AUSTRALIA: NEW REPORT IS FURTHER EVIDENCE PAID PARENTAL MATERNITY LEAVE MUST BE INCLUDED IN FEDERAL BUDGET

A new report by The Australian Institute show there are significant benefits for working parents and the economy from paid maternity leave and has led to renewed calls from the ACTU for the Federal Government to include the scheme in the May Federal Budget. The report, Long Overdue: the Macroeconomic benefits of Pail Parental Maternity Leave, shows that a paid maternity leave scheme would create 9000 jobs, and cut the net cost of the scheme by $225 million. ACTU President Sharan Burrow said the report is further evidence that paid maternity leave must be in the next Federal Budget. “Jobs are being lost and families are facing financial uncertainty. What this report shows is that paid maternity leave would help to remove that uncertainty by providing financial assistance to families in a way that would also benefit the Australian economy as a whole.” continue reading