POI ICI E 5
TABLE 17 : WORK AND FAMILY PROVISIONS IN FEDERAL CERTIFIED AGREEMENTS .
1997-2001
(as a % of agreements certified in each year)
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
Family/carers leave
30
27
29
24
30
Paid maternity leave
4
10
9
6
7
Paid paternity leave
2
3
2
3
5
Paid adoption leave
2
1
1
2
3
2
1
#
1
1
3
2
2
3
16
20
24
23
27
2
2
2
2
3
1
1
Provision
Extended unpaid
parental leave
48152 career break
Part-time
work A^
Job sharing
2
2
1
1
Child care
2
1
tt
1
1
Family responsibilities
2
3
4
4
3
7007
6161
6876
6672
Working from home
5122
Total
coWip: L+GUk
Ui,r(pdnrrlts;rtvunnns f V: :nla,u "
TABLE 18 : WORK AND FAMILY PROVISIONS IN AWAs, 1998-99 AVERAGE'
Provision
Family-related leave
Sick/personal/carer's leave'
Paid maternity leave
Paid paternity leave
% of employers
% of employees
26
4
4
Extended unpaid parental leave
17
15
4
Working-time flexibility
Rostered days off
Employee choice over distribution of hours
Start and finish times not set by agreement
'-
Number covered
3
14
14
81,932
h . ln< r,+,uai ¢" rrynmvf m umurtlprotvza~rc~
c. Lhms mw," vrilahh "
so,m,
IN:WAtiSE'UG17rMrr .T.drlrztS .S .ii6undJ,rtrJrnlrrr,5nm .In..indierrUUrAjBntr :(¢nvamvs
SiVVmyr:<! ~nneWnu Rini(due ."Igrt+rvnene fu±nrrch fn~'i+rnvWon .SNA+r,
:llrmnhK~m+zr
AJSIIIALIA'S 3ACKG40~,ND
REPORT
ON
Fr
AN1I_Y
fR
ENDL!'
PO LICIf S
8 . Glossary
ABS
Australian Bureau of Statistics
ACC1
Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry
ACIRRT
Australian Centre for Industrial Relations Research and Training
ACTH'
Australian Council of Trade Unions
AI LC:S
Australian Family Life Course Study
Alb's
Australian lnstiluIC of Family SttrdiCS
MRC
Australian Industrial Relation ., Commission
AWA
Australian Workplace Agreement
AA'IRS
Australian Workplace and Industrial Relations Survey
CC1s
Child Care Benefit
CDEP
Community Development Employment Projects
CPI
Consumer Price Index
DAIS
Department of Administrative and Information Services
1)EWRSB
Department of Employment, Workplace Relations and Small
lsusiness (Fcdcral )
DE\VR
Depanment of Employment and Workplace Relations (Federal)
DI>lA
Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs (Federal),
EEO
Equal Employment Opportunity
EO\\'A
Equal Oppommity for Women in the Workplace Agency
Facs
Deparunern of Family and Community Services (Nederal)
FAQ
Family Assistance Office
FCPO
Family and Children's Policy Office
FIX.
Family Day Care
1"fB
Pantilv'l'ax Benefit
1 LREOC
Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission
II .()
International Labour Organi>arion
)ET'
lobs . Education and'Training
LDC
Long Day tare
(South Australia)
ALSTRALIA'S RAC <GROUND R":PORT ON FAMILY FRIENDLY PO LICIE°.
MTAWE
Male Total Average Weekly Earnings
OEA
Office of Employment Advocate
0EC1)
Organisation for Economic Cooperation and C)eveloprncni
C)SI Ic
Outside school hours care
PPP
Parenting Payment (partnered)
PPS
Parenting Pavmcrrt (:single)
SPRC
Social Policy Research Centre
\t' El'
Work and Eamih' Unit
WRA
IV brizp/ucc Rclullmzs Act 1996
1:A
Youth Allowance
AOSTRAIIA'S 9ACKGRO-NO REPORt
ON tAMILY FRIENDLY POI IC, ES
Endnotes
MISS moan
Ale moan
AMS 1990
AK, 7wlc . p. A
.Slkllb, wi 4th a Auguu. urq,IdlliAhed data
Ails
K,rr x Puymumcn
Alts ~Mld
Ale molh
MIS Emld
Ale Std
0ECD mnl Tu .r .". ft "WrAlan aafiwke dkway
caa"ribic wn, fl.. o( adir, veiD cam. lti
pm.ich,l .0 . Iurylr.4,h rcbw rot 0fff1' .
