Human Rights and

Feminist Framework for

Community Development

Jane Corpuz - Brock,

Executive Officer

3 September 2012

Immigrant Women’s Speakout Association of NSW

Email: women@speakout.org.au Phone: 9635 8022

Women & distribution of wealth in

Australia

The Federal Office for Women under the former Minister Tanya Plibersek -commissioned a study & the following were the findings:

-The study, by the National Centre for Social and Economic Modelling, in Australia found the dominant reason for the pay gap was that employers discriminated against women for "simply being female“

-If the "effects of being female" were eliminated, women would be paid an average $1.87 more an hour, or up to $65 more a week

-But it wasn't education, experience or historical factors that kept women earning 17 per cent less than male colleagues

[Source: “Women paid less than men in Australia, Sun Herald, 15/3/2010http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/women-paid-less-than-men-in-australia/story-e6frf7jo-1225840663167]

Impact of increasing gap between the rich and poor in Australia and also the

global financial crisis that is afflicting the whole of Europe

 - the disparity between men's and women's wages costs the economy $92 billion a year in lost output

- The economy would also benefit to the tune of $56 billion, or 5.1 per cent of Gross Domestic Product

- "It's not good for the family budget, but it's also an enormous source of potential growth in the economy and in businesses," Ms Tanya Plibersek, Minister-Office for Women, said. She said most pay discrimination was subconscious and she urged employers to look at how they treated female employees.

- "It's exactly the same as discriminating against someone based on their cultural background. How can you get away with it?” (Simone Sky, 32 yrs old, primary school teacher)

Source: “Women paid less than men in Australia, Sun Herald, 15/3/2010

Organising Women and the Trade Union

Movement• Mixed history – • History of misogyny (dislike of women and girls -

discrimination) in the union movement as well as many associations, BUT

• Courageous fore-mothers fought for the right to struggle as workers!!

• Women think, work and relate differently – thankfully!!

• Women have changed unions FOR THE BETTER

• Men in unions have changed (maybe slowly!!)

• Women workers struggles BREAK NEW GROUND

• Women workers victories are for whole community

Leadership of Women – in the Trade Union

Movement and beyond • Let’s name the women who are leaders in the unions

• This is a measure of how far we have come!!

• Women leaders – collective and individual achievement• Change because our fore-mothers women in workplaces

became better organised, more articulate and courageous.• Women who have led have EARNED their leadership

position through their work, dedication and qualities• Achievements of women’s movement – e.g greater equality

before law, versus domestic violence, access to education, child care, cultural change, sisterhood and more!

• Unions inspire wider leadership or women

Achievements of Migrant and Refugee

women• Survival, transition and growth of whole

families

• Navigating inter-generational issues with children

• Bridging community and the ‘main stream’

• Leadership in accessible, inclusive and cohesive way

• Embracing what is good in Australia – fairness, community bond, openness

Challenges facing Women and our

communities• Legacy: Living the vision of our fore-mothers

• Little boxes mentality: dividing women, men and communities

• Conservative swing back in the next election: an Abbott government?

• Economic crisis: as an excuse to strip rights away from us

• Inequality: luxury/consumerism vs survival

• Self-belief: yes we can!

• Hard yards – getting proposals, policies, campaigns and ORGANISATION in the right direction -

• Let’s get organised!!

What we can do?• Let’s get organised

• Promote women workers struggles – the frontlines -• Pay equality• Cleaners campaign• Job stability vs casualisation and out working• Official Development Aid (ODA) to developing

countries for job creation to combat Trafficking and modern-day slavery

• International solidarity

• Resist division and atomisation – in work place, in the community, as a political ethos

• Believe in ourselves!!

CEDAWConvention on the Elimination of Discrimination

Against WomenArticle 111. States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to eliminate discrimination against women in the field of employment in order to ensure, on a basis of equality of men and women, the same rights, in particular:(a) The right to work as an inalienable right of all human beings;(b) The right to the same employment opportunities, including the application of the same criteria for selection in matters of employment;

(c) The right to free choice of profession and employment, the right to promotion, job security and all benefits and conditions of service and the right to receive vocational training and retraining, including apprenticeships, advanced vocational training and recurrent training;

(d) The right to equal remuneration, including benefits, and to equal treatment in respect of work of equal value, as well as equality of treatment in the evaluation of the quality of work;

(e) The right to social security, particularly in cases of retirement, unemployment, sickness, invalidity and old age and other incapacity to work, as well as the right to paid leave;

(f) The right to protection of health and to safety in working conditions, including the safeguarding of the function of reproduction.

Women’s rights are

human rights- September 1995, Beijing, China – World Women’s Conference on Equality Peace

and Development