Qld women underpaid 50 years on

Date: 29 June 2001

Despite fifty years of action for equal pay, recent government reports show Queensland women are still underpaid compared with men, according to the Australian Services Union.

ASU Branch Secretary Julie Bignell has marked today's fiftieth anniversary of the International Labour Organisation's Equal Pay Convention by expressing disappointment that Australia had not made more progress towards achieving pay equity.

"Fifty years is a long time to be fighting for such a simple goal as equal pay for equal work, but it seems we still have some way to go," Ms Bignell said.

"The Queensland government's Pay Equity Report released earlier this year found that on average women are still paid only 83% for the same work as men," she said.

"The report also found that women workers in the call centre industry faced particular disadvantage, and were on low pay and unaware of their award entitlements," she said.

Ms Bignell said that the Queensland government should sign on to the ASU's Call Centre Charter as an important strategy to redressing pay inequity in call centres. The Call Centre Charter outlines reasonable minimum standards for an industry rife with low pay and high casualisation.

"The best way to tackle pay inequity in call centres is to develop reasonable industry standards; the government should sign on to the Call Centre Charter," Ms Bignell said.

"The Premier's own Council for Women has called on the Queensland government to sign the Charter because they recognise the particular disadvantage women face in this industry," she said.

"Fifty years since we began fighting for equal pay it's time for the government to listen to unions and the Premier's Council for Women; it's time to sign the Call Centre Charter and make some positive progress," she said.

Ms Bignell said call centres employed around 25,000 women in Queensland, with industry growth approaching 25% per annum. In 1999, almost half of all new private sector jobs were in call centres.

Since it was adopted on June 29, 1951, the ILO Equal Pay Convention has been ratified by 137 countries.

For further information

Contact:	Matthew Collins
Union:	ASU Services
Contact Mobile:	0404 058 108
Email:	info@qld.asu.asn.au
WWW:	http://www.qld.asu.asn.au

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