drfurkn a the wurklng .rW lw qulnYxc In alntlanng
11. Inwm, hocc etiu611(1, 11 ." orm n,,, the cmij.i n
;,oppuhluvl Aged IS to (H In lb, ma .d uus wpn.
hwe,r., if ., Ads detmnlon ld ll,e w,ukutg Agc
Pq,uWin-,ua.Yl. trc ewalan p,>fndaeian .gnl la Yd
TI. de411(bon benRn,4t~i .w 6 my
nsvsv. A. Palc,ppLf 56101 rn{iw",n+ ., ryv",OM
rain .i,ce Irw PY1Pk Wd 6A w .m+a
m*)fcd
aun~n;i ;nt In,rvry,pfYWl wth the pmYifuan raA
pnw.lnl .d,nc 41".10 the 1Ifl:r) mlnmun . 11 . Alf>
vghlcrtr,l 11 .1 the a'a." .mRy adloalcnl lx,nk ilulwal rite
w:1s6361,, 11ra k. I.i~md509perrm k. w,MUa1
,
n caltndar,ss .M).
1191+-w.)nl
oNa) NAq. p ,
si"Hm~ p~ are pales Hn do na
011% 21t)(101
lire,;l .y 1994
1)r"I ."ndcru ctuhlnr, wh.l,, Al, 1dk6cn aged uncle, 15
arxkhilAim Aacd IS In 19 m1m., ing w?.«Y n, agrd IS
,u 2I 3nendlng A Ienl .,ry 1)NII1aNX1 f.JI.linIC .
nvne .icr d. W
mold IM~,1.asu i~ wnttl
emINrIcdnnoditem : ".-1 . ." " - , ".7:, n " . .
1,f"arWpr a Ins, ~a.e "(~hjpev 3).
0~1n9 .ZWI .p 3-9
Iwe m
d*- b:un nihaw,nadlak
01'LV A". p 5
An, 'JAVA
I. . .. . . .,npcf A Lloyd 19% ar .d SkIk.Wid 19'91
AILS IYSYA, p. 5
Ak lx~ld 1'1956 . p 59
IiIntiwi,, 199o . in 16
Akfk ..dd 11411 dnwcd dw th,, .w 101st.y A.ylm chdlt
,%,s mxb itnl,ortant yll.le to the lwnicgnuou rdly 10
mdhen Own u 111. aomtw rd .11ild,rn.
M.IN.1.IId 2im1, p I')
%1, IN
19"A p 46
All. 1 W,9b
Ads lyasb
~N LAM
c'lulmull 11 31, L00n . 1, .,A3
Clulnm . a a1, m61' 1, Y
rakrna. 1~ . Cited m 1111 .1, n.l Famdy Lima Mn')
Vrw,4nu a ~l
Nark, 3411, pp. 015649
GICn A WAla Iw9
VAAL,Al 1I cdrle, 1W5, pp 60 . n7
4tczc, A %41m I,IVV
'IhdV7asunr ", wa.uvwluchdb: r-. . . . . .u . .i . ~i ~~~
the IA . 1997 and IVY' wlKtx wen" 4..141,4101 q. me
Ale
the Alas' 1911' P*A N~ aT~ is was ennAKwd
cxclua,efv m n1. SSyd~ 4via" IN .~ t.M
%Awcq~ .hw ad,e tw o 44:9411 mm j, h w
We white fin' .11 n ddkmm .1 rurn and ofW1 arcAS,
ddcrcncra I wmn nlcurpaan mate" m, " , .yllphk,
Liming if., 1 .mulahra to prlnla" w,rking age rcmuem
life codmnd ...g ,11 .91. rd Imlif, alntalk ., Lid sillier
AM 1971 Stunt- Amh,t,~.0wI .molcmcar~W,A
u. Wk ~aathe r" of dmn.1e, Luu CVsrrhr,
Ih,n Ilw audc' dwofv rile idi. . .Rc5 cxprm.e,l . pmvn,ln .A 1kc 1XVULmtnl in 1999, d. doree n.,e
per 10,W .A .vunnill numcd pnjA, wa L'.
