# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
- A guiding document for parents on how children understand stereotypes, their impacts and ways to challenge and discuss these with 9-11 year olds.
Gender roles and impacts
Gender stereotypes are culturally ingrained ideas about appropriate behaviours for males and females. Common narrow gender stereotypes can include: that it is not ok for men to cry; that men are naturally aggressive; that females should be submissive and 'pick up the pieces'. Young people are largely aware of gender stereotypes by this age and will have begun to accept some of these as universal truths. Rigid gender stereotyping promotes inequity between the sexes and can set young people up to expect and accept power imbalances within relationships later in life.

This is an opportune time, before adolescence, to talk about the impact of gendered expectations on choices, existing friendships and future relationships. Accepting gender stereotypes and roles can have longer-term negative influences on children's beliefs attitudes and future behaviours. For example, surveys with 12-18 year olds have found that:

One in three think that exerting control over someone is not a form of violence.

One in four don't think that it is serious, if a man who is normally gentle with his partner, slapped her when drunk.

One in four think that street harassment is not serious.

One in six think that women should know their place.

One in six think that it is ok for a guy to pressure a girl into sex if they are both drunk.¹

The benefits of tackling gender stereotypes with this age group include supporting young people to:

Become aware of the messages that promote gender double standards and inequality in the media, online and within the broader community.

Know fact from fiction about sexuality.

Understand the effect gender stereotypes can have on their options and roles in sport, at school and within their families.

Develop realistic expectations about future relationships based on mutual respect and equity.

Where do children learn about gender?
Children may learn about acceptable gender roles and stereotypes from television, the internet or other media. For example:

Print media (magazines such as Dolly, Girlfriend or K-Zone), from books or magazines that their parents read² (e.g. Australian Women's Weekly).

Visual media (the Internet, including social media such as, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, and video games, television and music videos).

Audio media (song lyrics that include narrow representations of men and women or language that is derogatory towards women).

But children also learn about gender roles from their parents from a young age. ³ For example:

How roles and tasks are shared both within and outside the home (i.e. cooking, cleaning, child-rearing, mowing the lawn, managing household finances, taking kids to the park and going to work).

Themes and colours of clothes, toys and presents given to children.

Interactions between family members, for example, how decisions are made within the home.

Expectations placed on different family members based on gender. For example, that it is the responsibility of women and girls to care for others such as remembering birthdays or that the male family members should take on the 'comedian' role.

Language used based on gender, such as commenting on the appearance of girls and commenting on the actions and abilities of boys.

How parents reward or discipline behaviour that adheres to accepted notions of gender. For example, through statements such as 'boys don't cry', or 'boys will be boys' to excuse inappropriate behaviour.

What do young people think about gender stereotypes and roles?
Research conducted around Australia with young people aged between 9 and 11 years, indicates that they have an understanding of culturally accepted gender roles and the power dynamics associated with these. However, it is evident that young people also buy into these stereotypes and are often not aware of when and how stereotypes are impacting on their behaviours and choices. Therefore, conversations around identifying gender stereotypes can work best when supported by an adult such as a parent who can assist young people to understand influences on identity, relationships and decision-making.

Below are comments from Australian young people (9-11 years) illustrating their existing understanding of gender stereotypes.

Some young people can see how early gender stereotyping begins:
"It's like when we go to buy something for a baby and everything for girls is pink and everything for boys is blue and there's no other colours" (11 year old girl).

That stereotypes can change over time:
"Pink used to be a boy's colour but it's now a girl's colour" (11 year old girl).
"This year my favourite colour is orange but last year it was blue" (11 year old boy).

Young people are aware of power dynamics
"Men are known to go out and get a job and get money while women have to stay at home and cook and clean," (11 year old girl).
"Men are paid more than women and more of them are CEOs and have the money," (11 year old girl).

Making a difference at home
Children model a lot of their behaviour and develop their understanding of acceptable masculine or feminine qualities from their parents. Parents can influence how their children view gender and how they decide what it means to be a girl, boy, woman or man. Children are influenced by their parents through the roles they take on inside and outside the home and through the language used with children themselves. Furthermore, how parents interact with other adults and family members can impact on children's expectations of personal relationships. ⁴

Tips for challenging gender stereotypes in the home:

Ensure that children receive equal praise for the same behaviour. For example, praising both boys and girls for being neat or being active in physical activities.

Encourage children to be friends across genders.

Use the anatomically correct terms when referring to body parts.

Point out, critique and discuss gendered representations in the media.

Avoid gender specific language and statements such as 'that's a man's job' and 'that's not lady-like'.

Encourage gender neutral toys and colours.

Discussing gender with 'tweens'
Many pre-teens are ready to actively engage in discussions about respectful relationships, gender roles and stereotypes. This is a key time prior to puberty, high school and before many young people start experiencing romantic relationships, as well as an age where gender stereotypes are becoming more cemented and begin to impact on future decisions such as subject and extra-curricular choices.

Age appropriate topics about gendered expectations can include:

Jobs and roles for women and men both inside and outside the home and how stereotypes can limit these options.

Cultural expectations about feminine or masculine activities, fashion and behaviour (e.g. who can have long hair? Who can wear trousers? Who has body hair?).

How gendered expectations have changed over-time (i.e. their generation compared with previous generations).

Exploring young people's current judgements on gender and how this impacts on their expectations of themselves and treatment of others.

Power imbalances in relationships (friendships as well as romantic relationships), for example, the expectations that are often placed on young people in terms of how they interact with the opposite sex, such as asking girls to 'keep the peace' and allowing boys to tease girls 'because they like them'. These statements can re-enforce negative stereotypes such as that males can't control their behaviour.

These minor changes can support an awareness of rigid gender stereotypes among children and assist them to create respectful relationships and identities both now and in the future.

Talking gender stereotypes with 9-11 year olds - a resource for parents

Download the resource 'Talking gender stereotypes' here.
This is a resource to assist parents to talk to children between 9-11 years of age about gender stereotypes and how they can both impact and limit choices and interactions with others. This resource will aid parents to assist children to understand:

What gender stereotypes are.

Where we learn about stereotypes.

The impacts of stereotypes on our identities and relationships.

The importance of challenging stereotypes.

The content of this resource is based on findings from a number of participatory workshops undertaken with 9-11 year olds to understand in their own words how gender stereotypes impact and influence their relationships, identities and future expectations.

Resources
Video
Are There Girls Toys and Boys Toys?
What messages do toys labelled "girls" vs those labelled "boys" send to children, what effect can it have on their career choices down the track, and what can adults do?

Male Gender Stereotypes
Children discuss what it means to "be a man" in the media and what boys do that are contrary to what media and society tells them about "being a man".

How Disney Stereotypes Hurt Men
A look at how Disney stereotypes men and the effect this has on children's understanding of masculinity.

Childhood Gender Roles in Adulthood
A humorous look at how limiting and tiring it would be for both women and men to live with childhood gender roles in adulthood.

Websites
Talk Soon. Talk Often. A Guide for Parents Talking to their Kids about Sex
A booklet prepared by the Western Australian Department of Health to help parents talk about sex and sexuality with children of all ages.

Letter to Lego
A young girl and the change she has on Lego after her strongly worded letter gets picked up by Lego Ideas, a program that allows people to write in their suggestions for what they'd like to see in the Lego range. Hint: she wanted girls to play with scientists and paleontologists.

Gender Identity in Children
A resource from the American Academy of Pediatrics that discusses how children develop their gender identities and how they learn about stereotypes from the adults (men and women) who play an important role in their lives.

Sharing the Pleasures and Pains of Family Life
A resource from the Australian Institute of Family Studies that discusses family wellbeing, shared responsibility between family members, and how equality can be achieved at home.

Kids Helpline
A helpline and resource for young people between 5 and 15 years of age, including telephone and online counselling and support services.

Parentline
The Kids Helpline equivalent for parents! This is a an online resource and confidential telephone counselling service for parents and those who care for children available all around Australia.
References 1. The Line campaign summary of research findings (download the Word doc). 2. Renold, E. (2005). Girls, Boys and Junior Sexualities: Exploring children's gender and sexual relations in the primary school. Abingdon: Routledge. 4. Ibid, and Parents' socialization of gender in children, Encyclopedia on Early Childhood Development (2013), and Playing by the rules: Gender roles and young children, Sexuality and U, Sex Information and Education Council of Canada.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Talking to young kids about gender stereotypes

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A guiding document for parents on how children understand stereotypes, their impacts and ways to challenge and discuss these with 9-11 year olds. Gender roles and impacts Gender stereotypes are culturally ingrained ideas about appropriate behaviours for males and females.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Equality seems a long way off for Australia's girls, with a survey showing most feel they are treated unfairly compared to boys.

