In what is a clear signal that families will be the key battle ground in the looming election, Labor will this morning announce a commitment to reverse cuts to paid parental leave made by the Abbott-Turbull Government.
It is widely expected that Prime Minister will ask the Governor-General to call an election for July 2 when he visits Government House later this morning, making for a 56 day election, the longest election campaign in Australia since the 60’s.
In a statement, the ALP said, “each year 80,000 families with new babies will be as much as $11,800 better off than they would be under the Liberals”.
On Mother’s Day last year, then Treasurer Joe Hockey announced that mothers who had access to workplace provided parental leave would no longer be eligible for that government’s modest paid parental lave – 18 weeks at the minimum wage.
He infamously referred to the practice as double dipping.
It represented a stunning turnaround for the Liberals, who had up to six months prior to that maintained a strong commitment to providing mothers six months paid leave – widely seen as Tony Abbott’s ‘signature policy.’
The ALP’s statement this morning read: “Labor’s paid parental leave scheme gives eligible new parents 18 weeks’ pay at the National Minimum Wage.
“This is a modest and affordable scheme that appropriately targets assistance to women on low and middle incomes. More than 75 per cent of parents receiving Labor’s paid parental leave scheme are on incomes of less than $70,000 a year.”
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This "double dipping" argument demonises people unnecessarily. It wasn't set up to be an either/or situation. The govt parental leave was supposed to supplement the employer funded leave for working women and provide some assistance for those who weren't working. I didn't get employer funded or govt funded parental leave when I had my child, but I am supportive of parents being able to stay home as long as possible with their kids. I am happy for my taxes to fund 18 weeks at the minimum wage and if someone's employer wants to extend that, that is a benefit of your employment like long service leave, paid sick leave etc which could sway you to choose one employer over another. I am past childbearing age now, but I work with a lot of young women in their 20s and 30s to whom these benefits are important. I was lucky enough to be able to stay at home for a few years when my daughter was small, although I did have to resign from my job. I was very reluctant to return to work when my child was so small and I didn't want to put her in daycare. Not everyone has that choice. If one of the purposes of paid leave is to keep the workers engaged in the workplace, then the paid leave is of benefit to both employer and employee. It costs a lot to train new people in skilled jobs, much better if you can retain workers who already have the skill set required. We all pay for things via our taxes that we may not necessarily use ourselves for the betterment of society. This is one of those things.
Working in a small business I got zero PPL for my kids. The current PPL is designed to address that. But it really saddens me that the whole discussion on this topic is dominated by - the only voices - are those in already pampered employment circumstances (eg pub servants and employees of large corporates) - who complain if they cannot collect on TWO PPL schemes.. #greed
I'm eligible to double dip and I would like to when I have my next child. Before I had my first child, I earned 6 figures for 4 years in a row. I've paid enough in tax. I'm ready to claim back what I can.
And those of us who haven't had kids can claim it back when? Taxation isn't about getting back the money you put in.
I'm with you on this. We are planning our first, and I have been paying tax since 1994. After years of voting on economy/ society/ the general population's interest as a single person, I am voting on this issues as it will directly affect me/us.
Um it doesn't really work like that...
Your taxes support a multitude of things such as roads, schools, hospitals and so on. The tax you've paid is not a bank account that can be dipped into at any time that suits. You are on a higher income so you pay higher tax, that's life.