J9111R 19?J, p . 'J,S, J,wa axlttt Unn,alrr ~n dr FalalA "
lea- A" 19WI 11. 4S MW Aft 7011(11
mccl mk1199t. p . SS
Ak(k .okl 1995, pp 5:-51
ABS norm
Mug) 1902 1, 30
Ails NOW
Flguns hn M n I V-7" waTC" ,A.alnnl In ., . Alts 1941', 7564 "
Lahoar Ann v AuHridkr NI#nrlrrt( cum,nury 11,66 k,
Imo . 4,1 M, 6AN.u IM npumx hr Ma, lalul wem
.Nam" ftvn, Alts 3.1111 tol,DU, ~, A,ulmha
lSaYMrla.vy Cl V Wt 9. 'Am dw O~ 1, .n, t..'n
rw) rc51-6mo a W.., knc" dab by O)c AlK ImK
0.~.c two doe,
A1k5 Ntmf
Amt Lad
kits AKW
Alts ZAIO
Norchcxl r, A, 19T, p. !W
Ali NOW
see far e,a~. AM lv,A6. p N
AIS.. 1999,
AM matt
,~Mmt Win, Ilo- A.n11J1.
7l,r .4'1,11 pnlpcn .n,A male fl,k porcro athe WI4ItC
I.r,4aY Llf CIVr,aN1A .i/M:A &YkNS, a,11m ... .,
.1 ..an~a m dw In! ,1.e,a Y4' maMn
4rivaaahnctavnavlAwkdfivndasarulLa , i . . .
~vaemc0nui,ulanntnwduAnmnf*f~ '.
I',e sul, y
.eLticau
In 1995. the .A.,ImILln ftkokpfacc IndaIrul 0
tin,cy IA%Ik51 . .rvry,d 1,0
.1 workpb, will, D0,w
nlom cnwp4ee..
Mn<hc,d e, ~', IV9r, p . 55 "
u
(AA A Wk nn 19r. p JS
7M pacep.n aplor,5 dmm the face ,Id kerle lie
Ivrav5 )pa 1 lm lklw m low wale than mAa.a 0
AUSTRALIA'S BACKCROUNO REPOt" ON FAMILY FRIENDLY POLICIES
1*x,ph" F. n,wni . :, Prrfuln n,i, iYkt~ di fan d1+9 hns+W
xJc pin:l, ll:rcr m m,In,LUU I +prrlulbJuy' fur duhln" n
and Icss clpplm,mily kn,r,pilc
AK, 1'sttd. p+2. -,ee asst, V.nxlenlknicf " 1W1" p . I li.
AUSMdklnr Wrrkery, T!xrrl,rr, A turcnicnt M MMAters
,1r1stonc & Abi"n, Mav :rKd h. 3
ce"U'Llnk Is a goyrmrtlrnl a;pr ..y dr"Illenn a =PC of
,el..c,- on khalf of Cnmmonw,mllh :uxl Mat: and
Trnar.p go,Cfninela dupnm,"n:, us use .A .ouahan
fn ar.uuu,q . Cuntidutk s msrnr"n In 6ulr. munl lxagak.
lan,ilie, ru cIAI F;ranw, I,1 "nllr k.Axyl fix arid:
.7, t.
IN lir lilt) .H,bil.ix:. Jinc rs Ir . . .u1
.)' ptodu,cfs- an,I . anmg pcoplc.
.
pun
Ind'Wruna, I.e,lucs. And people fn,", 'It,rrx 1dturla
and lingui,li, hxkprfAmdA
Wtutrloul d0II
i mn " hak.. (; . .dc so Clumnartruse .161 .
