Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
ZONTA’S ENDURING MISSION?
Denise Conroy, Chairman LAA Committee
2008-2010
2009 ‘In Perspective’
In this year we celebrate:
2008 1st anniversary of the ordination of Australia’s first woman Bishop
2008 1st anniversary of first woman Governor General of Australia
2007 2nd anniversary of election of Australia’s first female Deputy Prime Minster
1997 12th anniversary of Penny Wensley’s appointment as Australia’s Ambassador to the United Nations – the most senior appointment ever given to a woman in Australia’s Foreign Service
2009 ‘In Perspective’
1988 21st anniversary of graduation of first female pilots in Royal Aust. Defence Force
1986 23rd anniversary of Elizabeth Evatt becoming the first woman President of the Australian Law Reform Commission (she was also the first Australian elected to CEDAW (served 1984-1992) and elected Chair from 1989-1991; in 1992 she was elected to the UN Human Rights Committee
1984 25th anniversary of the federal Sex Discrimination Act
1979 30th anniversary of the adoption of CEDAW (18 December) (Aust. ratified CEDAW in 1983)
2009 ‘In Perspective’
1969 40th anniversary of equal pay for women (for work of equal value) in the federal public service.( Phased in 1970-1972).
1919 90th anniversary of formation of Zonta (8 November) (First club in D22 set up in 1971-Brisbane Club)
1912 97th anniversary of minimum wage for women’s work. Prior to this women were paid only 54% of men’s pay
1903 106th anniversary of first woman able to enter the legal profession in Victoria; (Qld 1905; SA 1911; NSW 1918)
2009 ‘In Perspective’
1902 107th anniversary of right for women to vote and to sit in Federal Parliament
1884 125th anniversary of the first Australian women’s suffrage society in Australia
1883 126th anniversary of passage of the Married Women’s Property Act (gave married women same legal position as unmarried women)
1880 129th anniversary of admission of first women to a university in Australia (Melbourne)
Where Is ZONTA ‘Placed’ vis-à-vis Other Service Organisations?
• Rotary
• Lions
• Probus
• CWA
• Zonta
• Unifem
• Soroptimist
• Quota
Community Organisations
Focus on Women
ORANGISATIONNO.
COUNTRIESTOTAL CLUBS
TOTAL MEMBERSHIP
AUSTRALIAN MEMBERSHIP
Rotary International (1905, Chicago)
171 32,000 1,200,000 35,000
Lions Clubs International (1917, Chicago)
205 45,000 1,400,000 27.000
Probus (1966, UK) 23 4,000 300,000 141,035
CWA Australia (1922 – QLD/NSW)(1945 – Aus Org)
(Australia) 1,500 - 25,500
Zonta International (1919, Chicago)
67 1,209 31,748 2,302
UNIFEM Australia (1989) (National Committees)
17 - ? 1,000
Soroptimist International (1921, Oakland)
125 3,000 90,000 1,787
QUOTA International (1919, Buffalo)
14 300 7,000 1,498
What Is Our Role? How Is ZONTA Different?
Role:
• We are NOT a community service organisation (as are Rotary, Lions, CWA)
• We are NOT a welfare organisation
• We ARE a service organisation with a very specific purpose
– to improve the status of women
– to promote women’s human rights
What Is Our Role? How Is ZONTA Different?
Difference:
• We are SMALL in comparison to other community organisations
– both internationally and nationally
• However, we are the LARGEST (in members) international service organisation focussing primarily on women in Australia
• Indeed, we are the ONLY international service organisation in Australia focussing SPECIFICALLY on status of women issues
What Obstacles Do We Face?
• We have a SMALL membership and a declining membership
• We are not well known in the wider community
• We are limited in our fundraising because we do not have ‘charitable’ or ‘DGR’ status
NOTE: 1. Charitable and DGR (deductible gift recipient) status are determined by the Australian Tax Office (ATO).Under current ATO determination: - service organisations DO NOT QUALIFY for charitable or DGR Status
2. Establishment of a Foundation (currently not permissible in Zonta’s name) DOES NOT automatically qualify an organisation for charitable or DGR status. The purpose of the Foundation is what is critical. Foundations law is complex and Foundations require professional management which is very costly. It would require a ‘trebling’ of our current administration fee at least ($90 per head) to run with what would be an ‘experiment’. This would be in ‘addition’ to the current $30 fee for District management.
Have We Achieved Equal Status?
• Locally (State) – No
• Nationally – No
• Internationally – Absolutely Not!
