By Mitchell Clarke
A Nationals MP has labelled the roadmap out of coronavirus as ‘failing working women’, but the State Government has hit back, calling the comments “rich”.
Nationals Eastern Victoria MP Melina Bath said the government needed to support all women in the workforce – rather than “blatantly ignoring” some sectors.
The comments follow new figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics in May 2020, which identified a staggering 78 percent of regional women experienced some form of employment loss.
Ms Bath said the hospitality, personal care and retail industries were able to operate efficiently and safely during Stage 2 regional restrictions.
“Labor’s restrictions, rules, support and stimulus have focused on supporting traditionally male-dominated industries, while on the flip side sectors that often employ high numbers of women, like beauty, hospitality and retail, have been crushed,” Ms Bath said.
“Forcing these industries to meet statewide criteria is unfair and widens gender disparity in the workplace.
“Daniel Andrews must remove the shackles on working women in regional Victoria and give them a fighting chance.”
Ms Bath’s message has been supported by struggling beauty therapists, who are unable to reopen until the end of November, despite hairdressers being given the green light to open from 26 October.
Pakenham based sole traders Codie Edwards, from Be Miss Beauty, and Tylar-Ann Pearl, from Unreal Artistry, have both launched petitions pleading for the State Government to reassess restrictions.
Ms Pearl told the Gazette she felt the restrictions appeared to seem sexist.
“Talking to friends in trades like carpentry and bricklaying, they’re booming at the moment. They’re all out working on job sites with lots of people,” she said.
“I definitely feel like there is an element of sexism to it. Our standards are already pretty high. We disinfect and sterilise after every client and I personally go through three steps of cleaning my tools before using them on someone else.”
Ms Pearl said the situation was made even more frustrating, because hairdressers could open before the beauty industry.
“I’d love for the Premier to explain to us why hair is considered a priority. A female can go without her hair being washed and coloured and cut, the only way this is a priority is because men need more frequent hair cuts. It just seems sexist to me,” she said.
But Labor Eastern Victoria MP Harriet Shing said there were “really significant” challenges in prioritising public safety, adding that managing the risk of community transmission cases remained paramount.
“Female dominated industries, such as healthcare, early childhood, retail, education and beauty, are areas which – by virtue of the virus – have been identified as more likely to pose a risk of community transmission,” Ms Shing explained.
She acknowledged there was still a long way to go in addressing the “lack of equity” for women in the workforce, but claimed Ms Bath’s comments were “opportunistic”.
“Women are over represented in retail and hospitality, where job security and entitlements are more precarious; women continue to earn less than their male colleagues and women continue to experience discrimination and lesser conditions throughout their careers,” Ms Shing said.
“We’ve got a long way to go to address all of these things and the pandemic has definitely highlighted that, but it’s pretty rich criticism coming from the Nationals and the Coalition, given they have consistently opposed legislation in Australian Parliament to implement gender equality plans in workplaces.
“It’s a very opportunistic angle on what should be done for Victoria, especially from a party that has constantly engaged in partisan sniping.”
