The Federal Government’s new maternity leave provisions come as welcome news to families and mothers who need or want to work after the birth of a child.
Having children is an important social good that should be supported by government. Mothering is an important job that should be recognised as such, and also supported by government policies. To do this, a range of measures are required to underpin the many and varied choices that families will make about who does the caring, when to return to work, how long to stay at home with children, and whose job or career takes priority.
One of the great social changes of the late 20th century was the mass movement of women from the home into paid employment. It has profoundly changed the workplace, family life, volunteer participation and consumption patterns. This movement was fuelled by many factors, including (notably) access to free higher education, which occurred in the 1970s under the Whitlam Government. As the Australian Bureau of Statistics has noted, “education appears to draw women into the workforce by instilling in them more career oriented attitudes and by enhancing their potential wages in the labour market”(ABS Cat. No. 4102.0, ‘Trends in Women's Employment’, Australian Social Trends 2007).
Many working women enjoy far higher education levels than their mothers and grandmothers ever dreamt of. Understandably, many want to minimise the career hiatus that occurs on having a child, or more effectively blend work with family life. The work-life balance never ceases to be an enduring BBQ or water-cooler conversation amongst women.
Christians have often been uneasy with these developments of women and work. The easy path of conservative thought is to blame feminists and support a more traditional role for women in the home, raising children. Yet I would argue that it is time for a more sophisticated conversation which continues to value motherhood, but recognises this fundamental social shift. Moreover, it requires a nuanced view of Government policy which allows for a variety of initiatives which do not disadvantage the choices of one group over another. Concrete Government support for parental leave is long overdue and its introduction is to be welcomed.