This panel will address the gender implications of salary freezes, pay reductions and other cost cutting measures in public institutions.

There is an emerging wave of proposals for reducing public sector wage bills in federal and state governments, as well as universities. The differential impact of such policy urgently needs to be assessed.

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted revenues for many public institutions in Australia, from transport to higher education. Initial government responses to the economic fallout of the crisis have been crucial to ensuring equity, for instance, public transfers for wage and childcare subsidies and unemployment benefits have been expanded. But as longer-term economic recovery plans are being drawn up, public austerity appears to be taking hold.

The economic crisis and its management raises large gender and related equity questions. Key issues addressed by our panellists include:

• What are the gendered economic impacts of public austerity?
• What gender inequalities exist within public sector workforces?
• What are the short and long run gendered impacts of pay freezes?
• Can pay cuts be equitable? What are the alternatives? 

Associate Professor Fiona Jenkins, Convenor of the ANU Gender Institute, will chair the discussion.

Confirmed panellists:

Trish Bergin, Co-Director Governance, 50/50 by 2030 Foundation

Alison Pennington, Senior Economist, Centre for Future Work

Tony Dreise, Director, Centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research

Event date: Friday, 19 June 2020 – 12:00pm to 1:30pm

Host: ANU Gender Institute

Zoom meeting details: https://anu.zoom.us/j/99978245633?pwd=ejZvTmVnWHlSWERrWHNCdXZUSjk0QT09

Meeting ID: 999 7824 5633

Password: 443960

More info: http://genderinstitute.anu.edu.au/pay-cuts-and-public-sector-gender-perspectives-new-austerity

This is an open event, all welcome.

Image: NSW Nurses and Midwives Association members protest public sector wages freezes at NSW Parliament House.