Analysis of 2010 Election Issues & Policies' Impact on Women

Women's Election Priorities

Steering Policy

Improving the Status of Australian women,
families, communities and the nation

Making Government more effective and responsive to women's concerns
 


CLW's Women's 2010
Pre-Election
Analysis Panel
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

 

Sally McManus

Sally McManus

Australian Services Union

Sally McManus is the Secretary of the Australian Services Union of NSW.  The ASU is the union for non-government community and disability workers and is one of the fastest growing unions in the country. 

Sally has been an official with the ASU for 16 years and during this time has worked with workers in all sectors of the community sector industry across New South Wales and the ACT. 

Sally is also the Vice President of Unions NSW and is on the Executive of the National ASU.

 

Commentaries by Sally McManus:

2 April 2010

Pay Inequity in Australia

Successive governments have failed to address the issues related to pay equity in this country. The facts are the facts, and it’s hard to believe that Australian women still earn 17% less per annum than their male counterparts. The ASU is committed to rectifying the underpayment and, undervaluation of, Social and Community Service Workers.

The ALP have offered their in principle support by signing a Heads of Agreement with the ASU. But this does not necessarily translate into wage equity as they have not committed to funding the outcome of the case.

The Coalition have made no comment on the case, however in the eleven years the Howard government was in power the gender pay gap in Australia increased and their Workchoices laws made equal pay cases impossible to win. Furthermore, they refused to fund even the small pay increases community sector workers were given over their years in power.

Rudd’s homelessness white paper calls for superior pay and conditions for social and community service workers as one of its key findings. The paper shows a commitment to addressing the issue of homelessness. This is in stark contrast to Abbott’s comment that “But we just can't stop people from being homeless if that's their choice”