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Women
Higher ed proposals worse for women
By Suzanne Hammond
Federal Women's Industrial Officer
The so-called reforms to higher education will disadvantage women and may discourage them from seeking university qualifications. This may lead to future labour shortages in areas where women work such as the health care, education and community services sector.
According to a submission to the Senate Inquiry into Higher Education by Prof. Bruce Chapman from the Australian National University, the proposals for FEE-HELP loans are regressive.
Prof. Chapman has conducted economic modelling on the fee changes on different income earnings groups. The research indicates that while all income groups will pay more, when lifetime earnings are considered the new arrangements will have a regressive impact on lower income workers and on workers who spend times of their working life in part-time work.
Prof. Chapman's research indicates that under the current proposals to increase fees and change repayment arrangements women who spend periods of their working lives in part-time work will face a 25 per cent increase in higher education fees.
A twenty-five per cent increase is a significant burden for part-time workers and may weigh heavily on the minds of women when making decisions about their working lives. Women are a high proportion of the part-time workforce and women move between part-time and full time work during different stages of their working life.
Women also work in occupations that are paid less in jobs in the health industry, education, community services and the service sector. A twenty-five per cent increase is inequitable and may discourage women from entering particular occupations such as welfare workers or allied health professionals.
Women may decide that if they intend to have a family a tertiary qualification is not worth it. This is also poor labour market policy and will not attract workers to occupations which are already low paid and suffer from a shortage of labour supply.
A university system that is regressive is inequitable and these inequities will be heightened for many women workers.
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