Proto-sexism
What better way to sum up HoWARd’s government and the things that really have had their time, than his sexist reaction to the ALP’s IR policy.
On 28/04/07, Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard announced Federal Labor’s Fair And Balanced Industrial Relations Policy.
The policy was not gender specific with regard to the Parental leave and Flexible work for parents provisions.
2. Parental leave – Federal Labor recognises that many families want to have a parent provide all or most of the care for a child during the first two years of the child’s life. A Rudd Labor Government will guarantee that both parents have the right to separate periods of up to 12 months of unpaid leave associated with the birth of a baby. Where families prefer one parent to take a longer period of leave, that parent will be entitled to request up to an additional 12 months of unpaid parental leave from their employer. The employer may only refuse the request for the additional 12 months leave on reasonable business grounds. This will guarantee that Australian working families have the flexibility of up to 24 months unpaid leave to provide care for their child.
3. Flexible work for parents – A Rudd Labor Government will guarantee a right for parents to request flexible work arrangements until their child reaches school age. Employers will only be able to refuse any request on reasonable business grounds.
John HoWARd, occupying redundant thinking on a redundant time line instantly came out with this assumptive howler-
“You run the risk that some employers will avoid employing women, in particular, with young children.” – John HoWARd.
What’s incredible is that HoWARd demanded an apology from the buffoon for this, but did not for a second consider the offensiveness of his own remark.
It must be time to be rid of the pre-Copernican obscurantist.
Image from here
May 4th, 2007 at 6:46 pm
That has always been Howard’s line.
I work with a woman who was told in the 80s that “women couldn’t be accountants” in the town where we now both live.
If John Howard had his way, “meaningful work” and “women” would be mutually exclusive.
May 5th, 2007 at 7:03 am
gigglewick, women making tea and serving bickies is very meaningful work to little Johnny. I mean, you couldn’t expect the poor old incompetent to actually be able to boil water or anything, would you?
I found Hef’s comments to be absolutely brilliant. There wasn’t much more Hef or HoWARd could have said which could have more resoundingly confirmed the fact that, like Julia said, these are men of the past.