‘Even we know childcare is broken’: some of Australia’s most successful women want change now
THEY’RE some of Australia’s most successful women — now they want change to help women to achieve their career dreams and juggle motherhood.
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EXCLUSIVE
BETWEEN them they have 18 children and one on the way.
They are some of Australia’s most successful and inspirational women who are also mothers.
And they think the buck needs to stop in finding a way to better support women to achieve their career dreams and juggle the throes of motherhood.
News Corp Australia this month brought together former Governor-general Quentin Bryce, KIIS FM radio host Kate Langbroek, Studio 10 host Sarah Harris, former Australian netball captain Liz Ellis, singer Katie Noonan, eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant and author Jamila Rizvi to discuss motherhood, working and how they manage to “juggle it all”.
By the end of the day the group were planning playdates for their kids and discussing yoga. But also reflected on how best to support more women to reach their full career potential.
OPINION: Childcare costs more than a mortgage
MORE: Why Australia’s childcare system is ‘broken’
Despite success, navigating professional careers and raising children hasn’t always been easy and they believe there is still a long way to go to achieve true equality in the workforce for women.
“Mum-guilt” is also ever-present, and for 74-year-old Quentin Bryce — mum of five and Granny to 11 — grandma-guilt sometimes sets in too.
More family-friendly workplaces, support from all who will give it and even reforming the childcare system to make it tax-deductible or invested in like schools is the way forward for boosting Australia’s maternal workforce, they suggested.
OUR PODCAST WITH AUSTRALIA’S FAMOUS MUMS:
“Childcare is the heartland issue,” said Dame Quentin.
“Good quality early childhood education ... plays such a key role in the development of every child to reach their full potential and I think we’ve got to stop thinking of it as babysitting.”
Sarah Harris, mum to 19-month-old Paul and due with her second son in December, suggested a childcare system that was tax deductible.
While all of the women had access to more resources, Harris said there were many families out there really struggling.
“Maybe (childcare) should be tax deductible for people on low and middle incomes because ... there are other women who are working 14 hour shifts at the local hospital on crappy money who are saying, you know it’s actually not worth me going to work.”
Today News Corp Australia revealed families are being crippled by childcare costs higher than their mortgage and weekly grocery bill.
Liz Ellis, who has two young children, said childcare needed to be cheaper but that educators working in centres also needed to be paid more.
“We need to value the work of these, mainly women, so much better. And yes (childcare) should be cheaper,” Ellis said.
Katie Noonan said her family, which includes Dexter, 12, and Jonah, 10, decided it wasn’t worth her husband returning to work as a music teacher and paying childcare costs when they were young.
“He basically looked at how much it would cost us to do childcare and he was like I’d prefer to hang out with my own kids, than someone else’s,” Noonan said.
RELATED: Government considers flexible deal to ease childcare burden
Kate Langbroek, who has four kids, said being creatively inspired by others at work was “like oxygen”.
She said women needed to band together to create change and suggested a “tools down” moment.
“Would we be better off like Gandhi sitting on the railway tracks and not paying the salt tax? Like what would happen if we all went ‘tools down’,” Langbroek said.
Jamila Rizvi said “the Australian childcare system is fundamentally broken”.
“We should be treating childcare like school. This stuff should be invested in the way schools are invested in because this is so important for the future of these kids’ lives,” Rizvi, who is mum to two-year-old Rafi, said.
Julie Inman Grant, mum of three, said her twins were on waiting lists for three or four childcare centres “and never got in”.
“I was mystified with the debate around maternity leave ... it is just a small portion in time. We need to look after care, particularly if we’ve got three or four kids that are spread out over a broad set of ages, for almost 15-years.”
Email this journalist at lanai.scarr@news.com.au or follow her on Twitter @pollietracker
Women were generously loaned clothes to wear on the day of the photo shoot by Christopher Esber, Ted Baker, Anthea Crawford, Ginger & Smart, Pasduchas from White Runway and Sass & Bide. Jewellery was loaned from Bvlgari, Cerrone, Georg Jensen, Swarovski and Christie Nicolaides. Shoes loaned by Senso, Aquazzura, Saint Laurent and Chloe from Cosmopolitan Shoes. Children were loaned clothing by Stella McCartney, Sophia Webster from LM Bambini, Pixie’s Bows, Dolce & Gabbana, Witchery and Country Road. Styled by Natalia De Martin.
WHAT THE PARENTHOOD SURVEY FOUND:
GO BEHIND THE SCENES OF OUR PHOTO SHOOT:
HOW THESE AUSSIE MUMS WERE RAISED:
Kate Langbroek aged 18-months with her mother Anne.
Kate and her elder brother, former Queensland Opposition leader John-Paul Langbroek, spent early childhood in Papua New Guinea with their Jehovah’s Witness parents.
“Praise be for the sisters and the men who loved them that came before who made it possible for us to have these (working) options (as mothers).”
Julie Inman Grant aged 5 with her younger sister Amy and mother Glenda
Raised by her single mother from the age of 5.
“Being raised by a single mum has probably helped my sister and I be quite independent and resilient ourselves. As a kid, I didn’t really appreciate how hard it must have been for her.”
Liz Ellis aged 22-months with her mother Margaret
“When I was a little girl — women weren’t on television playing sport ever. So to now be a part of that and I guess at the front of that wave — I’ve got a little girl and I guess it is important for me that she sees women playing sport.”
Jamila Rizvi aged 3 weeks with her mother Helen Rizvi
“Mum worked part time as a teacher when I was in school and my sister was in child care.”
Katie Noonan aged 8-months with her mother Maggie, brother Tyrone and dad Brian
My parents followed the more traditional role of father breadwinner, mother primary carer. I went to childcare and I loved it. My brother was 7 years older than me so we didn’t really play together much- so childcare was a chance to socialise with kids my own age.
Quentin Bryce her husband Michael with her children Jack, Revy, Rupert and Chloe in 1971
“I see too many young mothers who really are on the edge of exhaustion too much of the time and I say look you can’t be doing a full time demanding job and doing a PHD and playing netball and looking after children at various stages. To remember that there are so many opportunities ahead.”
Sarah Harris
Grew up in a housing commission block with her single mother and brother in Mt Druitt and then Queensland.
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