Labor’s extension of Paid Parental Leave became law this week – and more than 180,000 Australian families are expected to benefit.
By 2026, every family with a new baby will be able to access a total of six months paid leave, shared between the two parents.
And single parents will be able to access all 26 weeks.
Representing a $1.2 billion investment, it is the biggest boost to PPL since it was first introduced by the former Labor Government in 2011.
Our policy will give families more leave and more flexibility and ensure the system works in a way that’s best for them.
It will encourage greater sharing of care and household responsibilities, and support dads who want to take time off work to be more involved during those precious early months.
It’s a modern policy for modern families.
A parental leave system that empowers the full and equal participation of women is good for business, good for families and good for our economy.
It delivers more choice, it offers greater security – and it rewards aspiration.
Indeed, extending PPL like this was one of the clearest calls for action we heard at our Jobs and Skills Summit in 2022.
Businesses, unions and economists understand that one of the best ways to boost productivity and participation across the economy is to provide more choice and more support for families – and more opportunity for women.
Expanding the scheme to 26-weeks also complements the plan we announced earlier this month to pay superannuation on PPL from 1 July 2025.
We know there is still a lot of work to do as we move towards gender equality, which is why we’re taking such care to maintain the momentum we’ve been building.
Since we were elected in 2022, my Government has made childcare cheaper, benefitting families and ultimately boosting the economy.
We’ve delivered 10 days paid domestic and family violence leave, because no one should have to choose between their physical and mental safety, and their economic security.
We’re publishing employer gender pay gap to provide greater transparency in the workplace and to further drive the closing of that gap for good.
We’ve also provided support for industries where the majority of workers are women, with measures such as our 15 per cent increase for aged care workers.
It’s all part of our work to take more of the pressure off Australians, make sure every has more choice and more opportunity.
These measures include Labor’s tax cuts for every Australian taxpayer, which will kick in from 1 July and make it possible for Australians to earn more and keep more of what they earn.
Australians are also benefitting from our direct energy bill relief, cheaper medicines, increases to bulk billing incentives, and Fee Free TAFE.
We know lots of people are doing it tough and are under pressure, which is why we’ll never stop working to make a difference. Our extension of paid parental leave is our latest measure to do just that.
It’s a reform that’s good for the economy and good for gender equality.
And we’re all better of when there is more equality because we rise best when we rise together.
This opinion piece was first published in The Daily Telegraph on Thursday, 21 March 2024.