Plan International Australia surveyed more than 1700 girls aged 10 to 17 about their experiences of inequality and discovered 98 per cent believed they were unfairly treated particularly in sport, the media, as well as at school and home.

Plan's deputy chief executive Susanne Legena described the finding as shocking and a wakeup call for governments to address the issue by banning sexist advertising, removing gendered school uniforms, and closing the gender pay gap.

"We have to make things right for girls," she wrote in a report based on the survey, published on Wednesday.

"There's no use telling a girl she is empowered and can change the world if the structures and systems are not there to support her."

Plan's survey found girls in their late teens were the ones who felt inequality the most, particularly at home.

While nearly two thirds of girls aged 10 to 14 reported being treated equally at home, that dropped to just 36 per cent for those aged between 15 and 17.

More than half of the girls said they did more housework than boys.

However, sport and the media were where inequality was felt the most.

Fewer than 10 per cent of 15-to-17-year-old girls thought they were always treated as equals to boys in sport and the media, while for younger girls it was just 16 per cent.

Four-out-of-five girls felt there was more focus on girls' looks than boys' in the media, with fewer than 10 per cent of girls in their late teens believing men and women were treated equally on TV and in magazines.

Schools fared slightly better, with 45 per cent of younger girls feeling they were treated as equals but that dropped to just 29 per cent by the time the girls entered their late teens.

More than half of the teenage girls told Plan that their perceptions about girls and boys being treated equally had changed since they started high school.

Plan's report called on all schools to tackle the issue by removing gendered uniforms for students, much like the policies introduced in Western Australia and Victoria, and start teaching students about respectful relationships.

Despite the overwhelming feelings of inequality, the report found that almost all girls believed they were just as good at being leaders as boys.

But they stressed that being a leader would be easier if there was equality between the sexes and they had more opportunities to lead.

Confidence also emerged as an issue, with more than half of 10-to-12-year-olds describing themselves as confident but by 17 only 44 per cent of girls felt that way.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Up to 98 per cent of Australian girls feel gender inequality, survey suggests

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Equality seems a long way off for Australia's girls, with a survey showing most feel they are treated unfairly compared to boys. Plan International Australia surveyed more than 1700 girls aged 10 to 17 about their experiences of inequality and discovered 98 per cent believed they were unfairly treated particularly in sport, the media, as well as at school and home.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Harden up. Suck it up. Man up. We've been telling our men this for years, but is it healthy? Suicide is now the leading cause of death for Australian men aged 15-44. And alarming new research suggests that some men choose to take their own life, rather than appear weak by asking for help. Man Up is a three-part documentary series and social awareness campaign funded by the Movember Foundation and hosted by Triple M radio personality Gus Worland. It aims to get to the bottom of the male suicide crisis, effect real social change and hopefully even save lives.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Harden up. Suck it up. Man up. We've been telling our men this for years, but is it healthy? Suicide is now the leading cause of death for Australian men aged 15-44. And alarming new research suggests that some men choose to take their own life, rather than appear weak by asking for help.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
1. Open the Internet Browser

2. Click Tools (or "gear" icon at top right hand corner) > Internet Options > Privacy > Advanced

3. Check Override automatic cookie handling

4. For First-party Cookies and Third-party Cookies click Accept

5. Click OK and OK

Enabling Cookies in Internet Explorer 10, 11

1. Open the Internet Browser

2. Click the Tools button, and then click Internet Options.

3. Click the Privacy tab, and then, under Settings, move the slider to the bottom to allow all cookies, and then click OK.

Enabling Cookies in Google Chrome

1. Open the Google Chrome browser

2. Click Tools icon Or type in Go to chrome://settings/ to the URL window, hit enter

3. Click 'Advanced settings' > Select Privacy > Content settings

4. Check 'Allow local data to be set (recommended)'

5. Click 'Done'

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Open the Internet Browser Click Tools (or "gear" icon at top right hand corner) > Internet Options > Privacy > Advanced Check Override automatic cookie handling For First-party Cookies and Third-party Cookies click Accept Click OK and OK Enabling Cookies in Internet Explorer 10, 11 Open the Internet Browser Click the Tools button, and then click Internet Options.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The majority of lesbian, gay, bi, trans and intersex (LGBTI) people lead happy, healthy, fulfilling lives. However, studies have found that non-heterosexual people face up to twice as much abuse or violence (including physical, mental, sexual or emotional) than their heterosexual counterparts. This prejudice and discrimination adds an additional layer of risk on top of biological, social, environmental and psychological factors which can lead to depression, anxiety and suicide.

Research and real life experiences have found that LGBTI people have an increased risk of depression and anxiety, substance abuse, self-harming and suicidal thoughts.

When compared with heterosexual people, same-sex attracted and transgender people have higher psychological distress and significant levels of anxiety.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The majority of lesbian, gay, bi, trans and intersex (LGBTI) people lead happy, healthy, fulfilling lives. However, studies have found that non-heterosexual people face up to twice as much abuse or violence (including physical, mental, sexual or emotional) than their heterosexual counterparts.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
In the three hours following the prime minister's "gender whisperers" tweet on Wednesday morning, I was yelled at twice in the street by men sitting in their cars at traffic lights. That was just during a five-minute walk from the tram to the gym. While I'm old enough to recite activist Marsha P Johnson's mantra, "pay it no mind", what concerns me is just how many transgender, non-binary or gender-questioning kids at school this week will endure the same harassment in the wake of Scott Morrison's latest comments about LGBTIQA+ Australians.

There's often a spike in harassment towards the transgender community at the times when our leaders and media pundits single us out with hate speech. It gives permission for people to think their prejudiced ideas are justifiable beliefs that need to be shouted from cars or in playgrounds. It's the Australian way - passed down through the generations - with transphobia a staple in the diet of the bully.

Scott Morrison (@ScottMorrisonMP)
We do not need 'gender whisperers' in our schools. Let kids be kids. https://t.co/POzM26PXU5

Morrison's Wednesday morning tweet is yet another fail in a public conversation on the rights and lived experiences of transgender and non-binary people. Paired with the Daily Telegraph's manipulative article around the increase in rates of children identifying as gender diverse in Australian schools, it contributes to a discussion overwhelmingly dominated by a conservative cisgender platform. It's a concerted political agenda that actively seeks to shame the communities that help transgender kids move beyond dysphoria.

Programs like those developed by Sydney counsellor Dr Elizabeth Riley - whose work has been misrepresented by the Daily Telegraph - are clearly helping an emerging generation of transgender kids "be kids" beyond gender-binary stereotypes.

As a transgender woman of Generation X who came out late in life, who lived in secrecy, silence and shame for nearly four decades, I hold this awakening in gender diversity dear to me. It's also the generation before me that helped in understanding my gender identity and gave me the courage and community support to become who I am. As London-based writer Ayishat Akanbi tweeted in 2017: "Millennials aren't creating new gender identities they're only giving language to ones that have always existed under the burden of shame."

I know that I am one of a handful of transgender people who graduated from my high school, then a boy's school on the Mornington Peninsula. We connected through social media and because individually we have been able to access the language and community to recognise what we knew all along: that we were transgender. It was something we shouldn't have needed to hide or be ashamed of, but the legacy of our individual experiences at school lives with us. What I'd give to have been in a school that just let me be one of the kids, the girl I knew myself to be, but that's not important to somebody like Morrison.

If Morrison genuinely loved all Australians (as he claimed to do in the same breath as telling us gay conversion therapy is irrelevant), he'd take more responsibility for his comments during two radio interviews on Monday, as well as his tweet on Wednesday, that clearly place some of our most vulnerable people at risk - trans kids. His refusal to outlaw conversion therapy, or to see it as an issue is an insult to generations of LGBTIQA+ Australians. As someone who had it thrust upon me by a clinical psychologist after leaving boys' school, coming out as trans in the mid-90s, I find this attitude dismisses my experience of misdiagnosis, mistreatment through hypnotherapy and its history of trauma I live with every day and it is deeply hurtful.

"Gender whisperers"? Really, prime minister? Casting teachers who have the welfare of gender-questioning children at heart as some subversive secret cult is an insult to the empathy and vision they provide. Young queer and trans people, who are in desperate need for belonging, safety and acceptance in their classrooms, must be protected by the education system.

The language used in the Telegraph - that "teachers are now being taught to spot potential transgender students in the classroom" - is deeply rooted in the gaze, suspicion, secrecy, curiosity, surveillance, policing and profiling. That is the burden of being transgender, not transness itself. It's this surveilling behaviour by cisgender people that we endure that is debilitating. It feeds the idea that we are doing something wrong. No, trans people are not doing anything wrong and I reject the idea that we would all rather we are not. I wouldn't be cisgender for quids and could deal with the pressures of being trans better if cis folks stayed out of my business.

