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Maternity Benefit
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Paid Maternity Pay is not
generally given in Australia,
although some companies and organisations do give it, and more are now beginning
to offer it. There is however a
requirement to provide 52 weeks unpaid maternity leave primary care
giver.
Update April 2008
The Labor Government has asked the Productivity Commission to examine the
implications of maternity leave for Australian Workers, to examine the
effectiveness of different models of support for parents.
March 2008
The retail chain Myer, is quoted as being the first big Australian retailer to
grant six weeks paid parental leave. This is conditional on having been employed
for 18 months either part time or full time. IKEA has been offering this
for the last 5 years. The David Jones retail stores currently offers two
years unpaid maternity leave.
When comparing Australia and other countries with Maternity payments, we should
also take into account the Australian Government payment of the $5,000 Baby
Bonus/Maternity payment, which some people would say is equivalent to 10 weeks
at $500 per week. (Link)
An indication of Maternity Leave rules is available at
http://www.industrialrelations.nsw.gov.au/rights/entitlements/parental.html
Note that this is specifically for NSW. I think that most States will be
similar.
Two Pieces of Statistical information from this report at the Federal Government
Library:
http://www.aph.gov.au/library/intguide/ECON/maternity_leave.htm
Report 1:
- Dr Barbara Pocock estimates that 39 per cent
of female employees have access to paid maternity leave of some form (about 7
weeks on average):
- 39 per cent of female employees in Australia
can take an average of seven weeks’ paid maternity leave, up from 28 per cent
in 1997.
- Although 77 per cent of women in the finance
and insurance industries have access to paid maternity leave, only one per
cent are covered in the retail sector, and 2 percent in hotels and
restaurants.
- Among developed countries, only the US and
Australia have not legislated for minimum paid maternity leave across the
workforce.
Report 2:
- 38 per cent of female employees responded
that they were entitled to paid maternity leave (51 per cent of full time
employees and 21 per cent of part time employees)
- women in casual employment had almost
negligible access to paid maternity leave (0.4 per cent of self-identified
casuals responded that they were entitled to paid maternity leave, compared to
53.6 per cent of other female employees)
- the highest coverage of paid maternity leave
(percent of female employees) occurred in the following industries: Government
Administration and Defence (68.1 per cent), Communication Services (59.1 per
cent), Finance and Insurance (59 per cent) and Education (57 per cent )
- the lowest coverage of paid maternity leave
was found in the following industries: Agriculture (4.5 per cent),
Accommodation, Cafes and Restaurants (13.4 per cent), Retail (20.2 per cent of
female employees) and Cultural and Recreational Services (28.2 per cent)
- the highest incidence of paid maternity
leave was recorded in the following occupations: Managers and Administrators
(65 per cent) and Professionals (54 per cent)
- the lowest incidence of paid maternity leave
was recorded in the following occupations: Elementary Clerical, Sales and
Service Workers (18 per cent) and labourers and related workers (21 per cent)
and access to paid maternity leave was higher the greater an employee’s length
of service with an employer.
Links
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