New government ‘report card’ to track women’s equality

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Australia’s progress on gender equality will be tracked in a new annual ‘Report Card’, launched to coincide with International Women’s Day.

The first Report Card on the Status of Women, published on Wednesday, showed that women and girls still face unique challenges in Australia.

In addition to twice as many women experiencing sexual harassment as men, women 55 and older are the fastest growing group of homeless people.

Women also continue to do most of the unpaid domestic work, even if they are the main breadwinner: 24.1 hours compared to 19.1 hours.

These factors contribute to Australia ranking 43rd in the world for gender equality, according to the World Economic Forum.

Making the challenge even greater, 30 per cent of Australian men do not believe that gender inequality exists, which is more than the world average of 21 per cent.

Women’s Minister Katy Gallagher says the Albanian government is committed to making gender equality a national priority.

“The reality is that while we are making some progress on gender equality, we are not there yet, and in some aspects of women’s lives, progress has stalled,” said Senator Gallagher.

“Clearing these statistics can be difficult, but it is crucial if we are to have an honest conversation about gender equality in this country.”

An extensive collection of data contained in the report helps paint a picture of what life is like for women in Australia, including that more than a quarter are foreign-born and about 18 per cent identify with a disability.

The government will publish a national strategy in the second half of this year to guide action by the “whole community.”

–PAA