29 June 2012

More support, not less please Minister!

The shift of the National Advisory Committee on the Employment of Women (NACEW) to the Ministry of Women’s Affairs is an opportunity to address some of the serious challenges facing women in work says Sheryl Cadman, Co-Convenor of the CTU Women’s Council.

“The shift of NACEW to the Ministry of Women’s Affairs will only be a good move if it is accompanied by some increased commitment from the new Minister responsible for NACEW over that provided when the Minister of Labour was responsible. Under the watch of Kate Wilkinson, as Minister responsible for NACEW, there has been a backward shift on pay and employment equity, a complete stalling on improving paid parental leave entitlements and serious issues facing women in employment are being ignored”.

“These are worrying times for women workers. We were very disturbed to find out this week from information obtained under an Official Information Act request that while a growth in employment is predicted, women will not benefit from this and will be left out of jobs and training” say Cadman .

“Times are tough now for many women in employment with real fears for job security. The job losses in the state sector have had a big impact on women as have the job losses for women working in retail and accommodation in Canterbury. Now we hear that things are expected to worsen”.

Sheryl Cadman says “We want to see stronger leadership on women’s employment from the new Minister responsible for NACEW. “The shift of NACEW into the Ministry of Women Affairs could be an opportunity to make sure that women’s employment issues are more of a priority not less of one - whether that happens is dependent on some more commitment”.

ENDS

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