The effect of transphobia, especially when displayed by politicians and the media, is to push gender assimilation on kids who are among the most vulnerable to self-harm and suicide - and it is plainly abusive. Trans people have a right to optimism and better life chances. As Dr Elizabeth Riley herself states: "Some boys have vaginas and some girls have penises." Get over it, just let it happen. It's no big deal.

In the months leading up to an election, I lament the prospect of enduring more state-sanctioned homophobic and transphobic extremism and worry about what it will do to our community. One thing is for sure: many of us saw this coming well beyond last November's marriage equality distraction and we are ready to get around each other for support.

In his first 14 days in office, Scott Morrison has put the lives of the the LGBTIQA+ community in the firing line three times. Gender is not a fad, nor is it even a zeitgeist and, despite Morrison's evangelical leanings, it's not for him to deny us our place as citizens, as students, as kids. No matter what percentage of the population anyone thinks we occupy, this is the first generation of trans and non-binary Australians who could have the opportunity to walk down the street without being yelled at, whispered about in class, or worse. Perhaps those who rallied for the marriage equality yes campaign might want to wake up off the couch and get around us? We deserve respect and dignity - and together we will not be denied that.

Simona Castricum is a PhD candidate in architecture at the University of Melbourne

Comments are pre-moderated to ensure they stay on the issues raised in this article

Topics

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Prime minister, please consider how trans kids lives are affected by your words | Simona Castricum

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
In the three hours following the prime minister's "gender whisperers" tweet on Wednesday morning, I was yelled at twice in the street by men sitting in their cars at traffic lights. That was just during a five-minute walk from the tram to the gym.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
The Spoke - Early Childhood Australia's Blog

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Getting in early to avoid gender stereotyping careers - The Spoke - Early Childhood Australia's Blog

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
By pre-school children are already thinking about the career they will have when they grow up. It is also at this early stage that they tend to rule out jobs that do not fit with their gender. Four-year-olds have shown a strong gender bias towards jobs.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Gender equality: What matters to Australian women and men

The Listening Tour Community Report (2008)

Contents

The Listening Tour Community Report

Welcome to my report representing the major issues you shared with me as I travelled the length and breadth of Australia.

As many of you are aware, I became the federal Sex Discrimination Commissioner with the Australian Human Rights Commission (the Commission) in September 2007. One of my main responsibilities is to promote gender equality in Australia as a human right.

Coming into this role, it was important to me that I listen to Australian women and men. I wanted to find out what you see as the major challenges we face in creating a fairer and more equal society. Of course, I had my own ideas and concerns, but my aim was to provide you with an opportunity to have your say.

So, in November 2007, I began a nation-wide 'Listening Tour'. I wanted to ask the Australian public two big questions: How far have we come in our journey towards gender equality? And where should we focus our efforts into the future?

During the Listening Tour, I travelled to every state and territory, visiting cities, regional towns and remote communities. I also set up an online blog so that people could share their views widely. I met over 1000 people during the course of the Tour. I heard stories and experiences from factory workers, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, women's and men's services workers, refugees, academics, government Ministers, investment bankers, gay and lesbian people, young women and older people, to name a few.

Women and men across the country provided their input on what I could do to make a difference.

The Listening Tour has greatly enriched my understanding of the lives and experiences of women and men across Australia. I also hope that it has been a positive experience for all those who have been involved.

I am delighted and proud to share the stories and experiences of the people I have met. To each of you, I say thank you. Your contributions will help shape the agenda for my term as federal Sex Discrimination Commissioner.

Elizabeth Broderick
Sex Discrimination Commissioner and Commissioner responsible for Age Discrimination

Elizabeth Broderick was appointed to the role of Sex Discrimination Commissioner and Commissioner responsible for Age Discrimination in September 2007.

Liz has a background in law and computer science. She was a partner at law firm Blake Dawson where she developed their business case for flexibility in the workplace. Her efforts created an environment where more than 20 per cent of the law firm's workforce now uses flexible arrangements.

About the Listening Tour

What the Commissioner wanted to find out

The Listening Tour started in November 2007. As the new federal Sex Discrimination Commissioner, Elizabeth Broderick visited every state and territory in Australia. Over 1,000 people took part in the 90 events held in metropolitan, regional and remote locations. An additional 128 people contributed through the Listening Tour blog, with 39,612 viewers reading the Commissioner's Listening Tour diary, and a total of 66,826 hits.

Before the Listening Tour began, the Commissioner identified three crucial areas for achieving equality between women and men in Australia:

economic independence for women

balancing work and family balance across the life cycle, and

freedom from discrimination, harassment and violence.

These three themes, and the different issues raised within each, provided a broad framework for the Commissioner's discussions. A key goal of the Listening Tour was to help the Commissioner decide where she should focus her work.

Those who took part in the meetings discussed the relevance and importance of the three themes of the Tour to achieving gender equality in Australia. The Commissioner also wanted to identify other issues which were relevant to equality between men and women.

How people participated

The guiding principles of the Listening Tour were participation, inclusion and diversity.

The Listening Tour specifically focussed on reaching diverse groups including: women with disabilities, Indigenous women, culturally and linguistically diverse women, women of diverse sexualities and workers from low paid occupations and industries. The Tour also ensured that both men and women were able to participate and contribute.

The Tour involved a variety of forums to allow people to share their views, including:

open community consultations

women's and men's focus groups, targeted to specific industries

meetings with service providers and community groups

meeting with Ministers, Members of Parliament and government agencies

academic and business roundtables, and

an interactive website and blog, including regular diary entries from the Commissioner.

What the Commissioner found

The three key themes of the Listening Tour - economic independence for women, balancing work and family balance across the life cycle, and freedom from discrimination, harassment and violence - resonated strongly with women and men in the Australian community.

While there have been many improvements in Australia since the appointment of the first federal Sex Discrimination Commissioner in 1984, the stories from the Listening Tour show that Australia still has much to do in order to truly achieve gender equality for all.

The findings from the Tour supported the need for a national gender equality agenda to achieve full and equal participation for both women and men in all spheres of life.

Gender inequality is a daily experience

The experiences that participants shared add a powerful human dimension to the research and statistics on women's status in Australia.

Women spoke about the barriers to their career progression and workforce participation, providing their personal stories to explain the under-representation of women in senior leadership positions. Many older women, with limited retirement savings due to movement in and out of the workforce, shared their anxieties of poverty in their later years.

Men and women expressed their difficulties in balancing work and family responsibilities, and their disappointment at the lack of a legislated paid leave scheme for parents, particularly maternity leave. Men told of the pressure that they felt to be the primary breadwinner and the long work hours that prevented them from sharing time with their partners, children and other family members.

Consistent with the Commission's own research, the Commissioner heard many personal experiences of sexual harassment, along with concerns about the repercussions of making a complaint.

Stories about the impact of long-term violence on a woman's ability to participate in the workforce added a human perspective to statistics which estimate the cost of domestic violence to business at $500 million each year.

Factors contributing to gender inequality are interconnected

The stories and experiences that participants shared during the Listening Tour highlighted how inequality is connected and reinforced by a range of factors.

For example, pay inequity is a contributing factor to the gender gap in women's retirement savings. Pay inequity is also influencing decisions within families on the sharing of paid work and caring responsibilities. The movement of women in and out of the paid workforce due to caring responsibilities is another factor contributing to the gender gap in retirement savings.

Structural and cultural barriers in the workplace prevent women from balancing their paid work and caring responsibilities, reducing their workforce participation and their economic independence. Those same barriers prevent men from taking on a greater share of caring responsibilities, with men sometimes finding it even harder to access flexible work due to cultural stereotypes about roles between parents. Women continue to undertake more unpaid care responsibilities.

Violence, discrimination and harassment also impact on women's ability to engage in paid work, affecting their economic independence.

Examining and addressing one issue in isolation from the others will not deliver the systemic change required to achieve full gender equality.

The gender equality agenda must recognise differences between women

While there were a number of shared experiences among women, there were also stark differences based on other factors, including race, disability, age, sexuality and socio-economic status.

For example, issues of primary concern to Indigenous women in remote communities were basic living conditions, such as the ability to live safely, access to housing, access to education or employment and access to healthcare.

For women in low paid industries, particularly those in female dominated sectors, better pay and basic workplace conditions, such as tea breaks and access to toilets, were the important concerns.

For refugee women, access to education and employment without the fear of racial discrimination was most important, along with the need for social acceptance of cultural difference.

For women with disabilities, the ability to live safely and have autonomy over one's life decisions was critical, as well as the ability to access education and employment.

An effective gender equality agenda must recognise and illuminate the particular disadvantage faced by different groups of women, just as it must address the shared experiences of women as a whole.

