Hi Again all

Col, I agree with a bit of what you say there, but where is the "line in the sand"? Having children IS a personal choice, but the reality is that at least some of the population will have to choose to do it:). Where do you believe ANY support should begin and end?

Usually it is the mother who has to put a career "on hold" to raise children, as a consequence of that, women were denied access to superannuation until the late 1980s, resulting in their not having anything like enough income to live on in retirement. And that wasn't really their fault, that was the discrimination of the day. I remember my mother saying that she had to leave her job when she married (in the UK)!

Getting back to the line in the sand; what about pensioners? You could describe a whole lot of them as a liability, and should the community determine how they live (taxation v representation argument). Should we decide when they die? What about the ones claiming, for example, disability support pensions and either happily working and/or engaging in other interests/hobbies?

Or should we totally disenfranchise pensioners?

Just a thought,
Cheers
Nicky

As Col said=
it will hinder future employment, especially for females.
It will contribute to wage inflation
It will reduce Australian competitiveness
It will favour one segment of the workforce (females) to the detriment of others (males)

I agree with Col on this one.

I have little free time today, I will answer you tomorrow, Now I will give you extra information about maternity paternity, parental leave etc.

A study conducted during 1989–1990 in Georgia, USA, showed that fathers appear to be vital for their infant. The researchers studied 217 798 fathers; the overall mortality rate was 10.6 per 1000 live births. Infants with their father’s names missing on their birth certificates, a measure of paternity, had a mortality rate of 19.8 per 1000 live births compared with 8.6 for children where the fathers name was on their birth certificate.

A study has shown that separation among couples is less common in families where fathers have taken parental leave

Fathers are important for their child’s growth and development, emotional health and cognitive development.

European fathers on parental leave – a statistical overview
http://www.european-fatherhood.com/knowledge.php?mode=view&id=58

In Sweden Paid parental leave is currently 16 months, in addition to 10 paid days off right at the birth. Parents who stay home with their children receive 80 percent of their gross salary, with a ceiling of 307,500 kronor ($50,000) for 2008.

One hundred twenty-nine of the 158 countries reporting to the International Social Security Association in 1997 11,12 provided at least some paid maternity leave.(not Australia)

Most benefits are paid through the sickness (or temporary disability) benefit system, but in Canada, Austria, and Denmark (for the second-tier benefit) it is the unemployment insurance system
that funds and delivers the benefit. In a few countries, the employer is required by law to provide the leave and pay the benefit. Thus, for example, in Germany, the basic maternity leave is paid at full wages, with employers required to “top off” the benefit to cover any wages above the maximum covered

parental leave around the world
http://www.haaba.com/news/2008/03/11/7-103931/time-off-work-with-kids-parental-leave-around-the-world.htm

In my political party from the UK in the European Parliament, there are 27 members but 26 of us are men. What we’re challenging to do is to go for positive discrimination.

Celivia
You asked me who pay the maternity, paternity, parental leave. My anwser is.. I do not know! I am for many years far from Greece, Germany, Cyprus, Australia, from 1976. I read every day Greek newspapers online but I did not find any information about it, SORRY!
Did you submit to productivity commission your thoughts about maternity-parental leave ? Do it, in the page 1 I have a link.
The system which promote the Australian Union movement take parts from Swedish and German model. Minimum Government plus employers the rest to the real income. Question is about the small business, I think the Union could show an understanding for the small business (I am member from the Union but I try to establish my own business do not trust me 100%!) In USA many states have maternity-paternal leave (the employers pay the insurance but not small business in some states if less than 5 employees The maximum I found in a state is less than 25 employees. This is not fair, because employees in small businesses do not receive paid leave at all.
Celivia I gave some info in page 4 and I will give more info in other posts. Sorry time limits!
Antonios Symeonakis
Adelaide

Nicky
Thank you again!
You remind me a friendly person from Western suburbs of Adelaide. I checked your history you write very often! and you know PALE from the past. I am a little bit busy and I can not write on time but I can not do many things about it. SORRY!
Nicky you have good ideas and you know how to promote them!
About the maternity, paternity, parental leave.

1. Studies show increasing paid maternity leave significantly reduces infant mortality. A 10-week increase in paid leave - we have none - could result in a fall of between 2.3 and 2.5 per cent in infant mortality. A 10-week increase in paid leave reduces the mortality rate among babies aged 28 days to one year by 4.1 per cent.

2.A study shows fathers appear to be vital for their infant. The researchers studied 217 798 fathers; the overall mortality rate was 10.6 per 1000 live births. Infants with their father’s names missing on their birth certificates, a measure of paternity, had a mortality rate of 19.8 per 1000 live births compared with 8.6 for children where the fathers name was on their birth certificate.

3.Women with paid maternity leave are more likely to return to work (up to 90%) than those without,

4.Australia has one of the lowest levels of workforce participation for women aged between 25 and 44 in the OECD. We are ranked 23 out of 24 OECD nations.
5 A study has shown that separation among couples is less common in families where fathers have taken parental leave.
6. Studies show that although women are more educated than men, in European Union 62% of University students are women, 36% of women work part time, only 6% men work part time, and most of the other women work in low paid jobs of cause their reproduction duty.
continue

continue
Nicky
WHY? IS THE CHILD ONLY FOR THE MOTHERS? NOT FOR THE FATHERS, NOT FOR THE COUNTRY, NOT FOR EMPLOYERS? Why the women have to destroy their carrier for the children? Why the women have to be depended from the men when they could be financially independent and totally equal with the men? Some says women are for the kits and kitchen, men for work. If this happened it leaves women unprotected and THIS IS NOT TRUTH, FROM STATISTICS, SEE PAGE 13, IN DEVELOPED COUNTRIES MORE MEN ARE UNEMPLOYED THAN WOMEN, WOMEN ARE EMPLOYED BUT THEY HAVE BAD, LOW PAID , CASUAL OR PART TIME WORKS.
The paid maternity, paternity, parental leave ,especial the parental leave creates the conditions for parent's shared responsibilities for the kits and give time for the women to care for their carriers, for the future. IS IT BAD IF I WANT AND TRY FOR PEOPLE TO STAND ON THEIR OWN FEET, TO BE EQUAL WITH THE OTHERS, TO BE CONFIDENT AND PROUD FOR THEIR SELF? AND I WANT IT FOR MEN OR WOMEN, FOR LOCALS OR MIGRANTS, FOR RELIGIOUS OR ATHEISTS, FOR CHRISTIANS OR MUSLIMS, WITHOUT ANY DISCRIMINATION. I WANT THE LIBERATION FROM HUMAN BEINGS FROM OLD MYTHES AND SINS
Antonios Symeonakis
Adelaide