The Guardian 4 June, 2008
Unions push for
national paid maternity leave scheme
A paid maternity leave scheme for all Australian women would be of great benefit to families and business and is something that is long overdue. Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) National Secretary Dave Oliver has welcomed the numerous submissions from peak union bodies and advocacy groups to the Productivity Commission’s inquiry into paid parental leave.
"There are only five countries in the world that don’t have a paid maternity leave scheme and we are one of them. It’s clear that we lag far behind on this issue and need to catch up."
Mr Oliver said that the AMWU has been a long time advocate of paid maternity leave, campaigning on the issue in many workplaces as part of enterprise bargaining.
"We have a number of workplaces around Australia where we have been successful in securing this condition and where many of our members have benefited from it."
Several different models have been submitted by unions and the AMWU is developing its views on which models will most effectively deliver for working women and their families.
The Australian Council of Trade Unions has proposed a scheme which would create a 14 week minimum standard across Australia, which it says could be in place by next year, at a modest cost of $518 million dollars.
Other longer-term schemes proposed include a universal six month minimum standard, which is based on a World Health Organisation recommendation that mothers breast-feed their babies for the first six months.
The International Labour Organisation’s minimum standard is 14 weeks, but many other countries have schemes that allow parents to share up to 18 months of paid paternity leave.
Australia and the US remain the only two OECD countries not to have systems of paid maternity leave.
Mr Oliver said that the current situation could no longer be tolerated in Australia.
"Many women drop out of the workforce altogether while many other women are forced back to work too early because of financial pressures at home or fear of losing their job. This really is no longer an acceptable or viable situation for Australia to be in."