The Conversation

There’s far more to the fair go than just economics

cat.kutay — Sun, 24 Sep 2017 02:00:16 +0000

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has often argued that inequality in Australia is the worst it has been in 75 years.

‘Empowerment’ feminism is not working – we need a far more radical approach to gender equality

cat.kutay — Sat, 25 Mar 2017 03:44:44 +0000

International Women’s Day has come and gone, leaving the annual short burst attention to “women’s issues” in its wake. So now is a good time to look at what emerged from it, and whether gender equity has stalled.

The state of Australia: welfare and inequality

cat.kutay — Wed, 14 May 2014 04:09:51 +0000

In the lead-up to the budget, the story of crisis has been hammered home, but there’s more to a country than its structural deficit. So how is Australia doing overall? In this special series, ten writers to take a broader look at the State of Australia; our health, wealth, education, culture, environment, well-being and international standing.

Creeping spread of income management must be challenged

cat.kutay — Wed, 14 May 2014 04:08:00 +0000

One of the bizarre bipartisan policy overlaps between the Coalition and Labor is in the area of income support known as welfare payments. Labor has been seen as the party that cared about the poor and disadvantaged, but the former ALP government adopted and extended a range of the Howard government’s paternalistic and punitive measures.

Failed market assumptions are undermining care for our children

cat.kutay — Wed, 14 May 2014 04:06:26 +0000

Can the Productivity Commission review commissioned by the Abbott government recognise the possible failure of the market-model funding of many early childhood services?

An 800,000-plus jobs gap between ‘welfare to work’ and reality

cat.kutay — Wed, 14 May 2014 04:05:13 +0000

The major missing factor in debates on cutting welfare spending – as has been flagged by social services minister Kevin Andrews – is the limited and falling demand for labour. Labour market figures give the lie to the need to target working-age payment recipients as the issue.

The problem is not supply-side inadequacies but the demand for labour: there are far too few jobs on offer.

Income management: more evidence-free policymaking?

cat.kutay — Wed, 14 May 2014 04:00:51 +0000

For a brief moment, it looked as though the Coalition would be better than the ALP on welfare policy. It appeared that the new government would listen to evidence for policy changes in its newly retitled Social Services portfolio.

Closing the Gap: we know what works, so why don’t we do it?

cat.kutay — Fri, 21 Feb 2014 00:58:59 +0000

The disappointing data that regularly appears in Closing the Gap reports should raise serious questions about policy development and funding processes.

Prejudiced policymaking underlies Labor’s cuts to single parent payments

cat.kutay — Fri, 21 Feb 2014 00:55:02 +0000

There’s no doubt that last week’s stoush between Julia Gillard and Tony Abbott over sexism and misogyny was extraordinary.

Income management: more evidence-free policymaking?

cat.kutay — Thu, 03 Oct 2013 08:29:31 +0000

It seems the Coalition will expand the compulsory income management scheme, which has little evidence backing up its worth.

NT Labor counts the cost of federal and state indigenous policies

cat.kutay — Tue, 03 Sep 2013 08:24:41 +0000

The ALP losses in the Northern Territory are fairly clearly related to Aboriginal rejection of their treatment – not just what was done to them, but how it was done.

Election 2013 Issues: Australians, one and all?

cat.kutay — Tue, 03 Sep 2013 08:23:54 +0000

Welcome to the The Conversation’s Election 2013 State of the Nation essays. These articles by leading experts in their field provide an in-depth look at the key policy challenges affecting Australia as the nation heads to the polls. Today, we examine social inclusion, equality and addressing Indigenous disadvantage.

Are feminists opposing Abbott’s paid parental leave scheme on personality grounds only?

cat.kutay — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 02:40:59 +0000

How can the federal government spend about $4 billion on child care a year and yet have little or no say in where the services are located or how much they charge? Could it be that a bad dose of neo-liberal market-based funding in the ’90s has undermined what should have been a community service and allowed ideology to override commonsense?

How can the government justify a policy that penalises working sole parents?

cat.kutay — Sat, 23 Mar 2013 03:57:43 +0000

Late last year, the United Nations' Human Rights Council expressed its concern that moves to push sole parents onto a lower paid income support may breach our responsibilities under a number of human rights treaties.

Who is damaged by the current superannuation system?

cat.kutay — Sat, 23 Mar 2013 03:56:34 +0000

Media stories about possible changes to superannuation tax concessions generally focus on the “dangers” of reducing the unfair benefits of better off super contributors. Most stories come from financial journalists who voice the views of the finance industry, or offer opinion pieces from the various financial institutions that benefit substantially from the current system.

The Conversation

There’s far more to the fair go than just economics

Archive:

‘Empowerment’ feminism is not working – we need a far more radical approach to gender equality

Archive:

The state of Australia: welfare and inequality

Archive:

Creeping spread of income management must be challenged

Archive:

Failed market assumptions are undermining care for our children

Archive:

An 800,000-plus jobs gap between ‘welfare to work’ and reality

Archive:

Income management: more evidence-free policymaking?

Archive:

Closing the Gap: we know what works, so why don’t we do it?

Archive:

Prejudiced policymaking underlies Labor’s cuts to single parent payments

Archive:

Income management: more evidence-free policymaking?

Archive:

NT Labor counts the cost of federal and state indigenous policies

Archive:

Election 2013 Issues: Australians, one and all?

Archive:

Are feminists opposing Abbott’s paid parental leave scheme on personality grounds only?

Archive:

How can the government justify a policy that penalises working sole parents?

Archive:

Who is damaged by the current superannuation system?

Archive: