NFAW submission to Paid Maternity Leave Enquiry

The NFAW submission to the Paid Maternity Leave inquiry recommends a system of six months paid maternity leave that replaces the income of mothers, and also provides four weeks paid paternity leave.  Under the NFAW model, employers would receive a grant to assist with the costs of recruitment and retraining.

The NFAW submission recommends

•   A minimum period of six months paid maternal leave, reflecting current medical knowledge about maternal and child health and development, including infant brain development, as well as more contemporary European practice than the old ILO minimum of 14 weeks;
• A system providing for income replacement, rather than a minimalist welfare model;
• Provision of four weeks paid paternal leave (at paternal wage level);
• Government grants to employers to assist with the costs of recruitment and re-training;
• Financing through a mix of Government, employer and employee contributions comparable to the financing of retirement incomes.

 An independent costing by the University of Newcastle of such a scheme, based on the model prepared by Julia Perry, shows that :

• Such a scheme would cost in a range of 0.7% - 0.8% of the current wage bill, in addition to the baby bonus component. These costs could be shared between employers and employees.
• The costing included the costs of superannuation, payroll tax, workers' compensation and training costs.
• They did not take into account increased savings to Government, nor the benefits to employers of retaining skilled staff and increasing labour force participation.

 NFAW also recommends the consultative development of a national policy framework of evidence-based principles for maternal and child health services. This should be a parallel process to the development of a national maternity services plan and part of a complementary suite of mechanisms, including paid maternity leave, to support a strong national future.

NFAW recommends further attention to the development of high quality accessible and affordable early childhood services.

NFAW draws to attention that there is evidence that there may be better outcomes for early infant development if paid parental leave policies are substituted for child care subsidies for the first twelve months of infancy.
The full submission, including costings of the Perry model, will be available shortly on www.pc.gov.au

Further details: Julia Perry 0418 404 201 Marie Coleman 041 4483 067

NFAW submission to the Paid Maternity Leave Inquiry