PAID PARENTAL LEAVE

The Hon. J.M. GAZZOLA (15:18): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for the Status of Women a question about the Good Transitions website.

Leave granted.

The Hon. J.M. GAZZOLA: Australia's first national paid parental leave scheme started on 1 January 2011. This excellent initiative of the Gillard government is already making a difference to the lives of many.

An honourable member interjecting:

The Hon. J.M. GAZZOLA: I know you're not interested.

The Hon. J.M.A. Lensink: It's not as generous as Tony Abbott's.

The Hon. J.M. GAZZOLA: I know you're not interested.

The Hon. J.M.A. Lensink: I am interested.

The Hon. J.M. GAZZOLA: No, you're not.

The Hon. J.M.A. Lensink: What are you waiting for?

The Hon. J.M. GAZZOLA: I am just waiting for the President, unlike your rudeness. Sir, will the minister tell the council where people in South Australia can find more information about the parental leave scheme?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, Minister for Forests, Minister for Regional Development, Minister for Tourism, Minister for the Status of Women) (15:19): We should be very proud of our federal government. Its paid parental leave scheme is, as the member said, making a real difference to working parents and is an economically responsible scheme. As members might recall, the relevant legislation was passed by the commonwealth parliament on 17 June 2010. The parental leave scheme provides leave for a total of 18 weeks, which can be shared by eligible parents after the birth or adoption of their child. For many low income, casual and part-time workers, contractors and the self-employed, the Gillard government scheme is providing financial security that they have never had before.

I understand that half of all mothers who have claimed the government funded paid parental leave had incomes of less than $43,000 in the year before their baby was born or adopted. This shows that paid parental leave is particularly important for women on lower incomes, many of whom do not have access to paid parental leave through their employer.

I am advised that the Productivity Commission found that women on lower incomes, particularly those in casual jobs (for example, the retail and hospitality sectors) have had the lowest levels of access to employer provided paid parental leave, so it is wonderful that the government scheme is now available to them.

I was delighted to be informed that the employers have also embraced this scheme which, of course, helps them retain valuable skilled and experienced staff without having to fund the parental leave themselves. I understand that over the past year more than 22,000 employers have registered to provide the government funded parental leave pay to their eligible employees.

I can also inform members that the Office for Women has created a web resource entitled Good Transitions to support line managers to successfully maintain engagement with employees before, during and after parental leave. The site focuses on parental leave in the South Australian Public Service but has applications for managers supporting employees taking any type of long leave in all industries.

The purpose of Good Transitions is to shift some of the responsibility for the implementation of parental leave from individuals to employers and to help to achieve some cultural change so that taking leave for caring reasons comes to be considered a normal part of working life for both men and women.

The site is based on research of international best practice. It is a hub of information which links to other relevant parties and practical tools, such as how to arrange keeping in touch provisions while they are on leave, reducing barriers for breastfeeding employees, and checklists for employers, employees and human resource practitioners who assist with things such as making workplaces more family friendly.

The draft Good Transitions site has been reviewed by, and operates feedback from, representatives across government, including the work/life balance unit. There is a public sector interest group, the Office for Ethical Standards and Professional Integrity and also the Equal Opportunity Commission.