More than 10,000 childcare and early education workers may receive paid parental leave after G8 Education received a world-first shareholder resolution.
The shareholder resolution has been lodged by SIX on behalf of 103 shareholders. The resolution will be voted on by all G8 Education shareholders at their AGM in April, and asks that the company follow WGEA’s best practice guide in creating a paid parental leave policy.
SIX’s CEO Adam Verwey said, “This is the first time anywhere in the world that a billion dollar company has had to be dragged by its shareholders into offering paid parental leave to its workers.”
Shareholder resolutions on issues of workers rights have been increasing overseas, rising from 52 resolutions in 2019 to 144 resolutions last year. However, this will be the first workers rights’ resolution to be voted on at an Australian company AGM since 2019, and the world’s first resolution around paid parental leave.
“It’s surprising that G8 Education is risking the embarrassment of shareholders forcing them to introduce a paid parental leave policy.”
“It doesn’t pass the pub test. I think most people expect that the people we trust to look after and educate our children would be supported to look after their own”, Adam Verwey said.
G8 Education is by far the largest employer on the ASX that doesn’t provide paid parental leave. It is a standard benefit at large companies, with 85% of employers with more than 5,000 staff providing paid parental leave.
One childcare centre director commented:
“It was a rude awakening for me. Perhaps I was a bit naive not to realise we don't get paid maternity leave. When I worked in my previous industry, they offered 6 months of paid parental leave. Childcare is a sector that's all about women and children, but they don't offer any parental leave! I thought it was a given. The wage gap between my usual pay and the government scheme was huge. I haven't gone back since having my child.”
The resolution has been filed in the same week as International Women’s Day. Australia’s 21.8% gender pay gap is driven by career interruptions, part-time work, unpaid care and industry gender imbalances. Gender inequality persists within industries where women are underrepresented in senior roles and overrepresented in lower-paying jobs. At G8 Education, while 96% of staff are women, men hold 50% of key management roles, including the CEO who earns in excess of $3 Million per year.
The resolution will be voted on at G8 Education’s AGM on 29 April.
