A multi-disciplinary response to family violence – building communities of action

The federal inquiry into family, domestic and sexual violence was announced by the Honourable Marise Payne and the Honourable Senator Anne Ruston on the 4th of June 2020, and public hearings commenced last week following the Inquiry receiving over 150 submissions. Whilst advocates across Australia met this new Inquiry with scepticism, the Inquiry does provide an opportunity to rethink reform, and in particular highlight opportunities to address some of the lesser-known aspects of gendered violence that are critical to a whole-of-community response.

Today’s analysis is provided by CEO Stella Avramopoulos (@stellaavram), Laura Vidal (@lauraemilyvidal), and Madeleine Ulbrick (@maddyulbrick) of Good Shepherd Australia New Zealand (@goodshepANZ, @GoodAdvocacy) who argue that a multi-disciplinary and cross-sector response presents opportunities for action to prevent all forms of violence against women and their children. This piece is part 1 of 3, and draws on the Good Shepherd submission into the Inquiry which can be read in its entirety here.

Trampolines not traps: Listening to single mothers about what needs to change

Low-income single mothers continue to be caught in the binds of poverty and insecurity, with limited choices and opportunities. Despite some policy changes, including a temporary increase in social security payments and suspension of mutual obligation requirements, the underlying infrastructure of inequality remains. In today’s analysis, Dina Bowman (@Dina_Bowman) and Seuwandi Wickramasinghe, both of the Brotherhood of St Laurence (@BrotherhoodInfo), share a summary of their recently-published report Trampolines not traps: Enabling economic security for single mothers and their children.

Reducing gender inequality and boosting the economy: Fiscal policy after COVID-19

Australia is facing an unprecedented economic shock. Thus far, much of the targeted stimulus spending has been concentrated in male-dominated industries. In today’s analysis, Elizabeth Hill of University of Sydney (@USydneyEcon) provides evidence for encouraging women’s workforce participation through investing in social infrastructure and subsidising early childhood education and care. This analysis was originally published as part of a series on Labour Market Policy after COVID-19 produced by CEDA (@ceda_news); you can read it in its original form here.

The ‘Herstory’ of superannuation: Uncovering the discriminatory traps that disadvantage women

With so many Australians accessing their superannuation accounts early in response to the current economic downturn, there is more attention than ever at how the retirement scheme fails to provide adequate retirement savings for women. A new report - The Herstory of Super by Emma Dawson (@DawsonEJ) and Simone Casey (@SimoneCasey) of Per Capita (@PerCapita) – provides the historic context needed to understand why the system is failing women, and provides recommendations for sustainably supporting women into their old age.

Dear Senators: For many of us the pandemic is a blessing

In response to the Coronavirus pandemic, the Federal government has provided a temporary $550 supplement to many income support payments. These are due to be reduced on 24 September. For many families who have been reliant on income support, this effective doubling of payments has meant a more stable and healthy life. In today’s important analysis, we republish a lightly-edited letter to Senator Marise Payne, Minister for Women, and Senator Anne Ruston, Minister for Families and Social Services, authored by Terese Edwards (@Terese_NCSMC) of the National Council for Single Mothers and their Children, and Casandra Goldie (@CassandraGoldie), CEO of ACOSS (@ACOSS). The letter puts forward the case for making the supplement permanent because it assists women to leave domestic and family violence, and is interspersed with testimonies from women about the impact of the supplement on the family. This letter has been endorsed by several agencies.

Reimagining child care for an effective, equitable and resilient economic recovery

During the economic slow-down during the pandemic, the childhood education and care (ECEC) sector has been at the receiving end of highly uneven policy approaches, making it difficult to understand how the sector will remain viable and ready to ‘snap back.’ In today’s analysis, Romy Listo (@RomyListo) and Helen Dalley-Fisher, both of Equality Rights Alliance (@ERAAustralia), summarise ERA’s policy position paper on reimagining childcare.

