Australia Budget Supporting Tender

The Morrison Government is continuing to support women through the COVID-19 pandemic as part of our Economic Recovery Plan for Australia.The 2020-21 Budget includes a range of measures to create more jobs for women give them greater choice about their lives and support them to build financial security for themselves and their families as we recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.The Government is delivering the 2020 Womens Economic Security Statement to increase womens workforce participation improve earning potential and enhance economic independence.Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Women Senator the Hon Marise Payne said Before the COVID-19 pandemic hit us womens workforce participation had reached a record high and the gender pay gap was at a record low.As we navigate our way out of a health and economic crisis it is critical that women play a central role in our recovery Minister Payne said.The Morrison Government will invest 50 million in the Women@Work Program to help restore and exceed the pre-COVID-19 record levels of womens workforce participation. Women@Work expands the existing Womens Leadership and Development Program to create jobs and employment opportunities for women including women from diverse backgrounds.Key components of Women@Work will be delivered in partnership with organisations that operate proven high impact projects to support womens economic security. Master Builders Australias Women Building Australia program will be expanded to support more women into the male-dominated building and construction industry.The innovative Academy for Enterprising Girls program will also be expanded to give girls and young women across Australia particularly in rural and regional communities the skills and opportunities to start their own businesses in the digital economy.The Government is also investing in Respect@Work to address and prevent workplace sexual harassment in Australia. Sexual harassment is a barrier to womens workforce participation particularly for women working in male-dominated fields. The Government is committed to eradicating it from Australian workplaces. This measure will provide funding for new tools and training to support workers and employers to create safe workplaces for everyone.This builds on the Governments existing commitment to womens safety. On 29 March 2020 the Government announced a 150 million domestic violence support package as part of our COVID-19 response. This package is in addition to the 340.7 million the Commonwealth had already invested in initiatives under the Fourth Action Plan of the National Plan to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children 2010-2022. Since 2013 the Government has invested over 1 billion to prevent and respond to violence against women and their children.When women feel safe and valued they are able to participate fully in civic social and economic life Minister Payne said.This government is working hard to lift womens economic security but government cannot do it alone. We must continue to work to remove barriers and create more opportunities to help women realise their potential for themselves and for Australia.A further 35.9 million will be invested in the Boosting Female Founders Initiative to support up to 282 additional start-ups and 4300 women entrepreneurs. This initiative will also create a new service to provide access to expert mentoring and advice for women entrepreneurs.In addition to the Governments record levels of funding in child care which is forecast to be approximately 9 billion in the 2020-21 financial year we are also providing a range of supports for families that have been impacted by COVID-19.The Paid Parental Leave PPL work test period will be temporarily extended to 20 months 600 days to ensure that parents whose employment has been impacted by COVID-19 are supported and that women can remain connected to the workforce. This measure will assist parents in meeting work test provisions if their employment has been affected by COVID-19. This measure is estimated to allow about 9000 mothers to regain eligibility for Parental Leave Pay.In recognition of the challenges that disadvantaged families are facing as a result of COVID-19 the Government is investing a further 24.7 million in the ParentsNext program to allow disadvantaged job-seeking parents able to access more streamlined and extended services that will help them re-enter the workforce.The Government is also providing 14.5 million to extend and expand several existing Women in STEM programs including the Women in STEM and Entrepreneurship WISE Grants Program the Girls in STEM Toolkit and the Women in STEM Ambassador role. This measure will support extra projects led by business industry and the community to increase womens participation in STEM as well as supporting girls and women to gain the skills and capabilities needed to access these jobs of the future.New STEM industry cadetships and advanced apprenticeships for women are also being funded to assist 500 women into STEM careers. We are investing 25.1 million to support women to study and complete a STEM qualification through this new program.This package builds on the 2018 Womens Economic Security Statement and complements the wide range of existing Government supports including JobTrainer. It will support women into jobs now and help drive economic growth in the future.