Changing attitudes is key to achieving long-term gender equality

A number of policy and project ideas were provided to the Commission to address the issues participants raised. Of all of them, the need for education in order to change attitudes and build skills was the most apparent.

For example, education on salary negotiation was proposed in order to close the gender pay gap and increase women's economic independence.

Educating the community on the value of unpaid work and educating employers and employees on effective flexible work practices were also suggested to overcome the struggle many women and men face to balance paid and unpaid work.

Underlying these suggestions was a clear message from the community that gender inequality is a pervasive and deep rooted phenomenon that will not be successfully addressed without significant attitudinal change. Attitudes underpin every concrete action we take to make the world a more equal place for women and men.

What is in this report

This Listening Tour Community Report sets out the key issues identified from the contributions of the many participants in the Tour through the variety of events and the blog.

During the Tour, the Commissioner met with many service providers, community organisations, government agencies and researchers. These organisations and individuals provided the Commissioner with a comprehensive overview of current work that is being progressed under each of the three Listening Tour themes. These contributions have been used to inform the Commissioner's 'Plan of Action Towards Gender Equality', an overview of which can be found at the end of this Report. The contributions will continue to inform the work of the Commissioner and the Commission into the future.

The pursuit of gender equality in Australia is a shared vision. Governments, women's organisations, community groups, researchers, business, unions, and many others each play a crucial role.

The Commissioner acknowledges the significant, inspirational work of the organisations and individuals who are working to achieve a fairer and more equal Australia. She looks forward to working in collaboration with all those committed to achieving gender equality.

Economic independence for women

"I'm a mother who has been out of the paid workforce for two years and will probably be for the next four years. I can't see how, after this time out of the workforce, my earnings will ever come close to my partner's. I dread to think of how I will ever manage if I have to rely upon my meagre superannuation contributions in retirement."

Entry on Listening Tour website

Achieving economic independence for women has been at the core of the vision for gender equality across the globe.

Economic independence for women means adequately recognising the value of their paid and unpaid work, both socially and economically.

While poverty can be an experience for both men and women, women continue to be disproportionately affected by financial disadvantage.

In Australia, women working full-time today earn 16 per cent less than men. Women are also more likely to be engaged in low paid, casual and part-time work.

As a result, women have significantly less money saved for their retirement - half of all women aged 45 to 59 have $8,000 or less in their superannuation funds, compared to $31,000 for men.

The Listening Tour investigated how women in Australia are faring financially in their daily lives and how they feel about the future.

The Commissioner wanted to find out:

Gender gap in superannuation and retirement savings

The gender gap in retirement savings and superannuation resonated strongly with many participants. Many women revealed their anxieties about living in poverty in their later years.

The Commissioner heard stories of older women living in poverty, due to minimal retirement savings and the inadequacy of the Age Pension.

It was revealed that there are a number of reasons why women have fewer savings and a lower superannuation:

Women's unpaid work is not properly valued by society - there was a view that the superannuation system needs to recognise unpaid work as well as paid work.

Women often leave the paid workforce to care for children, parents or grandchildren.

Women often struggle to become financially independent, particularly after a separation or divorce.

Women are often employed in the casual and part-time workforce and, as a result, may earn a salary below the threshold for the superannuation co-contribution scheme.

Historical exclusion of women from superannuation schemes - older women talked of the injustice from discrimination in the past, when some women were required to leave paid work when they got married, or were not eligible to contribute to superannuation schemes.

"I talk to many women who can't retire when they thought they were going to be able to because of family transmitted debt. They are supporting kids through university and helping kids with a mortgage."

Sydney community consultation participant

This lack of funds in retirement means some women are forced to extend their working lives. We were told this may affect their health and wellbeing.

"Having spent most of my years raising children, I have very little hope of retiring and will need to work for as long as possible. I see many tired women who are working full-time, supporting husbands and trying to be a helpful grandparent."

Entry on Listening Tour website

"Because I was unable to access superannuation funds through my work in earlier years, I had to return to work at the age of 66 [years], because I found it was impossible to maintain a house on my own and pay service bills on the old age pension."

Entry on Listening Tour website

In order to redress the imbalance, we heard that young women need to be educated about financial security and superannuation.

There were mixed views about the level of the Age Pension. Some feel it is inadequate, quoting problems such as the tax disincentive to work while receiving the pension.

However, some women working in low paid factory work said that they were looking forward to receiving the Age Pension. Others suggested that an independent income might provide an opportunity to help older women in abusive relationships to leave their partner.

Low paid work

For women in low paid work, adequate pay and conditions were of paramount concern. Many women said they do not get adequate work breaks, annual leave or sick leave. For example, women who were casual factory workers, some of whom did not speak English, said they experienced poor hourly rates and below minimum conditions.

Participants told us the problem was not simply a question of pay rates and hours worked. Some women experienced a lack of basic amenities in their workplace that would make their working conditions acceptable, such as air-conditioning or a place to sit.

Women working in aged care highlighted the low staff to patient ratio, which increased their stress levels and affected the quality of care they could provide. They may be employed on a part-time basis but work full-time hours. And if they are asked to work extra hours, the onus was on them to request overtime payments.

Women in low paid work need support services. The Asian Women at Work Group told us:

Many migrant women have no idea about where to go for information and assistance on issues we face in the workplace. Some women assume there is nothing they can do.

Women and leadership

There was a view that increasing the representation of women at the highest levels would help challenge and change the gendered culture of workplaces and institutions.

Men tend to hold the significant majority of leadership positions across all sectors, even in many female-dominated industries. For example, in Tasmania it was reported that women make up 70 per cent of the education sector but hold only 37 per cent of management positions in that sector.

The major barriers to women's career progression include:

the limited availability of quality part-time work

male-oriented workplace cultures

a lack of senior female role models

a lack of family friendly or flexible working conditions.

the disparity between employers' policies and actions.

"[Our CEO] has publicly said he would have 50 per cent women in his workforce if he could. But then he also... set up an executive structure that is going to hinder his ability to get women into those senior positions."

Public Sector Women's focus group

Some participants thought that increasing the number of women in leadership roles would happen through generational change. We also heard that employers are increasingly being encouraged to advance women to meet diversity targets.

Building stronger communities

Supporting and strengthening Indigenous women's leadership can be crucial in improving the health and wellbeing of communities.

In Fitzroy Crossing, senior women in the community initiated a women's bush camp to discuss the issues facing the community and identify potential solutions. Their leadership has led to significant positive changes in community health, levels of violence and morale.

Gender pay gap

Participants in the Listening Tour said that closing the gap between the pay received by women compared to men would go a long way towards helping women achieve economic independence. However, a key problem many people highlighted was the lack of value placed on the types of work more commonly performed by women.

Although participants gave examples of more women entering non-traditional fields of paid work, many participants pointed to the fact that what is seen as 'women's work' remains undervalued, both in monetary terms and social status.

Many women and men also said that decisions about sharing paid work and family responsibilities are made based on financial necessity; largely determined by who has the greater earning potential in the relationship.

This can only be turned around if the pay gap between women and men is closed.

A number of stumbling blocks to reducing the gap were identified, such as:

Housing

Women's Refuge Resource Centre in NSW reported that of those women who are either pregnant or with children coming into refuges, 80 per cent are without any independent income.

Housing affordability was raised as a growing concern for men and women and the Commissioner was told that women's lack of economic independence may lead to homelessness.

Rising housing costs, interest rate hikes and the increase in rental prices are significantly affecting men and women on welfare, low paid women, Indigenous women, women with disabilities, migrant women and refugee women.

The Commissioner was told there is a scarcity of appropriate and healthy housing in some Indigenous communities. For example, in a town community in Darwin there were only 52 homes available to accommodate between 500 and 1,000 people.

Overcrowding, combined with alcohol abuse, can impact on women's safety and put them at greater risk of domestic violence. People also suggested that the condition of houses had an adverse impact on the health of community members.

Young disadvantaged women are also suffering. This was brought into focus during a visit to a young women's refuge.

One teenager told how she fought with her mother after the death of her step-father, then tried to commit suicide, started drinking, and eventually moved out of home. "If it wasn't for [this refuge] I would be sleeping on a park bench," she explained.

The Commissioner also heard that the lack of affordable housing meant that some women were staying in abusive relationships.

Women exiting the prison system are typically homeless, making it extremely difficult to begin life outside with any independence.

Women's workforce participation

Paid employment was seen as crucial for building women's economic independence. Importantly, employers also see attracting and retaining women workers as an important business issue.