Womens Policy Action TankWomen's Policy Action Tank1 September 2020Children, Workforce Reform, employment, education, COVID-19

Getting serious about holistic recovery requires gender-responsive budgeting

In a year full of surprises, the delay of the national budget is but a blip on the screen. As pre-submissions to the budget close this week, Policy Whisperer Susan Maury (@SusanMaury) and Jeremy Levine (@_JeremyLevine), both of Good Shepherd Australia New Zealand, analyse how integrating a process of gender-responsive budgeting could enable Australia’s state and federal governments to identify and address some of the many social and economic hits that COVID-19 has unleashed. This analysis draws on their testimony to the Victorian Government’s Inquiry into Gender Responsive Budgeting. A copy of the tabled document and full transcript is available here.

The kids are not all right: Young women and the impacts of COVID-19

Young women have borne more than their share of the hardship created by COVID-19 and the government response. Young women are more likely to be in precarious employment which was not covered by JobKeeper, for example, and are also more likely to be studying, which has not had an adequate federal response to address hardship. Young women are also the group most likely to become infected by COVID-19, and while the reasons why are unclear, it could be because young women are disproportionately exposed to the virus through their work environment – including in such sectors as health care, care work, education and public-facing employment in cafes and restaurants. In today’s analysis, Brianna Delahunty and Emma Riseley, of the Equality Rights Alliance Young Women’s Advisory Group (@ERAAustralia) and supported by the National Foundation for Australian Women Social Policy Committee (@NFAWomen), provide an analysis of how young women are being left out of critically-needed policy responses.

Providing the big picture on gender equality and suicide rates

Women have poorer mental health and engage in more suicidal behaviours than men, and all indications are that the Coronavirus and responses to it have exacerabated this mental health gap. Today’s analysis takes a deep dive into global trends to understand whether gender equality may correlate to rates of suicide. Tania King (@TaniaLKing) of University of Melbourne (@unimelbMSPGH), one of the authors of Shifts in gender equality and suicide: An panel study of changes over time in 87 countries, provides a summary of their findings.

550 Reasons to Smile: Why single mothers are so happy these days

Single mother-headed households are consistently the poorest household type in Australia, and the Women’s Policy Action Tank has published many analyses that illuminate their dire situation. In today’s analysis, Terese Edwards (@Terese_NCSMC) of the National Council for Single Mothers and Their Children provide us with a piece full of hope and excitement, detailing how the temporary rise in welfare payments have changed lives and provided hope.

An economist's view: In a 'she-cession', we can't rely on 'he-covery' policy fixes

There has been much talk of the ‘she-cession’ and whether the Federal government’s policy responses are adequate to respond to changes in employment. In today’s analysis, Leonora Risse (@Leonora_Risse) of RMIT (@RMIT) and the Women and Public Policy Program at Kennedy School (@wapppHKS) provides the data analysis to explain why women are being disproportionately impacted by the economic downturn and how the government could provide more targeted responses. You can also read Dr. Risse’s very popular analysis of the COVID-19 frontline workforce’s undervalued status as well as her thoughts on making the pandemic an opportunity to re-imagine a more just economy.

COVID-19 and mental health impacts: Women are at greater risk

The Australian government has recently announced a $20 million injection of funds into mental health and suicide prevention research, acknowledging that disruptions to usual routines due to COVID-19 are increasing risk. However, it is notable that where mental health research is funded specific to one gender, it is most often designated for males. Today’s analysis explains why lopsided funding is misplaced; women experience worse overall mental health compared to men, and they are also disproportionately negatively impacted by COVID-19 and its policy responses. This analysis has been adapted from a policy brief compiled by Women’s Health Victoria (@WHVictoria) for the Women’s Mental Health Alliance. Graphs appear courtesy of Gender Equity Victoria (@genderequityvic); view their infographics here.

