Here is a round-up of new ideas and innovation that NFAW has generated. Many are history-making achievements which a group of passionate women have been the catalyst for driving. A decade of achievements by NFAW is outlined below and is recorded in our archives, held by the National Library of Australia.
These include:
• Helping to set the agenda for women’s issues in Australia
• Incubating and establishing Women on Boards – the leading online network to improve the gender balance on boards.
• What women want – drawing together a coalition of women’s organisations to influence government policy making.
• Paid maternity leave achieved following NFAW getting it back on the national agenda.
• Pay equity debate
• Welfare to work legislation commentary and subsequent amendments
• Work Choices legislation shown to be inequitable
• Affordable rental housing for women on the agenda including development of suitable financial models
• Reform of the tax system – identifying the impact on women, particularly in relation to superannuation
• Support for reproductive health issues, including Abortion Law reform
• Providing a voice for Australian women’s organisations
• Initiating a coalition of women’s organisations
Since 2004, NFAW has played an influential role through the work of the Social Policy Committee in the following public policy debates:
• Health futures (2005)
• Access to pregnancy termination and the approval process for RU486 (in collaboration with the Public Health Association of Australia and the Australian Reproductive Health Alliance)
• Changes to the industrial relations system and welfare support for people of working age (2006–07)
• Paid maternity leave 2006–09
• Paid parental leave implementation 2009–2013
• National Women’s Health Strategy 2009
• Out of School Hours and Vacation Care 2008–11
• Australia’s Future Tax System 2009–11
• Pay Equity
• Affordable rental housing for women