However, participants identified a number of hurdles that women face in entering the paid workforce:

a lack of family friendly policies

difficulties in returning to work after maternity leave, such as the availability of work at the same skill level

limited availability of quality part-time work

problems faced by immigrant and refugee women, such as race discrimination

a lack of appropriate training and education for Indigenous women

limited opportunities and poor transport for women in regional and remote areas.

Paid work is not just about finances for many women. They told the Commissioner that it is an important aspect of their identity and allows them to use their skills and continue to develop professionally.

Sole parents and Welfare to Work

A number of participants said the Welfare to Work system was causing additional pressures for women who are already disadvantaged.

The concerns raised included the difficulties in finding work to fit in with their caring requirements, the rigidity and harshness of the system and the combined impact with the (former) WorkChoices legislation.

The cost and availability of child care is also a major concern for sole mothers getting back into the workforce under the Welfare to Work reforms.

Education, skills development and training

Participants recognised the many advances made in women's access to education and training. However, particular groups of women still face challenges, such as refugees, welfare recipients, Indigenous women and some women in prison.

For many migrant women, access to English classes is a priority so they can communicate in their workplaces and take up further education. Asian Women at Work report that there is a lack of accessible English classes for working women, which limits their work opportunities for the future.

Another issue raised was the ability of women, particularly mature age students with caring responsibilities, to pay off higher education loans.

Some Indigenous high school students reported experiences of racism from teachers and service providers. One participant said, "Some teachers put us down. They don't think we can achieve because we are black."

Work and family balance over the life cycle

"All the women I know who have young children are exhausted most of the time. Feminism wasn't about producing overworked women who are expected to bear children and to work as many hours as they can fit in so the family can survive."

Entry on Listening Tour website

Successfully balancing paid work with caring responsibilities remains a major challenge for many Australians. They are juggling their careers with caring for their children, their grandchildren, their ill or disabled relatives and, increasingly, their parents.

Yet there remains a notable gap in support provided by governments and employers in allowing women and men to take on these responsibilities without a personal cost.

For instance, Australia remains one of only two OECD countries without a legislated paid maternity leave scheme. And with the rapid ageing of our population there will be increasing pressure on workers to balance the caring of elderly parents with their paid work.

With women continuing to carry out the majority of Australia's unpaid caring work, and men locked into being the 'breadwinner', creating workplaces that support women and men to balance paid work and share caring responsibilities is critical to achieving gender equality.

During the Listening Tour the Commissioner wanted to hear how Australian men and women are going in striking the work-family balance.

The Commissioner asked participants:

Are flexible work and family friendly practices widely available?

Are they working effectively?

What are the challenges for employees and employers?

Would paid leave for parents help?

What can be done to better support Australians to balance work and care?

A question of choice?

One of the key questions discussed in our consultations was whether women are making real choices or just compromises based on external pressures.

Many women said they struggled with the complexity of the messages that they receive about having children, having a career or staying at home. Even when they had flexibility in their work arrangements, some women felt a social expectation to give up paid work to care for their children. Men also talked of lacking choices, with employers often resistant to offering flexible or part-time work so that men could take a major role in caring for their families.

The view of most participants was that workplace structures and the expectations that accompany paid work significantly limit the choices that women and men make about how they manage their family responsibilities.

To create genuine choice in balancing work and family responsibilities, a commitment to change was required from both men and women.

Flexible work practices

Listening Tour participants told of the need for employers to create flexible work practices and then embrace and promote them at the highest levels.

These flexible policies must be put into practice across an organisation in order to be effective. If, for instance, flexible arrangements depend on supportive individual managers, then they can be at risk when management changes.

There must also be a commitment to redesign jobs. Current work structures often favour an 'ideal worker': male, without any visible caring responsibilities and able to work for more than the usual full time hours in a week.

Participants identified a need to shift organisational culture to make flexible work mainstream. Some male participants said that while flexible work policies were often available, unsupportive workplace cultures meant they did not take them up.

Many participants said that unless women and men take up flexible work in equal numbers, the male primary breadwinner model will remain unchallenged and unchanged.

The use of telecommunications and new technologies could help, but some employers may not acknowledge that staff may be more effective if they work in a way that accommodates the responsibilities they have outside the workplace. Technology can also hinder work-family balance if employer expectations about employee availability are unreasonable.

A Darwin-based community organisation was unable to offer staff competitive remuneration, however they allowed people to work from home through remote access. This has made a positive difference in recruiting and retaining skilled staff.

Employers and employees told the Commissioner that when flexible work arrangements are negotiated to meet the interests of each party, then it works effectively.

Most employers said that family friendly policies were a good strategy to attract and retain staff. As one Adelaide-based employer noted:

"We've just picked up a staff member who we think will be very good, because she couldn't work four days a week in another job ... The smart businesses will pick up these really talented women."

Paid maternity leave

"The fact that we don't have paid maternity leave is a disgrace. When my second child was born, my husband wasn't working, so I had to go back to work after a caesarean after two days. I had no choice."

Launceston community consultation participant

The need for a universal paid maternity scheme was strongly supported throughout the Listening Tour. The large majority of participants agreed this is a reform that is long overdue.

There was a view that paid maternity leave should be a basic right, which recognises the need for mothers to recover from childbirth, establish breastfeeding and bond with their babies.

The women who currently receive paid maternity leave tend to be working in government or large corporations. Those in low paid industries, small businesses or the community sector are more likely to miss out.

Some employers who participated in discussions said that providing paid maternity leave can help attract and retain skilled labour. One employer reported that they had introduced paid maternity leave at the request of staff and found that "the benefits outweigh the costs by increasing productivity".

If a legislative paid maternity leave scheme was to be introduced, participants identified a number of issues that would need to be addressed, such as the eligibility of contract workers and the self employed.

There was also a concern that requiring business to meet the costs of paid maternity leave would lead to further discrimination against women. It could also adversely affect smaller employers.

Some participants opposed the idea of a paid maternity leave scheme. They held the view that having children was a personal choice and that the government or employers should not be responsible for the costs involved.

Parental and paternity leave

There was repeated support for parental and paternity or supporting partner leave throughout the Listening Tour. Some believe it would help encourage men to take up a greater share of caring responsibilities, which is critical to achieving gender equality.

Some participants argued that a non-gendered approach was necessary to break the entrenched model of the male primary breadwinner and provide families with more options when deciding who stays at home and who is in paid work.

Men told us they want paid leave so they too can spend time with their new babies. In a men's focus group, we heard that most men who had access to paternity leave took it, although no one took unpaid leave.

Availability of quality part-time work

Listening Tour participants frequently said the lack of quality part-time work was a barrier to women joining the workforce and progressing their careers, especially for those returning after having children and/or those nearing retirement.

The Commissioner also heard that:

Child care

The rising cost of child care is becoming a major barrier to people returning to the paid workforce - in some instances it can cost more for a parent to go to work than to stay at home.

There is also a limited amount of child care available for before and after school hours.

Women told us they face an internal struggle about whether to return to work and that families often rely on grandparents to make ends meet. This can lead to financial and health stress for the grandparents.

Child care needed to be readily available, affordable and of a high quality.

Sharing of unpaid work

The Listening Tour asked people about their experiences of sharing unpaid work in their families.

Entrenched ideas about the role of women as carers, as well as financial factors, continue to influence everyday decisions about who does what. There remains an 'unspoken expectation' that women will take responsibility for most of the unpaid work.

Some men said they wanted to take on a greater share of caring responsibilities but felt impeded by their workplace culture and social norms.

Carers

Carers Australia reported that there are 2.6 million family carers in Australia and 500,000 people are primary carers - 70 per cent of whom are women. With a rapidly ageing population, the personal and financial cost of caring on individuals, which is already very high, is set to increase.

Participants said there was a need to extend workplace flexibility to all carers, that carer payments were inadequate and that limited services in regional areas place extra pressure on carers.

Working hours

Long hours of work, particularly for men, are significantly affecting their ability to share family responsibilities. However, some men may feel the need to increase their hours so they can provide for their families. Long working days are also becoming a normal part of workplace culture.

The Commissioner heard that male and female low paid workers are working longer hours because they need the money to meet the current cost of living.

"Long hours are addictive. Working 60 hours a week becomes normal. In June we have a big spike of work, around 80 to 90 hours a week, but in August we tell people to go back to normal hours ... Absenteeism in July, August and September is huge because everyone is sick."

Men's focus group

Job security

Participants said that job insecurity, particularly in low paid industries, is increasing the pressure on individuals trying to balance work and family life. Women in low paid work have limited bargaining power and the fear of losing their job means they do not challenge their employer over poor conditions.

Freedom from discrimination, harassment and violence

"I have just been through [six] years of trying to seek some justice in my male-dominated place of work. The sexual harassment that I was subjected to was nothing compared to the victimisation that took place after I rejected my boss and eventually complained about him."