P:p,nrN,. 20101
1\llitr4ml XNIO . p 1
PjCD 1977
hohbt lark " I ..,,i Mill bell IW9 p. 14
Am 1179d
IM staMlani hrn,df ease in Fclh~rc :A)2 war S2 ;N hr
. chHds,n and 93 A"l sort III,,
,in, ch4d . fl20 fin Ill
chldmn The midi ...... rahr per Itch WA,+i L-r"N, hx
one chill. B) ccnl, l, a Iwo dricl cn and if .3u fl,r Ihrrr
dlddrcn to ttYllmukm III the rctrtl+elq high, on.l, uI
uflng pin-umn,!!a', a paa-unw xladmg Is "W, lrn aldc
In bruit . .. uxo~¢ tee, Ilun a hours of cnc" lies- week .
li,rpnttng /hry,ne" za W orm Is, a,u¢ pc,,pk wads ,"il .lrrd,
iruucularly Iow to<un~ sanitises, hp pnwid~n,q :, ,
hlelhllderU ~IXIIC: C#n , lgl,r,enf u ? paymrnl Inn
lasers who- bsTausa" .d IIIr ,iawl4 of tMrt .wnmr, n4e,
xv w Woe m suppcm Ilx" nwrilv. uuruph toll pmioF.nkn
su the arlkforce ItUfiuo H Aa in 1, a p,kynhnt to rearm".
As :Ak,luarc I.,vcl of Inc .'re I ., "-,IA,, older wlduw~ wl .,
'it . ." i yuallly fir Pannnng P,yn.nt ham lauted mums
and love has the rimmcul gqxnI Id their Fxianersttu, paymI Is peab:,lly Iwing plnacd out. wl'bnr
.tMN,mxes.;uns an aAxilulr kid rti uwomc frr ull6"r
wlmxn wno bcconc wxk,stnl, dh . :rccd or scltmnrvl
tllef u, idc tid who knV ne n, :nv wrkKac capcrkna-,
Rrrtmr .UdNrunce n utk-~nkd v, ins nkl. akyuatc uu2xm
krc pngde WPaip :zurwn to finiinH rrulirq nxnt txraasc
Ii 41wir Inrkns 1NUCd p,,ni, gnlkm 'It tire w.Ikjure
axllylxl :nrisuulfrofpeupk) .room....tutu.:au pen:
$xr1,Jfk,uyia I NI ".dr "clsntnk't" Iaelulil,kpaplcIn
x-rerr fin:mrai nm: due ua CAltmntMurs nN,i..e dau
control.
flf.Wk90 M
'III., finding :, a.diti,nlal to the fonlinu. ..x G.nnwnn"
Sun pcnt pngrnrirln-IUstring n 59? nuMlxl
Me DNNI
[)Ay & amill, 199;
vnnh & Dal,' 1996
Ilumrt & Grin IV49
Ibkl P 19
Hunter & Mill, I9!Py
thevvUo e,,sInk" the rAtroornttux, .nrfcuhIn
knad l when ,nu x wok to nct men[dr when h1 aarek,
tjC, wK,, Is N2
m:th .A DAIl 1971;
It. . . ..., & D:J, lAtf, stow Itvl rrplecrmrnl rwlrk, ni n
,kfln .,d~uiAlll IwIwccn dabs" n fDR+ :uu1IN :w run
su nlv K henm Vnxk 41x use Ihrk n a fadcrally fundal pngtram than
lmnkle,wlxkixl,Ass, doppommim+ .1 M1M1him.Ire
rllgildr1 , ,,k,,.
III, Hnwlnk i a uatirmal Iwmark of around _e77 prnatc"
tt,nnnnnily :nxl grn euuomtt Mgannlwn, dcdrnfd to
finding left, rn wxnulirlvl Iuagrle. Iu Tic.1.ly dn' Irug
term unrmplnynl
His 1799
.M earlier "pint -`ii.vu & Glom, I~Al "uuuutnx
the pcilry drltlrr nul krl tn3uf,r, ukrn In It . Iu,I Icdf
of the I7Aa in A,taraisa NO, A,mlmlla' atiliotua cif
W-> Corso nl,I h6 . .. 7WI and list: Unad Nanofts
Inwm:,u,m:J V.-mar Ix it ., Fanlit, 419`+7, were mponAnl
cal:dpsn ,4 gner"mnuall aI.1 M,rrgrrverrttihnl sacun
aatt ay
Acll AG1))ur rumen As Wink
72o" ActU mdse" c,ning arl. nu .I lands I:alAn c 1sacs
ihlnuph the fr:m.wh6" Hr.urs 77,1(11. ktilhd uAn the
AMC us May Mill
U"rnkru Women, femur and n.nnmnln lepal ccnm,
1
ccev fcdcraf aMl Gale g,xrn,nxn,1 (u,dmp . Al wdl
r funding fnm prtyah- xlnr,
.4n award to A k" plly brining uJumW i-WUMCII :
¢pi,hrd lit :m ,Mkwu:J Irihuual :u f'ACral or ttc Icrcl.