COVID-19 impacts on domestic and family violence are coming into focus. Urgent action is needed

While it was anticipated that lockdown measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic would increase incidences of domestic and family violence, barriers to women accessing help made the full effects difficult to measure. In today’s analysis, Hayley Foster (@CEOWomensSafety) of Women’s Safety NSW (@WomensSafetyNSW) shares a summary of findings from a survey of practitioners which provide an emerging picture of what women’s experiences have been in lockdown and how the service system needs to be strengthened so that women have a realistic pathway to safety. Specific recommendations for keeping women safer provide a roadmap for immediate service and policy reform.

Young women’s post-pandemic pathways: Is more education really the answer?

Much has been written about the gendered impacts of COVID-19, the attendant economic downturn and the government policy responses. In today’s analysis, Signe Ravn (@Ravn_Signe), Brendan Churchill (@BrenChurchill) and Leah Ruppanner (@Leahruppanner), all of University of Melbourne, explain why young women are facing particular employment challenges and how government policy responses are failing to account for their particular circumstances. Young women are at risk of falling through the policy cracks, with long-term negative outcomes for their economic security.

‘A Man’s Home is His Castle. And Mine is a Cage’: A feminist Political Economy Analysis of Economic Abuse in Victoria

There is increasing understanding that economic abuse coincides with other forms of family violence and abuse, as the perpetrator is driven to exert power and control. Despite this, its hidden nature and the various forms it takes means it is seldom addressed in system responses. In today’s post, Dr Madeleine Ulbrick (@MaddyUlbrick) of Good Shepherd Australia New Zealand (@GoodAdvocacy) shares insights from her recently completed PhD on economic abuse responses in Victoria. She argues that to effectively achieve women’s physical security, their material security must be prioritised.

How is COVID-19 affecting women recovering from eating disorders?

Recent research conducted by the University of Melbourne and LaTrobe University reports that women are experiencing higher levels of anxiety as a result of the coronavirus, and while the Federal Government has recently announced $20 million more in financial support for mental health responses, the funding priorities are out of step with emerging needs. In today’s analysis, Sarah Squire (@SquireSarah) of the Butterfly Foundation (@Bfoundation) explains how COVID-19 responses are exacerbating poor mental health for women and girls who are impacted by disordered eating.

Womens Policy Action TankWomen's Policy Action Tank28 May 2020mental health, COVID-19, gender

For single mothers, financial concerns have been top of the list for far too long

Millions of Australians are currently dependent on some form of government welfare payment, and many are experiencing financial stress for the first time. As the consistently poorest household type in Australia, single mothers are disproportionately acquainted with the distress of trying to maintain a household on low welfare payments and precious employment. Unsurprisingly, new ABS data indicates that single mothers have had the worst employment outcomes during COVID-19. In today’s analysis, Margaret Ambrose of the Council for Single Mothers and their Children reports on the findings of a national survey of single mothers to uncover what their pain points are, and how these might be addressed to increase their financial security and place them and their children on a positive trajectory.

Will child care ‘snap back’ from COVID-19?

In partnership with the National Foundation for Australian Women (@NFAWomen), we are running a series of pieces that analyse how the Covid-19 pandemic is differentially impacting on women. In today’s piece, Marie Coleman[1] (@MarieCo92176893) examines the situation surrounding early childhood education and child care, and considerations for families, governments, providers/services coming out of the pandemic.

Holistic responses to economic abuse: Reporting on progress

The Royal Commission into Family Violence identified economic abuse as a mostly hidden but highly prevalent method for exerting power and control. In response, the Economic Abuse Reference Group (EARG) was established to ensure that a holistic response to economic abuse is embedded across government, industry and essential services. In today’s post, Dr Madeleine Ulbrick (@MaddyUlbrick) of Good Shepherd Australia New Zealand and Carolyn Bond AO (@carolynLBond) of EARG share highlights from their recently-released report, Responding to Financial Abuse.

Pay equity: Valuing our essential services

In partnership with the National Foundation for Australian Women (@NFAWomen), we are running a series of pieces that analyse how the Covid-19 pandemic is differentially impacting on women. In today’s analysis Kathy McDermott of NFAW provides the first in a three-part series that looks at women and employment. Today’s piece examines the undervaluing of female-dominated industries.

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