Entry on Listening Tour website

It is a basic right to feel safe in our workplaces, educational institutions, public places and homes. However, many women continue to experience discrimination, harassment and violence as an everyday reality.

Sex discrimination and sexual harassment overwhelmingly affect women more than men. There were 472 complaints made to the Commission under the Sex Discrimination Act in 2006-07, of which almost 90 per cent came from women. A telephone poll commissioned by the Commission in 2003 found that 28 per cent of women had experienced sexual harassment in the workplace, compared to seven per cent of men.

Discrimination and harassment are part of a continuum of gender-related violence. Australian research has found that nearly one in five women has experienced sexual violence since the age of 15 and an international study found that around one in three Australian women have experienced violence from an intimate partner.

Ending discrimination, harassment and violence against women is critical for women to be able to equally contribute to and benefit from economic, social, cultural and political life.

As part of the Listening Tour the Commissioner set out to hear directly from women and men about their experiences and to investigate how we can ensure lives free from harassment and violence.

The Commissioner asked participants:

Sexual harassment

Sexual harassment continues to be a major problem.

The Commissioner heard about sexual harassment in every state, industry and workplace that she visited. It appears to be present across all levels of the workplace, although many employers she met seemed reluctant to talk about it.

In some industries it was reported to be the norm and many fear it would be nearly impossible to wipe out.

The stories the Commissioner heard about sexual harassment raised a number of other issues:

Victims of sexual harassment justifiably fear making a complaint will only lead to further victimisation - the idea that a complaint made to an employer could be resolved positively was considered a 'fairy tale' by some, and an outcome for many victims of sexual harassment was instead to leave their workplace or even change career paths if they worked in a small industry.

Young women in early employment are especially vulnerable to sexual harassment.

New technologies, such as mobile phones with email and social networking websites, are adding another dimension to sexual harassment.

A culture of disrespect towards women, led by the way they are portrayed in the media, normalises and encourages sexual harassment.

There is a general lack of understanding around sexual harassment and around where to draw the line between acceptable and unacceptable behaviour.

Some employers are unclear about how best to respond to allegations, and ensure fairness for both the person making the complaint, and the person against whom the complaint is being made.

Sex discrimination

Sex discrimination remains a harsh reality for many Australian women, despite legislation - the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth) - being in place to prevent it for over two decades.

During the course of the Listening Tour, participants spoke about assumptions about men and women, attitudes, stereotypes and the sex discrimination that is a reality of their daily lives, particularly in the workplace.

The experiences of pregnant women, and those who had recently given birth and were seeking to return to their jobs, was of particular concern.

The Commissioner heard that women are vulnerable to bullying when they return after having a child, and that many are not aware of their rights.

"I knew a woman who had three kids. She went back into the same job after the third maternity leave period, [but] she wasn't given the same job back. I had trouble convincing her it was sex discrimination."

Darwin community consultation participant

The experiences of Indigenous, migrant and refugee women highlight a complex interplay of discrimination based on race and gender, which can result in significant disadvantage in their daily life.

For example, some Muslim women suffer harassment and discrimination at work because they wear a hijab. A woman from a group of workers with Asian backgrounds said that if she speaks in Chinese her employer complains she is talking too loudly.

Some women fear losing their jobs if they speak up. And, according to participants, those who do complain come up against limitations and financial barriers in the process.

While the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth) provides a legal avenue for redress, some participants expressed concern about the ability of individual complaints alone to deliver broader cultural change.

One participant suggested that an aspirational or positive rewards system, in addition to the complaints system, could encourage positive systemic changes.

Men said they also face discrimination in areas such as child and family services, which may only recognise mothers as parents, and access to paid leave, flexible hours and part-time work.

Gender related violence

Women with experiences of domestic or family violence told the Commissioner about a lack of emergency housing and available help and that employers could do more to help.

A serious consequence of domestic and family violence is the economic impact for women who experience violence. Women's abusers may often control whether or not they work. Further, when a woman has left that relationship, her self esteem may be so low that it is hard to enter the paid workforce again.

"Domestic violence is an issue that is hard to discuss. There is an element of shame ... You think everyone else is leading a normal life. It was difficult to communicate with my colleagues. It affected me mentally and physically."

Hobart community consultation participant

The shortage of emergency accommodation for women escaping domestic violence was highlighted at a number of community consultations. In Melbourne we heard that this may mean women end up on the streets, where they are also vulnerable to further violence.

There also appears to be a certain silence around abuse, as well as a shortage of adequate services for women - and men - who suffer violence. Some participants criticised the police and court processes, seeing them as a barrier to women seeking justice.

Some employers recognised domestic violence as a business issue, but also identified a gap in knowledge and skills to effectively address it.

A Brisbane organisation called the CEO Challenge is engaging with Chief Executive Officers of organisations to position domestic violence as an issue for the workplace. The program tells men and women where they can access help if they are in the cycle of domestic and family violence.

Indigenous women

Family violence is a significant issue for many Indigenous women living in the cities, as well as in regional and remote communities. Indigenous women's groups said the availability of housing and crisis accommodation was a major issue for women leaving violent relationships, along with the shortage of culturally appropriate services.

In Fitzroy Crossing, women said violence linked to alcohol abuse was their primary concern. A ban on take away alcohol in 2007, the result of lobbying by the women, had reduced the incidence of family violence in the community.

Women with disabilities

The Commissioner heard that a range of factors can increase the likelihood of women with disabilities experiencing violence and prevent them from addressing it. There is a lack of accessible safe accommodation, limited availability of accessible information available for these women and a shortage of trained workers in responding to the particular needs of women with disabilities who have experienced violence.

Migrant and refugee women

Some refugee women spoke of the need for culturally and religiously appropriate services. They commented that the current system may not be culturally appropriate to them.

Additional issues raised during the Listening Tour

Age discrimination

Many older participants in the Listening Tour raised age discrimination as a barrier to full and equal participation in the workplace and other areas of public life.

The Commissioner heard that ageist assumptions and attitudes made it difficult for older men and women to find meaningful work and stay attached to the workforce. Participants also suggested that many recruiters wrongly assume that older people require a senior role and this hampers their search for work.

She was also told about the barriers faced by older people in other areas of life, such as access to public transport, access to public spaces and having to renew their driver's licences.

Northern Territory intervention

The Northern Territory Emergency Response, introduced by the previous federal government, was a regular topic of discussion during our consultations in the Northern Territory.

Participants said that:

Indigenous health

Indigenous participants in the Listening Tour pointed to health as a primary area of concern.

Access to health care for Indigenous communities was raised in consultations in Western Australia, Queensland and the Northern Territory. Problems of access relate both to cultural barriers and physical distances. The nearest hospital can be up to three hours drive from some remote communities.

Some of the significant issues affecting the health of people in Indigenous communities included:

Gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender issues

"My same-sex partner and I were assaulted in Adelaide airport in 2005. We were ... holding hands and kissing. A passer-by chose to hit me, hard, in the back of the head."

ACON (formerly AIDS Council of NSW) submission

Some service providers and individuals drew attention to issues faced by gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people. These included discrimination against same-sex couples under the law and in the workplace, homophobic violence and high levels of prejudice.

The Commissioner was told that legal inequality sends a strong message that same-sex relationships are less valuable, and that this can encourage further discrimination and prejudice.

Discrimination in the workplace was also raised. One focus group participant described an experience of being passed over for a promotion due to her sexuality.

Men's health

The need for a specific and well funded national men's health policy was raised by men's advocates and service providers. They said that there is a lack of public attention and spending on men's health.

The Commissioner heard that the absence of services specifically for men in Indigenous communities is a contributing factor to violence and that men are reluctant to seek assistance for health problems and this leads to poor health outcomes.

Another concern for men is that industries with high occupational health and safety risks tend to be male-dominated.

Women in prison

limited support for women in prison around mental health issues, education and training, and maintaining close relationships with their children

that women are not adequately supported after release from prison, when they may have no money or be suffering complex mental health problems.

Sisters Inside, a Brisbane-based organisation that supports the rights of women in the criminal justice system, raised a number of concerns, including:

Migrant and refugee women

Migrant and refugee women spoke of the difficulties they encountered following their settlement in Australia, including a lack of cultural understanding from government agencies and difficulties for refugees in negotiating cultural difference.

Women's health

Some participants raised issues around reproductive and sexual health, access to health services and the impact of long-term violence on women.

Women's Health NSW said that women are more likely to have poorer health outcomes because of the higher social and economic disadvantage that they experience.

ACON reported that there had been a rise in HIV/AIDS amongst minority groups, particularly Indigenous women and women from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, and highlighted discrimination as a barrier to accessing services for these groups of women.