Awsrts tlsu "dh a,yn Iru.hirkc c.nploycrs and c ,Nssh
nulumum wandmh :u,. ,uhstuIIli pcason c,If -m
occupatron or in;hr<rv . Tlw nvul Fy,1cm not onic
,cglJatc hints and roMiililxu of cny».,yltw~u by dlncdV
ctn' .:elpen,pkryra iI :dsl,lunlntln'tvsr-II1the - odcnll
System fur cs :d,li,IImg'Ix, tl..ufrasuagC .zr cr,Iplcq,."" :
CnlYmg IMC" :Iim,"nnvlh Nt 1111 uBaIPIISC Iced
Ihldcr fan Volt of il,e !"d"al It M IY9U, ccn,hII1
agrccn,cnte curcnng ,4u,np, n( cmpa,yccs can I,e
n,'~tiak-dnancr,ta" Ipriwlnrl -agccotiaus,Antrm..tIniwc:On cmpluycrs and regwelr:d olgamsstions cd
clnplcfcc., or cunrdv I,Nwern ,mploytts and IN-Ir
.al,plofccs . ~tmdar Iytx"s Ix ct,ufkd apcc>;tlwras caui m
1I . W "utc-1
Palt fIU Of 4`w" flCkY.,I tt'f.A hl,X, INrnld4- fUr INIVA~UII
iuWaiW,Rtw'{~aR" Agnxn."r,N.lYrwi-xnistorslmJa7
.
irxli,i .kcJ awMwro lure Ix, Irnnxh .ed to srnw Sr0
r..e.))Irk- thevnv",?vmALuhurnofXveua , tsAQ1'1x!
nI.
..Ie, A, a P14WIpal obkY, hrll,inp Wlaurc w' :xk and
Wnlily lion%>. Adi, w?nlc the4xnh An,!nlull In<laar ;.a1
und fm/ugnr Nrlurkus .9,7. 79?a,rek, tu entourage
and as,i,t empllp'ccs to hikmcr w.lrk And family
levee7tafGtak" <keisi,x,179'9:21xC:4N tdu;
nd,yuumlaynr'1ogcirsed... .. .11965 , 29tiCAN l:
Ar,,uurl.ym" ri,rLmrdccnxn Print .TiAllu,
Ins ist
Print 90+!31, 31 ma) 21*1
fdNSkdr I, III WIiA
Puts, to,Yxl. N11i"Jtl
1)rRltstt d t11Twc of tmpkn,rx,+t A,haxalr l(>F4, Lu11r,
t9` IF, 93
P,"mvnrra lxirttilnc cmpdaymxNU xs Arrfnml In dx,. Atkti
I
n nxlgl0v eufuilAlolt io reg,Gf P" .,., nnhk,vux,u
A, defined IA tnc WIt4!D .+) In rnnlrl,I m-uuul
enq,iover,, rrgui.t r pan-trine nnpknm ,auk It, thus
AUS!IIALIA'S BACKGROUND RFPORI ON FAMILY FRIENDLY POI IC ES
amt 1ui n, to fwy aW onpI mind.I u v.,rto Nxci,. AM Cal No. 44100
"' I)r'NM li _Nr)1, wiputilvdlcd sufCq material
".' Alt, 2mk~ . P . H
"" 'n .Ie,.h~J)curaAttic<Aprcnr+ln~inah~eraxl2
:nut ruq:4nm ccncrjt' .'.'nf dcr :M pl[w~h " ;mr indirafilm
"'
of cnlpil»rr u;a up and u<ip of tMnc prtwi ux . bl
addltwn, . 11, 0.",1 'in I>" affmcd veal to vcur Lv if,
ddfI to h,Vty n,i, I A .IAV sla,ifl of III dapJn+l,e+rt"
tQgatI In :llunkin iwuxl.
