Women's Rights

Editor: Justin Healey
ISBN 978 1 920801 31 1
Year 2005

Price: $20.95

  

Women's Rights
Volume 222, Issues in Society

In spite of advancements made in women’s status over the past 30 years in Australia by feminism and the women’s movement, women still experience inequality in employment, pay, superannuation, education, leadership and political representation. This title looks at Australian women’s achievements, rights, representation and roles, including: historical milestones; women’s human rights; the Sex Discrimination Act; women in politics; women’s restricted roles in the military and the clergy; work issues – pay equity, family flexibility, sexual harassment and breaking through the glass ceiling.

Chapter 1  Women’s Rights, Representation and Roles
Facts and figures about Australian women; Women in Australia – milestones 1871–2004; Feminism and women’s rights; Women’s human rights; Women and human rights; Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women; Sex discrimination: a guide to the Sex Discrimination Act; Electoral milestones for women; Build upon a flawed past; Political sisters need a comfort zone; Still the second sex; Still no easy choice; Khaki ceiling for military’s women; No case to bar women warriors; Why ordain women?; Woman also was created in the image of her Maker; God’s will must override the dictates of feminism.

Chapter 2  Women and Work Issues
Women in the workforce: what issues do they face?; Women, work and equity – an overview; The working lives of women; Equal pay – equal but paid less; Sex discrimination is alive and well; Women, management and decision making; Women win seats in boardrooms; Glass ceiling reflects poorly on Aussie business; Sexual harassment in the workplace; Harassed workers forced from jobs.

Glossary; Facts and Figures; Additional Resources; Index



FAST FACTS from this volume
  • In October 2002 there were 4,150,800 employed women; the labour force participation rate of all women (15 years and over) was 55.4 per cent; the women’s unemployment rate was 5.9 per cent.
  • The apparent retention rate to Year 12 in 2001 was 79.1 per cent for girls compared with 68.1 per cent for boys.
  • Women hold over 33 per cent of Australian Government Board positions under total Australian Government control (June 2003).
  • 198 or 35.8 per cent of the 2004 Australia Day Honours were received by women.
  • In 2001 Australia’s estimated total fertility rate was the lowest on record at 1.73 babies per woman, compared to 1.75 in 2000.
  • Australia’s fertility rate remains lower than that of New Zealand (2.0) and the United States of America (1.9) and higher than Canada (1.6), Japan (1.3) and many European countries such as Italy and Greece (each 1.2).
  • The median age of mothers (that is where half of the mothers were younger and half were older) in 2001 was 30 years, compared to 26.6 years in 1980.
  • If current rates continue, 24 per cent of Australian women would remain childless at the end of their reproductive life.
  • In 2001, 33% of Australia’s small business operators were women.
  • Millions of women throughout the world live in conditions of abject deprivation of, and attacks against, their fundamental human rights for no other reason than that they are women.
  • 50.6 per cent of women with bachelor’s degrees are professionals. This is higher than the number of male professionals with bachelor’s degrees – 43.9 per cent.
  • In 2002-03, 87 per cent of complaints under the Sex Discrimination Act received by the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission were in the area of employment. 87 per cent of the complaints made under this Act were made by women.
  • Today, women earn 84.7 cents in the male dollar when the average weekly earnings of full-time ordinary time workers are compared. When part-timers and casuals are included, this gap widens to 65.3 cents in the male dollar.
  • Women account for the majority of casual and part-time workers – in 2000, they made up 73 per cent of all part-time employees.
  • In August 2003, 62.3 per cent of women aged 15 to 64 years were in the labour force, including 64.1 per cent of married women and 59.4 per cent of unmarried women. This represents a rise from 60 per cent in 1989, but a slight fall since 1999.
  • Australia has a highly gender segmented workforce. In November 2003, women comprised just over 13 per cent of mining and construction workers, but 78 per cent in health and community services, and 67 per cent in education. Similarly, women made up 26 per cent of managers and administrators, and 10 per cent of workers in trades and related areas, but 88 per cent of advanced clerical and service workers.
  • Women are less likely than men to run their own unincorporated business (with or without employees).
  • Women are considerably more likely than men to be part-time rather than full-time workers: of those employed in August 2003, 45 per cent of women worked part-time, compared to only 15 per cent of men, although this proportion has increased for both men and women since 1989. Among those who are unemployed, a higher proportion of women than men are looking for part-time work.
  • Compared to men, women are still contributing almost double the value of unpaid housework. On the other hand men, on average, spend more hours per week than women in paid employment.
  • Unemployment rates for men (5.3 per cent) were slightly lower than for women at 6.0 per cent for November 2003, but women were less likely than men to have been unemployed for a year or more.
  • In the Australian public service, where women in June 2003 made up 53 per cent of permanent employees, they occupied 30 per cent of senior executive positions.
  • Women represent 30 per cent overall of Commonwealth, state and territory governments with the highest representation in the Australian Capital Territory at 41 per cent and lowest in Tasmania at 25 per cent.
  • In 2004 the number of women executive managers in Australia’s companies listed on the ASX has increased by 1.8% to 10.2%. The number of women board directors has increased by only 0.2% to 8.6%.
  • The number of companies in the ASX200 with no female executive managers has decreased by more than 10% since the Census was first conducted in 2002, however this is still a high 42%. The number of companies with two or more women executive managers has increased to nearly 25%, a rise of 6.3% since 2002.
  • On all measures Australia lags behind the USA and Canada. 86% of US Fortune 500 and 62.4% of Canadian Financial Post 500 companies have at least one woman in an executive management position.
  • Despite women’s workforce participation climbing to the highest ever rate of 45% and 56% of university graduates being female, women are still scarce in the top most corporate positions. Of the ASX200 companies, women hold only two Chairs of Boards and four CEO positions.