SOME INDICATIVE DATA:
Australia
Figure 1: Labour Force Participation Rate for Women, selected OECD countries, 2007
0 20 40 60 80 100
TurkeyMexicoGreece
OECDFrance
AustraliaUnited Kingdom
United StatesNew Zealand
CanadaNorwaySwedenIceland
Coun
try
Labour force participation rate (%)Source: OECD 2007
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2006 Census of Population and Housing
Figure 2: Labour Force Participation Rate for Men and Women aged 20-54 years by Number of Dependent
Children, 2006
The Age of the Youngest Child affects the Labour Force Participation of Mothers
0
20
40
60
80
100
Lab
ou
r F
orc
e p
arti
cip
atio
n r
ate
(%)
0 1 2 3 4 or more
Number of Dependent Children
Men
Women
Figure 3: Women aged 15 years and over, Labour Force Participation Rate by highest level of Educational
Attainment, 2006
Highest level of Educational Attainment
Labour ForceParticipation Rate (%)
Postgraduate 83.0
Graduate diploma/Certificate 82.3
Bachelor degree 79.1
Advanced diploma/Diploma 71.1
Certificate level 73.7
Year 12 64.9
Year 11 59.5
Year 10 50.6
Year 9 33.3
Year 8 or below 14.6 Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics 2006, Census of Population and Housing
Figure 4: Part-time Employees as a Proportion of all Employed Men and Women by Age Group, July
2008
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics 2008, Labour Force Australia Detailed – Catalogue No. 6291.0.55.001.
Figure 5: Full-time Labour Force by Occupation and Gender, August 2008
Occupation Labour force (%)
Women Men
Managers and administrators 8.2 12.4
Professionals 28.0 17.7
Associate professionals 15.6 13.9
Tradespersons and related workers 2.9 22.7
Advanced clerical and service workers 6.3 0.7
Intermediate clerical, sales and service workers 25.5 7.6
Intermediate production and transport workers 2.5 13.2
Elementary clerical, sales and service workers 6.6 3.5
Labourers and related workers 4.4 8.2
Total 100.0 100.0
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics 2008, Australian Labour Market Statistics, October 2008, Catalogue No. 6105.0.
Figure 6: Trends in Female/Male average Full-time Adult Ordinary-time Earnings May 1984 – May 2008
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics 2008, Average Weekly Earnings, May 2008, Time Series, Catalogue No. 6302.0.
80
81
82
83
84
85
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
Year
Rat
io (
%)
Figure 7: Men and Women with Superannuation Coverage by Age Group, 2007
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics 2008, Employment Arrangements, Retirement and Superannuation, Australia, April to July 2007, Catalogue No. 6361.0, ABS, Canberra, Table 19.
Figure 8: Women Aged 15 years and over with No Superannuation Coverage by Age Group, 2007
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics 2008, Employment Arrangements, Retirement and Superannuation, Australia, April to July 2007, Catalogue No. 6361.0, ABS, Canberra, Table 19.
Figure 9: Average Superannuation Balance for Men and Women aged 25-64 years by age, 2006
Age group Women Men
25-34 $14,060 $19,780
35-44 $25,580 $46,890
45-54 $48,250 $93,920
55-59 $58,760 $126,090
60-64 $62,600 $135,810
Total $35,520 $69,050
Source: Clare, R. 2008, Retirement savings update, ASFA Research & Resource Centre, The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia, Sydney, Table 1.
Figure 10: Average Superannuation Balances among Wage and Salary Earners and Self Employed aged 25-64
years by Gender, 2006
Women Men
Wage and salary earners
$42,960 $77,100
Self employed $33,340 $49,130
Source: Clare, R. 2008, The self employed and saving for retirement, ASFA Research & Resource Centre, The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia, Sydney.
Men = $1262.90Women = $1046.00
Pay Gap = $216.90
Using average weekly ordinary time earnings…
Women are 2 ½ times more likely to live in poverty in their old age than men. By 2019
(another 10 years), women will have HALF the amount of superannuation that men have.
- In Australia -
• In 2006 women accounted for 54.8% of all tertiary students and 47.5% of all TAFE/VOCED students
• Women are not well represented in engineering & related technologies or architecture or building courses (4.6% of all women enrolled).
• More than 30% of Australia’s small business operators are women
• Women make up more than half the Australian public service (57%) yet hold only 36% of senior executive positions.
• In the private sector women hold only 12% of management jobs.
• Women hold 34% of seats on federal government – controlled boards, and around 23% of chair/deputy chair positions.
• Women hold only 9% of private board directorships
• In the federal parliament in 2008, 30% of members and senators were women. In the Senate 27 of 76 senators are women (35.5%). In the House of Representatives, 40 out of 150 members are women (26.7%)
The 2007-08 UN Human Development Report ranked Australia second in the world on the gender related development index and eighth in the world on the gender empowerment measure.
- In Australia -
- Internationally -
International President Beryl has presented some ‘snapshots’ of
women worldwide, but do we REALLY have a concept of what the WORLD
looks like?