Ul~fL¢0 2F t?EA 2W) Apllrndm U, lJNC S
IIufuhlhd di4i Applinl I, OFA, Lull .
._ vIt lsw.
pp ;..N
'" OIIw+It ta wWCII a bmtr ar,nw Ol lhr "II pnaoc
,nnx ,ng :cllsjnon, mjx,ninG u 1 do- Fgwl opflorttfni y
in Ilu" gTUkitlacc Ag,ncy 1ri,NCAt m IY9M . fc,cr thin
IA p.x ,, it offcicd pa,d ,n :u1"miI) Irx,a fcfvcxcnung
vnnr 1('a, u'nt ofcmpltn".inn"fnxtvgf In,ganlcrocv'a
1R94t. I'm p . 151.
"' WTI1 IOW, P. 19 . Sec also pp of nn hr dcfads o1
diltrmnnti ht dw datn eocrcr, uwl Ixerc .
"' AAC 2[oAC, wlpuhL.,hcd JAta .
FOACA 21H)1
,^ In a Tavrcmi:m big`t sun'ty. some ;7f.. . .. . l .d I:a1ns
who tcxlk Iinlr,ul ), x cn,ing u4d NO aick AI .~rrs
lu,c,A1l,, 24x,9 while 9I a N1f g[xt >Un~ Ilm IpfwC
Was 32 pct Itn,l'Alis ZI A11c) .
AS2 GIAAU Tablr 3n
ABn Llw`lc
".. AtvStux :A'.FIF,~II i~vulf1mlAIwquhIh11n1 .La
Nlechcada11.1 11%rr ;I" -N'A'
Aiis AAx" . fy;, ,r iL . di,l,ld f(OnI \NC 11n1,11I1fvhed diCi
"'
Iv
AIttCtK:Klw :p fW''IVbICI :.La
raJ
A}lY :A.Adc. pp N A 71 l ,caznd ni
' I ".I .
qa£
mrm"
fxlvl
fmc
(L5.'
pcf
ttnl, xvogwtcd
Insl%,aK
nl 1V (Kf cent "ho w:mlnl flcxlnl71C1
"' Alis 21111 1 ablc 4
' . AK,=xxxi
'" 'I2Ixx'kl- libleA($
r; ,it, n,d c:hiidttn s PnIf,v (k1kr (FC7U i IIW. Fpm' 2
,^ VC'p1t 1"), p. 42
'^ FAGS 1,1 .1, 1, 26
" IIIst al .. 11H' . If I IS and 8191 IVyy. p. AC
WWr11, m,a & Lcd" III .I WN I l9w
AUSTRALIA'S BACKGROUND REPOR ;
ON
FAMILY FRIENDLY
POI ICI IS
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Cat. No . 6361 .(1 . ABS, G;mberra.
,IIICTRAIIA'S
3ACK6ROUND REPORT
ON
FAMILY
FRIENDLY
PO'_ +-
FS
ABS 20u1d, L'ntptdlx,e&4rnirrgn artd Ilotns .tlrrt' 20(X), Cat. No . 6_3(6.0, ABS,
Canberra .
ABS 2001e, :Wancaginl; ('raring Kespcnufbililies and Paid Lrnpk>1~nte"nt, X4W:
October2000, (:a[ NO . 49(13.1, ABS, Canberra .
:1BS 3001 I, (:TI Standarzf Lkila Re~wrt.- C.'apital Citylnrlecres- .VUnalx~rs
l ~yxnrlilrtre " C'lus.+, Cat. No . 6455 .0 .40.W1 . ABS, Canberra .
h)
ABS 20018, Ixibour!"brceAusirctliu : I'relimmarl". Cat. No . 6202 .0, ABS .
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ABS 200Th. Average Weekly Harnings, February 2001 . Cal. No . 63(1 -1_0
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6ACKGROUtJG
REPORT
0 PI
FAMILY
FR. IEtdDLY
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FHIEPIDLY
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