Labor have made a huge gender gap pay promise

Labor leader Anthony Albanese has made a huge campaign promise to tackle the gender pay gap problem in Australia.

Labor leader Anthony Albanese has vowed to tackle equal pay for the female workers that helped Australia battle the pandemic. He’ll also slash the cost of medicines if he is elected in a big pitch for the women’s vote.

Mr Albanese has already revealed he plans to force big companies to reveal how much they pay men and women doing the same jobs.

Speaking at the campaign launch in Perth, Mr Albanese declared he planned to make gender pay equity an objective of the Fair Work Act.

Grace Tame and Anthony Albanese at the 2022 Australian of the Year awards. Picture: Anthony Albanese/Facebook

He will also increase the Commission’s powers to order pay increases for workers in low paid, female-dominated industries including aged care, childcare and disability services.

“Today, I announce that Labor will make gender pay equity an objective of the Fair Work Act,‘’ Mr Albanese said.

“We will set up expert panels on pay equity and the care and community sector to help improve pay and conditions for women in those sectors.

“It was care workers who kept us alive through the pandemic. Care workers are the arteries of our nation, our regions, our cities, our suburbs. We must give them the respect and the investment they deserve.

“Women workers have had a tough two years. And I want to tell you that we see you. We see the work you have done, both paid and unpaid. We appreciate it, and we value it.

“But we need to do more than simply thank and applaud you.”

Companies already send gender pay data to the government‘s Workplace Gender Equality Agency but the organisation currently does not publicise the figures.

Mr Albanese has already revealed he plans to force companies to reveal how much big companies pay men and women doing the same jobs. Picture: Supplied

Last year, Mr Albanese vowed to take action on making the system more transparent.

‘At the moment, I find it quite extraordinary that for some employees, it’s actually against the law for them to tell people how much they’re paid!’ Mr Albanese said.

“It all adds up to a 13.4 per cent gap that’s there between men and women’s pay, which is $242 per week less.

“The pay gap is still far too wide. A government I lead will take steps toward closing this gap, ensuring women and those working in the care sector get the pay and conditions they deserve.

Cheaper medicines could save you $300 a year

Millions of Australians will save $12.50 on medical scripts if the Labor leader is elected with a plan to slash the maximum co-payment for scripts.

The decision outguns the Prime Minister‘s own plan to reduce the price from $42.50 to a maximum of $32.50, a reduction of $10.

Labor will slash the price by $12.50, more than the $10 the Prime Minister is promising.

Under Labor’s proposal, the ALP says a person taking one medication a month could save $150 a year, with those taking two medications a month saving up to $300 each year.

“Cost of living pressures are real. Everything is going up under the Morrison Government,‘’ Mr Albanese said.

“These changes to the PBS are necessary because we need to make sure that Australians can afford the medications they need.”

Electric car charging network

The Labor leader also announced a new Driving the Nation Fund, to build a National Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Network allowing Australia – for the first time – to drive around Australia in an electric vehicle.

According to Labor, it will fill in the gaps in the charging network, so that it will be possible to drive from:

Adelaide to Perth, across the Nullarbor.

• Darwin to Broome and on to Perth.
• Broken Hill to Adelaide.
• Port Augusta to Darwin.
• Brisbane to Mt Isa and on to Tennant Creek.

Labor will also introduce an Electric Car Discount – to make EVs cheaper. This will exempt many EVs from import tariffs and Fringe Benefits Tax, boosting sales volumes and expanding the used car market.

“The Morrison Government claimed that electric vehicles would ‘end the weekend’ and that hydrogen was ‘snake oil’. Only a Labor Government I lead will deliver a truly national EV Charging Network and roll out Hydrogen Highways across the country.

This will be the key to Driving the Nation,‘’ Mr Albanese said.