Expert: Women more likely to be pushed into poverty during coronavirus crisis

A national women’s organisation has outlined why the Federal Government needs to make a specific payment to stop more women slipping into poverty during the pandemic crisis.

A NATIONAL women’s organisation has warned the Federal Government it needs to make specific funding available for vulnerable women as concerns grow over the impacts of the pandemic.

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YWCA Australia CEO Michelle Phillips said a “specific COVID-19 payment for eligible women” was needed “rather than leaving them no choice but to tap into their meagre retirement nest eggs”.

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YWCA Australia is urging the government to ensure emergency funding and welfare support is directed at the most vulnerable people, including single mothers and women on low incomes.

Ms Phillips said currently many women would be forced to draw on their superannuation savings to survive the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We are urging the Government to ensure that emergency funding and welfare support is directed at the most vulnerable people in our communities and that includes single mothers, women on low incomes, women from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds as well as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women,” she said.

“Just as the Commonwealth is assisting big businesses and banks at this time, we are calling for it to also help those women who are financially disadvantaged and at risk of being pushed into poverty to survive the impacts of this pandemic.”

She said Australian women retire with 42 per cent less in superannuation than their male counterparts.

“In addition, more than half of all Australian women aged 40 – 45 years have less than $40,000 in super savings.

“We already know that nearly 40 per cent of single retired women live in poverty and that women aged over 50 are the fastest growing group of people at risk of homelessness in Australia.

YWCA Australia CEO Michelle Phillips. Pic supplied.

Ms Phillips said women compromised more than two-thirds of all part-time employees in Australia and up to 85 per cent of employees in the not-for-profit sector making them among the lowest paid and “most vulnerable in the labour market”.

“Women are more likely to work part-time or in casual roles because they are also more likely to be filling unpaid caregiving roles such as raising children and caring for elderly or sick family members,” she said.

“Women are also more likely to live in single-parent households and to experience housing stress. They make up most public housing tenants and Commonwealth Rent Assistance (CRA) recipients.

Ms Phillips said YWCA Australia welcomed the Federal Government’s measures to increase unemployment and other income support payments, saying it would assist some women to retain their jobs.

YWCA is a national intersectional feminist organisation focused on improving gender equality for women, young women and girls.