SENATOR THE HON KATY GALLAGHER
MINISTER FOR FINANCE
MINISTER FOR WOMEN
MINISTER FOR THE PUBLIC SERVICE
SENATOR FOR THE AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY

WOMEN'S ECONOMIC EQUALITY TASKFORCE REPORTS TO GOVERNMENT

The Women’s Economic Equality Taskforce has provided the Australian Government with its final report, Women's Economic Equality: A 10-year plan to unleash the full capacity and contribution of women to the Australian economy.

The seven primary recommendations to the Government include immediate and longer-term actions, focusing on the key themes of care, work, education and skills, the tax and transfer system and Government processes.

The Minister for Women, Senator the Hon Katy Gallagher, thanked the 13 eminent members of the Taskforce for their report and said that this work delivered on an election commitment to ensure that the most-pressing economic issues facing women across Australia were heard by Government.

“Led by Sam Mostyn AO, the WEET has identified the barriers that women face in the Australian economy and provided Government with practical advice on how to address these issues.

“The Government will consider these recommendations alongside the analysis and policy directions of the Employment White Paper as we continue to develop a National Strategy to achieve gender equality that will be released in 2024.”

The Albanese Government has placed women’s economic equality at the heart of its agenda and has already made significant progress in addressing some of the WEET’s recommendations including by:

• Delivering the single biggest investment in the Paid Parental Leave scheme since its introduction
• Expanding Parenting Payment Single and abolishing ParentsNext
• Making sure the Workplace Relations systems works for women through the Secure Jobs, Better Pay reforms
• Expanding gender responsive budgeting

The final report of the Women’s Economic Equality Taskforce is available on the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet’s website.

Taskforce members comprised:

• Sam Mostyn AO (Chair) – Former President of Chief Executive Women
• Adrienne Picone – Chief Executive Officer of Tasmania’s Council of Social Service
• Chiou See Anderson – President at National Council of Women of Australia; board member of the International Council of Women
• Danielle Wood – Chief Executive Officer of Grattan Institute; President of the Economic Society of Australia; co-founder and first Chair of the Women in Economics Network
• Jennifer Westacott AO – Chief Executive of the Business Council of Australia
• Jenny Macklin – Vice-Chancellor’s Fellow at the University of Melbourne, School of Government
• Michele O’Neil – President of the Australian Council of Trade Unions
• Professor Rae Cooper AO – Director of the Gender Equality in Working Life Research Initiative, University of Sydney; President Elect of International Labor and Employment Relations Association (ILERA)
• Samantha Connor – President of People with Disability Australia
• Shelley Cable – Nyoongar, Director & advocate for Indigenous economic empowerment
• Shirleen Campbell – Co-ordinator of the Tangentyere Women's Family Safety Group; NT Local Hero in 2020
• Sizol Fuyana – Founder of Fuyana Support; 2022 Northern Territory Young Australian of the Year
• Terese Edwards – Executive Director of the National Council of Single Mothers and their Children.

MONDAY, OCTOBER 23 2023