A Plan of Action Towards Gender Equality

from Elizabeth Broderick, Sex Discrimination Commissioner

Based on the Listening Tour findings, Commissioner Broderick will focus on the following areas:

Women and leadership

Commissioner Broderick will promote the importance of women's representation in leadership and decision making roles across the community, government and business, with a particular focus on Indigenous women. This will include promoting and facilitating opportunities for women to have their voices heard at a national, regional and international level. The Commissioner will also encourage dialogue between Indigenous women and corporate Australia.

Balancing paid work and family responsibilities

Commissioner Broderick will continue to challenge the way Australians think about work and family balance by promoting the value of family friendly work practices. The Commissioner will lead and contribute to achieving a national scheme of paid leave for parents in Australia. She will work with key stakeholders and advocate to government and other policy makers on the need for a world class scheme of paid maternity leave, supporting parent leave and paid parental leave.

Sexual harassment in Australia

Commissioner Broderick will conduct a national telephone survey to track trends in the incidence and nature of sexual harassment. The research will inform an education strategy using new technologies, aimed at employees and employers to drive down the incidence and impact of sexual harassment. The Commissioner will work to increase the number of employers taking a leadership role on sexual harassment.

The gender gap in retirement savings

Commissioner Broderick will work with experts to investigate the factors contributing to the gender gap in retirement savings and inform solutions for increasing women's economic independence over their lifetime.

Laws to address sex discrimination and promote gender equality

Commissioner Broderick will contribute to a review of the federal Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth) to ensure that the law is effective to address sex discrimination and sexual harassment experienced by individuals, as well as promoting gender equality in Australian society.

It is a guiding principle in Commissioner Broderick's work to recognise a diversity of experiences. This is being inclusive of Indigenous women, women with disabilities, culturally and linguistically diverse women, same sex attracted women and low paid women. The Commissioner is committed to including both men and women in her efforts to promote gender equality.

Commissioner Broderick will continue to collaborate with government, business, community groups, unions, researchers and individuals and be a public voice on gender equality issues for Australia.

Dealing with discrimination and harassment

The Sex Discrimination Act protects individuals across Australia from discrimination on the basis of sex, marital status or pregnancy and, in relation to employment, family responsibilities. The Act also makes sexual harassment against the law.

For free advice on discrimination and your rights, or to make a complaint, call the the Commission Complaints Information Line on 02 9284 9888, 1300 656 419 or TTY 1800 620 241.

Information about making or responding to a complaint is available at www.humanrights.gov.au. You can also email us at complaintsinfo@humanrights.gov.au.

Endnotes

Australian Bureau of Statistics, 'Average Weekly Earnings, Australia, February 2008, Cat no. 6302.0' (2007)
Simon Kelly, 'Entering Retirement: the Financial Aspects' (Paper presented at the Communicating the Gendered Impact of Economic Policies: The Case of Women's Retirement Incomes, Perth, 12-13 December 2006)
Australian Human Rights Commission, 'Annual Report 2006-2007' (2007)
Australian Human Rights Commission, '20 Years On: The Challenges Continue, Sexual Harassment in the Australian Workplace' (2004)
Australian Bureau of Statistics, 'Personal Safety, Australia, 2005, Cat no. 4906.0' (2005); Jenny Mouzos and Toni Makkai, 'Women's Experiences of Male Violence: Findings from the Australian Component of the International Violence Against Women Survey (IVAWS)' (Australian Institute of Criminology, 2004

© Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission July 2008
ISBN 978-1-921449-04-8

Listening Tour Community Report acknowledgements

The Australian Human Rights Commission would like to thank the following people:

AUTHORS
Somali Cerise
Black and White Media

EDITORS
Cassandra Goldie
Karen O'Connell

CONTRIBUTORS
Sex Discrimination Commissioner
Elizabeth Broderick

Director, Sex and Age Discrimination Unit
Cassandra Goldie

Sex and Age Discrimination Unit
Somali Cerise
Penny Dordoy
Virginia McKay
Natalie Muir
Karen O'Connell
Sarah Squire

Legal
Jonathon Hunyor
Brook Hely

Public Affairs
Patrick Flynn
Louise McDermott
Paul Oliver
Leon Wild

This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any process without prior written permission from the Australian Human Rights Commission. Requests and enquiries concerning reproduction, rights and content should be addressed to the:

Sex and Age Discrimination Unit
Australian Human Rights Commission
GPO Box 5218
Sydney NSW 2001

Design and layout
JAG Designs

Listening Tour logo design
Jonathon Street

Cover photography
Matt van Gasselt

Printing
Bloxham Chambers

Listening Tour acknowledgements

ACT Human Rights Commission

Annie Kenney Young Women's Refuge

Australian Council of Trade Unions

Alcan Gove Pty Limited

Asian Women at Work

Australian Domestic and Family Violence Clearinghouse

Australian Federal Police

Big River Pork

Blake Dawson

Carers Australia

Centre for African Australian Women's Issues

Centre for Gender Related Violence, University of NSW

Centre for Work + Life, UniSA

City of Salisbury Council

Committee for Economic Development of Australia

David Tan

Diversity Council Australia

Dr Marika

Dulcie Malimara

Equal Opportunity Commission WA

Equal Opportunity Practitioners Association, Queensland

Freehills

Janet Hammill

Karen Woodley

Larrakia Nation Aboriginal Corporation

Launceston Chamber of Commerce

Laynhapuy Homelands Association Inc.

Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Union (WA Branch)

Mackay Regional Council for Social Development Ltd

Macquarie Bank

Marninwarntikura Women's Resource Centre, Fitzroy Crossing

Mensline Australia - Crisis Support Services

Mudgin-Gal Women's Resource Centre

Murray Bridge Council

National Australia Bank

National Seniors Association

Northern Territory Anti-Discrimination Commission

Office for Women, NSW Department of Premier and Cabinet

Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, Brisbane

Pay Equity Unit, Department of Consumer and Employment Protection, Western Australia

Queensland Anti-Discrimination Commission

SA Equal Opportunity Commission

Safe Work SA

Sisters Inside

Tasmania Anti Discrimination Commission

The Bob Hawke Prime Ministerial Centre, UniSA

Unions Tasmania Women's Committee

Victorian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission

Women and Work Research Group, University of Sydney

Women in Social and Economic Research, Curtin University

Women Tasmania

Women's Legal Centre (ACT & Region) Inc

YWCA of Adelaide

Elizabeth Broderick, Sex Discrimination Commissioner and Commissioner responsible for Age Discrimination, would like to thank the following organisations and individuals for their invaluable assistance with the Listening Tour:

Elizabeth Broderick would also like to thank the President, Commissioners and staff of the Australian Human Rights Commission for their valuable contributions to the Listening Tour.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Gender Equality: What matters to Australian women and men. The Listening Tour Community Report (2008)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
As many of you are aware, I became the federal Sex Discrimination Commissioner with the Australian Human Rights Commission (the Commission) in September 2007. One of my main responsibilities is to promote gender equality in Australia as a human right.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The continued discussion against the Safe Schools Coalition Australia (SSCA) has made a series of false claims. These claims are contributing to ongoing misinformation. The SSCA program resources and content are all publically available.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Updated July 25, 2013 15:16:06

Improved and more affordable childcare will undoubtedly play a part in enabling women who want to work to do so. But so will rethinking masculinity, so that childcare and domestic duties become a recognised and significant part of being a dad, argues Katie Attwell. This is one of a series of articles looking at Australia investing in its future in the lead-up to the 2013 federal election. More coverage can be found at the ABC's election website Australia Votes.
The Australian Women's Chamber of Commerce has launched a bid to place more affordable childcare on the federal election radar.

This initiative stands to improve the lives of many working families.

However, there is a toxic tone to this campaign. Women should be wary of the phony-feminist carrot being offered for increased workforce participation.

A significant problem with the AWCC's intervention is that childcare affordability and the limits it places on workforce participation are framed as women's issues.

This, perhaps, is not surprising, since it is generally women who undertake the primary caregiver role, and thus need to be coaxed or enabled to forego it. However, in many Australian heterosexual families, men also take on a care giving role.

Stay-at-home or part-time fathers are completely marginalised from this conversation, which is important at a symbolic level. When primary care-giving is treated as an exclusively female realm, especially when it's framed in negative terms, this reaffirms the notion that childrearing and children are women's responsibilities, and (accordingly) of low value.

In order to sell stay-at-home parents (women) the goal of workforce participation, their current role has to be demeaned and rendered unnecessary.

The instrumentalist push for more affordable childcare forms part of this process. Care for children is a problem to be solved by the state (at the behest of industry) in the interests of economic growth.

The AWCC has argued that stay-at-home parents (overwhelmingly 'mothers') are non-contributors. Not only do they fail to contribute to their families' incomes, they also fail to contribute to the Australian economy.

