US “Exactly. BTW I'm sure you already realise for all intents and purposes the Sex Discrimination Commissioner's office sees sex discrimination SOLELY as discrimination against women.”

I do US.

I consider the appointment of the commissioner an immoral appointment for the following reasons

1 the role promotes discrimination
2 the role takes its mandate from the notion of affirmative action, a theory which is clearly flawed.
3 it costs money for which there is no value-adding return to the tax payer.

The last reason is the most important. It is immoral for government to appoint bureaucrats to positions of pointlessness. Such appointments deprive tax payers of their discretionary income, without giving anything back.

In short, it is government waste by spending taxes on something which is worse than pointless.

Pericles
1 My best wishes for success to your small company!
Really I do not expect small business to pay any cent for the paid maternity leave.
2. I was sole parent with three children and I have not the time and financial ability to create my own business but now my children are enough old and now I try to establish my own business. You do not know how many hours 7 days per week I am working to establish my own business, real slave!
3. Personally I am ready to pay extra tax for the maternity leave although I do not expect from it any personal or family benefit. My daughter left Australia and probably non from my family would benefit from it but paid maternity leave IS VERY BASIC, VERY ESSENTIAL AND I FULLY SUPPORT IT.
What do you mean Pericles? Do not you know that women one day sooner or later will become pregnant mothers? Do not you know that the existing law protect them? Do not you know that the current law guarantee the maternity leave? The only thing which will change is that a small part from the maternity leave will be paid by the government (I think from government). I DO NOT EXPECT ANYONE TO TOUCH THE SMALL BUSYNESS!
Pericles Australia must line with the rest of the world! I understand your worries but you worry very much for no reason!
Regards
Antonios Symeonakis
Adelaide

Usual Suspect

"Australia was the first to give women the vote" Now because this statement is not actually true it somewhat invalidates the continuation of your argument based upon that premise. Just in case you want to use this argument again in another thread it might be a good idea to check first?

Usual Suspect,
"Australia was the first to give women the vote" In this I could tell the women from other countries" Do you see Australian women won the right to vote, You must fight for this right it is good for you!" The same thing I on the internet to Muslim women" do you see the western women, their rights? Time to woke up!"
Usual Suspect
You know the story, I try to support the weakest side, I try to push a little bit mothers, children human rights. These rights are universal, for every mother, child, human. Women did not come from an other planet, they are our mothers, wifes, daughters, granddaughters etc.
The maternity leave is a right, as the sick leave, not a bonus, not welfare.
About the " only allow the woman to stay home at full pay" There are three types from paid leaves, maternity paid leave only for pregnant woman of cause the birth, this is very limited for health reasons and for the child , there is the paternity leave, for fathers when the mother is on maternity leave, in Australia we do not start to discuss on it but sooner or later we will have it too. In some European Countries the paid paternity leave is many weeks.MOTHER OR FATHER WOULD TAKE THE PARENTAL LEAVE IF THE CHILD-CHILDREN NEED THEM, SICK, ETC.IN THIS PAID LEAVE, MOTHER AND FATHER HAVE THE SAME RIGHTS, NO ONE MINUTES MORE FOR THE MOTHER, EQUAL RIGHTS, EQUAL RESPONSIBILITIES FOR THE CHILD. The paid paternal leave is the longest one, in some countries until the child to become 8 years old. Some countries put restrictions, a minimum time for father. The system for parental leave try to give the time for women to improve their carriers and of cause to transfer responsibilities to fathers for their children.
In really the parental leave encourage the fathers to stay home and care their children!
Antonios Symeonakis
Adelaide

Col Rouge
"consider the appointment of the commissioner an immoral appointment"
Col Rouge we have Sex Discrimination Commissioner for many years and the current federal sex Discrimination Commissioner Elizabeth Broderick , was appointed by the Howard Government, not from Rudd.
Elizabeth Broderick is a lawyer, mentor and innovative leader, 2001/02 Telstra NSW Business Woman of the Year and Australian Corporate Business Woman of the Year.
Elizabeth has been included in Business Review Weekly’s list of 20 rising female stars in Australian business, developed mentoring programs for teenage girls at State High Schools in Sydney and later a mentoring program for female university students.
Elizabeth has a particular interest in issues related to the impact of the internet, women in business, work and life balance, gender equality and corporate social responsibility. She is a regular speaker at international and domestic conferences. (copy from the website of HREOC).
Elizabeth Broderick has very, very high standards and has nothing to do with political parties or cheap politics.
Col Rouge, I think it is time for you to update your ideas. I wrote in an other post, the paid maternity leave is very basic and it is supported from all parties worldwide, including the conservative one.
Antonios Symeonakis
Adelaide

Why should the workers pay so you can have Children it is your choice I had children my wifes never worked and they had a good life,

Why pay more when Australia can not look after the workers they have already, When Australia thinks 40 plus is too old to work any more.

what Bulldust Australia is going down the drain because all the people with know how go overseas, and overseas prospers and we importevery thing.

I just read an Article saying Australia's Unemployment fell to it's lowest since 1974 with 8,200 less people on the Dole, this may well me true, because they are all over here in China with a life and where age means you know how.

As a result of being unemployed and unable to obtain unemployment benefits for my wife of 5 years and my 12 year old step daughter.

I was forced to live on just a single man rate this was the beginning of the end and I am now divorced.

In the end I gave up after sending my resume' to over one thousand companies with two degrees one in Business Management and Sales and Marketing along with 25 years practical know how.

...even Centre link came straight out and told me face to face you have almost no chance of scoring a job, that was when I was 53 now I am 55

Then a thought came to me the other day why is we can make, sell and achieve a good profit on the products like am MP4 player or a DVR and yet in Australia it is sold up to 1000 times more than we sold it to them for.

It is criminal when you know how much this company I work for sells the product for, and how much you pay

Why?

Kevin Rudd you need to have a look if you wish to reduce Inflation

Lets fix up what we have first then worry about fringe benfits to young people wanting kids

Mike

mike@chinablueangel.com