Slowing growth impacts women’s financial equality

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Slowing growth impacts women’s financial equality

Persistent outdated gender norms are being blamed for the “two steps forward, one step back” in women’s financial equality as the latest data shows a move in the wrong direction.

Australia’s economy is sluggish, with growth slowing in the last quarter as cash-strapped households reduce spending due to the cost-of-living crisis.

Not only did the country’s economy slow but so did equality indicators in the June quarter.

The latest Financy Women’s Index shows setbacks in employment outcomes for women relative to men, particularly in monthly hours worked and underemployment.

Women are bearing the brunt of the current financial uncertainty due to occupying more flexible and insecure forms of employment like part-time and casual roles.

Financy chief executive Bianca Hartge-Hazelman warned women are likely to suffer more from the slowing economy when businesses reduce their hours even further.

She says while women continue to make strides in labour market participation and on the sporting field, as shown at the Paris Olympics, persistent gender norms remain a stubborn influence on the gap between women and men.

“It’s incredibly frustrating that we see these great moments, such as in sport, at the same time we see the repetition of entrenched norms that see women bear the burden of tougher economic times,” economist Nicki Hutley said.

Chief AMP economist Shane Oliver said lower paying career choices young women make when they start at university and the discrepancy in unpaid work hours at home desperately require improvement.

“Both require attitudinal change,” he said.

“Ideally this should start with what we tell our young ****** (that they can do whatever they want, and certain jobs pay a lot more than others) and young boys (that ****** are their equal, they should expect to share the load around the home and their gender equity benefits all of us).”

The good news, however, is the index has improved over the last 12 months thanks to breakthroughs in the national pay gap with improvements to traditionally female-dominated roles like early childhood educators and aged care workers.

Financy said policymakers and businesses need to prioritise gender equality in all parts of the labour market to remove the “one step back”.

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