They don't earn money which they can then spend on consumer goods. And they don't pay tax, which funds infrastructure, so they don't invest in education, healthcare and other public goods.

The counter depiction advanced by the AWCC is a utopian dream, in which women's higher workforce participation benefits women, the economy and therefore the entire population.

Women's lack of participation is depicted as setting the country back for decades.

The notably absent factor in this equation is the benefit (or otherwise) to children, who are little more than a financial liability to be outsourced wherever their care is the cheapest. There is no consideration of whether Australian society will actually benefit in the long term by parents not being actively involved in their children's lives from a young age.

In our family we've never based anything on the assumption that our body parts determine which of us should be working more.

Lest this op-ed be mistaken for a conservative condemnation of 'working mothers', it is far from it. I work myself, and my partner and I currently work part-time in order to also be present with our children. We are also assisted by family members to care for our children, and in their absence we would be using some childcare, or working (and earning) even less than we already do.

However, we would prioritise as much as possible being with our kids.

Crucially, this does not oppress me as a woman. Beyond the early intensive breastfeeding months, in our family we've never based anything on the assumption that our body parts determine which of us should be working more.

Those decisions have instead been determined by the availability of flexible and well-paid work at our respective career stages.

Since having children and working less, I have done a considerable amount of voluntary work, collaborating with other stay-at-home or part-time mums and dads. We have built relationships in our communities and enriched the lives of many people. These activities have marginal economic value, and so do not register on the balance sheet of the AWCC, but they deliver very real benefits.

They do not deserve to be absent from how we measure our society. Nor do the benefits all parents give to their children by being present and engaged in their lives.

Not all families will be able to afford to have a parent at home with the children. And not all parents will choose to. Parents should ultimately choose what makes their family lives as happy and comfortable as they can be.

But this blind push towards full workforce participation in the sinister guise of women's liberation should be treated with caution.

By demeaning and diminishing the contribution of caring for children, and by depicting it as exclusively women's responsibility, we are not making it any more attractive for men to step up and take on childcare and home duties.

That means that even if more women do enter the workforce, they are still going to have the second shift waiting for them at home, because their male partners are still not going to see these roles as their own.

Women are being sold the vision of equality and opportunity, but it's being offered in a poisoned chalice.

The way that the AWCC's intervention is framed, women only get to participate in paid work by outsourcing our childcare to the cheapest possible provider. But no matter how many incentives stay-at-home parents are offered to participate in paid work, for many the price would still remain too high.

Phony feminism is being used to sell women half an opportunity, and then is being used against them if they don't want to take it.

We need to strip away the phony feminism that's being attached to the argument for full work-force participation. If we want to have a real conversation about women's abilities and rights to participate in paid work that doesn't giveth with one hand, and giveth even more on our plates with the other, then it's going to be a conversation which involves men working less.

Such a conversation won't be compatible with the goals of Chambers of Commerce. However, this conversation is the one in which women really need to be participating.

Improved and more affordable childcare will undoubtedly play a part in enabling women who want to work to do so. But so will rethinking masculinity, so that childcare and domestic duties become a recognised and significant part of being a dad.

We need to start by recognising that many dads already to contribute to the caring lives of their families, some in a full-time capacity. And the flow-on from this will be family friendly workplace policies - not pitched towards women, as they currently are - but towards families.
Katie Attwell is a mother of two and has a PhD in politics from Murdoch University. View her full profile here.
First posted July 25, 2013 14:10:50

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Childcare, phony feminism and rethinking masculinity

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Updated July 25, 2013 15:16:06 Improved and more affordable childcare will undoubtedly play a part in enabling women who want to work to do so. But so will rethinking masculinity, so that childcare and domestic duties become a recognised and significant part of being a dad, argues Katie Attwell.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Months after a girl took the company to task for its female toy figures, Lego has released the Research Institute, a play set created by a "real-life geophysicist, Ellen Kooijman," the company says.

The set will let kids take on the roles of paleontologist, astronomer and chemist, using three female figures.

"I love Legos," wrote Charlotte Benjamin in a letter that went viral after she sent it to the corporate heads at Lego.

She voiced criticism regarding the female characters previously included in the toy sets, saying they just "sit at home, go to the beach, and shop," while the boy characters "saved people, had jobs, even swam with sharks!"

Sales are soaring for the Research Institute set, which costs about $18. (Order on Amazon, here)

( READ the story at NPR News)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Lego Releases Female Scientist Set After 7-year-old Girl Complains - Good News Network

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Charlotte Benjamin voiced harsh criticism for her beloved LEGO brand regarding the female characters included in their toy sets, saying they just "sit at home, go to the beach, and shop," while the boy characters "saved people, had jobs, even swam with sharks!" Lego responded with the Research Institute set about three female scientists.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Scott Morrison says he sends his children to private school because he doesn't want "the values of others" imposed on his children.

The prime minister agreed with broadcaster Alan Jones that a Victorian program that contains material about teen sexuality made his "skin curl".

Morrison also declined to take a position on gay conversion therapy, during a separate talkback radio interview on Monday.

In an interview on 2GB, Jones asked the new prime minister whether a high school program aimed at preventing family violence made his "skin curl". Describing the building respectful relationships program as "a fancy word for safe schools", Jones claimed students were told to role play students with various sexualities.

"Does this make your skin curl? That there are character cards under this [program] where young kids in schools, girls, Megan, we're told that Megan is 17, she lives in the city and works in the local cafe she's had 15 sexual partners and describes herself as bisexual, and these girls in class are told to role model these particular people," Jones said.

"Year 9 students are told to role play them and the teachers are given role-playing cards. And Kelly is 14 and she's interested in girls she's not sure but she thinks she might be a lesbian and all of this is going on in the classroom. Is that going to happen in classrooms under your prime ministership?"

Morrison, who sends his two daughters to an independent Baptist school, agreed that it made his skin curl, and said public schools should be focused on "things like learnings maths and science".

"It does Alan for this reason, the values I have as a parent, that Jenny and I have as parents, that's where you get your values from," he said.

"I don't want the values of others being imposed on my children in my school and I don't think that should be happening in a public school or a private schools.

"That's why I want to protect the independent schools to ensure they can continue on providing at least that choice. When it comes to public schools ... how about we just have state schools that focus on things like learning maths [and] learning science."

Morrison said it was "one of the reasons" he sent his children to a religious school.

"It's not happening in the school I send my kids to, and that's one of the reasons I send them there," he told 2GB in Sydney.

The building respectful relationships program is a Victorian government initiative designed to "address and prevent family violence, through the examination of topics around gender, power and respect".

According to the Victorian government it came out of the 2016 Royal Commission into family violence, which "identified the critical role that schools and early childhood education have in creating a culture of respect to change the story of family violence for future generations".

The Victorian education department has been contacted for comment.

Morrison is a devout Christian and a member of the Sutherland Shire's Horizon Church in Sydney's south. Housed in a 1200-seat auditorium, the church is part of the Pentecostal Christian church.

During another radio interview on Monday he was asked by 3AW's Neil Mitchell about his position on gay conversion therapy, a term used to describe attempts to change someone's sexual orientation or gender identity.

Conversion therapy practices have been discredited across the globe, but the practice still exists in some faith-based organisations.

A coalition of survivors, pastors and community advocates has been circulating a petition calling for a crackdown on the practice.

But when asked about the petition on Monday, Morrison refused to either endorse or condemn the practice.

Saying he had "never really thought about it", the prime minister said people should "make their own decisions" about their lives.

"I respect people of all sexualities, I respect people of all religions, all faiths. I love all Australians," he said.

"I've never been involved in anything like that, I've never supported anything like that, it's just not an issue for me and I'm not planning to get engaged in the issue."

Labor has indicated it will crack down on the issue if the party wins government, and the Greens have long argued for reform.

"Conversion therapies and sexual orientation change efforts are harmful and can have fatal consequences. They must must be stamped out," Greens senator Janet Rice said on Monday.

"The basic premise of conversion therapy and sexual orientation change efforts is that LGBTIQ people can and must be changed, rather than being perfect and accepted for who they are."

Morrison's public support for religious schools over the public sector comes amid an increasingly fractious education funding debate.

While new education minister Dan Tehan has been given a remit to solve the funding stand-off with the Catholic education sector, the public school sector has signalled its own unhappiness with current funding arrangements.
Topics

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Scott Morrison sends his children to private school to avoid 'skin curling' sexuality discussions

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Scott Morrison says he sends his children to private school because he doesn't want "the values of others" imposed on his children. The prime minister agreed with broadcaster Alan Jones that a Victorian program that contains material about teen sexuality made his "skin curl".