- Internationally -
– 57 Asians
– 21 Europeans
– 14 Americans (North, Central and South)
– 8 Africans
– (Australians are ‘invisible’)
If you could fit the entire population of the world into a village consisting of 100 people, maintaining the proportions of all the people living on Earth, that would comprise:
- Internationally -
– 52 women and 48 men
– 30 Caucasians and 70 non-Caucasians
– 30 Christians and 70 non-Christians
– 89 heterosexuals and
– 11 homosexuals
There would be:
- Internationally -
– 6 would possess 59% of the wealth and they would all come from the USA
– 80 would live in poverty
– 70 would be illiterate
– 50 would suffer from hunger and malnutrition
– 1 would be dying
– 1 would be being born
– 1 would own a computer
– 1 (yes, only one) would have a university degree
Of these 100 people:
If we looked at the world in this way, the need for acceptance and
understanding would be obvious
- Internationally -
- Internationally -
• If you woke up this morning in good health, you have more luck than one million people, who won’t live through this coming week.
• If you can go to your place of worship without fear that someone will assault or kill you, then you are luckier than 3 billion people.
• If you have not experienced the horror of war, the solitude of prison, the pain of torture, or have not been close to death from starvation, then you are better off than 500 million people.
But, consider again the following:
- Internationally -
• If you currently have money in the bank, in your wallet and a few coins in your purse, you are one of 8 of the privileged few amongst the 100 people in the world.
• If you have a full fridge, clothes on your back, a roof over your head and a place to sleep, you are better off than 75% of the world’s population.
• Because you are getting this message, you’re extremely lucky, because someone is thinking of you and because you don’t comprise one of those 2 billion people who cannot read.
So, What Can We Say About ZONTA’S Enduring Mission?
It IS ENDURING – we have much to do at the local, national and international levels
Our International Service Programs are a start but, because our fundraising is always going to be limited by our ‘size’
We need to use advocacy to achieve more goals. In advocacy we have NO LIMITS except our willingness to spend the time to undertake it.
So, What Can We Say About ZONTA’S Enduring Mission?
We need to be STRATEGIC and ‘stick to the knitting’ (our Objects).
• It is NOT our role to provide housing for the homeless, access to medical services or funds for services which are NOT meeting our Status of Women objectives.
We need to make decisions based on ‘rational assessment’, NOT emotion
So, What Can We Say About ZONTA’S Enduring Mission?
We need to ELIMINATE ‘non-core’ service projects (B Projects) and focus on OUR MISSION.
Why?
By empowering women through ‘investments’ in women and girls, they will hold the key to an achievable goal –
the elimination of poverty, inequality and injustice.
We Do Not Accept
• That women should be subjected to violence; in some places laws have changed, but outcomes have not. Women everywhere as still subjected to domestic violence; rape; coerced abortions; ritual mutilations; dowry murders; honour crimes; and even killing infants because they are female.
• That 500,000 women should die each year because of avoidable complications in pregnancy
• That millions of women should be infected by HIV/AIDs because so little is being done to shield them from exposure to this virus.
We Do Not Accept
• That, in the 21st century, the economic potential of women should be underutilised.
• That in many societies, women do the majority of work, cannot own land, are not taught to read, can’t get credit and don’t get paid.
• That in our own BACKYARD, there are many women living in poverty and who do not have equitable access to services or opportunities, particularly indigenous women, migrant women, older women and women with disabilities.
We Do Know That
• By educating girls and women, expanding the rule of law, developing more equitable rules for labour, investment and trade; AND
• By providing access to credit, ownership of land, the right to vote and sit in Parliament, access to health services and preventative measures
WOMEN AND GIRLS ARE NOT LEFT BEHIND
As Madeleine Albright has said– every life counts!
“This has been the central premise for every movement for positive change in history – from
the freeing of slaves, to the ending of apartheid, to the improvement of labour
conditions, to the granting of civil rights, to the rise of political liberty world wide.”
WE MUST ENSURE THAT HUMAN RIGHTS INCLUDE WOMEN’S RIGHTS
ZONTA’S Enduring Mission?
• Focus SOLELY on our Objects in ALL ACTIVITIES undertaken in Zonta’s name
• Be STRATEGIC
– Use other people’s money
– Advocate for change – we don’t have to do it ourselves
– Persuade governments to ‘measure’ equality in their reports to CEDAW
• Link advocacy to service and publicise our achievements
– Locally
– Nationally
– Internationally
We need to:
ZONTA’S Enduring Mission?
As I stated when I began – our ‘point of difference’ is our Objects – no other women’s group is focussing SOLELY on improving the
status of women.
We ARE small compared to the large (and better-known) community services groups, but I am encouraged by a statement which
Anita Roddick made some years ago.
Thank you
