Count their families in to help close the gender pay gap

As the gender pay gap data released last week made clear, employers need more women in the higher-paying areas of leadership if they hope to close the difference in the median full-time wages of men and women – and it starts with sharing the caring.   To make that happen, both government and employers alike […]

Time to end the lag in men accessing family-friendly workplace policies

Incredibly, Labor Senator Raff Ciccone became the first father to bring his baby into the Senate last week, two years after the Set the Standard report, which included recommendations to enhance the wellbeing, balance and flexibility of parliamentarians and workers.   While Ciccone thanked his parliamentary colleagues for creating a “family-friendly environment” in the Senate […]

A booming opportunity for employers to support care givers

All too often when the topic of supporting carers in the workplace is raised, the conversation quickly starts and ends with a focus on women and babies.  Wider caring responsibilities of employees often don’t get a look in sadly.  Don’t get me wrong, there’s no denying investment in parental leave support is critical to improving […]

Lessons from Australia: how family-friendly policies support gender equality

Lessons from Australia

Published this week in a special edition Essays on Equality: The politics of childcare, from the Global Institute of Women’s Leadership, is Lessons from Australia: how family-friendly policies support gender equality from founder and CEO of Family Friendly Workplaces and Parents At Work Emma Walsh. Chaired by Hon Julia Gillard AC, the publication features a […]

The sick day and office ‘perks’ need an overhaul to support mental health

Mental health and employee wellbeing

The need for and the way we use a ‘sick day’ changed dramatically during the pandemic. For some employees, access to paid sick leave remains challenging due to the workplace culture or environment and due to employee shortages.   Meanwhile, with the rise of flexible and remote work options, many employees feel the pressure to […]

Best practice advice from UNICEF to support Family Friendly Workplaces certification

In their latest report ‘Integrating Child Rights across the ASX’, UNICEF Australia provides leading organisations with recommendations on how to increase their focus on safeguarding children.   With less than 1% of companies having a specific commitment to respecting children’s rights further than child labour, there are opportunities for Australian companies to do better. One […]