CHILDCARE COSTS PREVENTING WOMEN FROM RE-ENTERING THE WORKFORCE, NEW DATA SHOWS
08 February 2024 – New workforce data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) shows that approximately 38 per cent of women seeking to work more hours or re-enter the workforce cannot do so because of childcare responsibilities; higher than any other factor.
The number was even higher for women with children under the age of 15, with 75% of them stating that childcare responsibilities were the primary barrier to employment for them. [1].
Of those women, nearly 39 per cent listed high costs and inaccessibility of early learning services as the primary factors preventing them from working or working more hours [1].
Jay Weatherill from Minderoo Foundation’s Thrive by Five campaign the Federal Government should abolish the Activity Test, which determines childcare subsidies based on the number of hours parents and carers work.
“Recent analysis from Impact Economics found that abolishing the punitive Activity Test could enable tens of thousands of women across Australia to re-enter the workforce [2],” Mr Weatherill said.
Alongside several women’s interests, parenting and family-focused advocacy groups, the Productivity Commission and Australian Competition and Consumer Commission have also recommended that the Activity Test be amended or abolished.
“It’s common knowledge that the high-cost and inaccessibility of early learning services influences workforce participation. These ABS figures are simply the latest in a long list of evidence proving the need for change,” Mr Weatherill said.
“If we are serious about addressing the gender pay gap and strengthening women’s economic empowerment, we need to support families by investing in bolder early learning reforms,” Weatherill added.
“More accessible and affordable high-quality early childhood education and care will not only enable more women to re-enter the workforce, it will provide much-needed cost-of-living relief to families and help provide children with the best possible start to life.”
[1] ABS – Barriers to Employment
Media contact: Mayank Gurnani (Essential Media), 0414 463 827
