Councils for Gender Equity Program | Latest Forum Topics/News Articles

Broken Hill first NSW Council to win Silver Award in gender equity!

ACELG — 2012-02-01 09:58:02 +1100

Broken Hill City Council is the first NSW council, and only the second in Australia to win the Silver Award in the 50:50 Vision – Gender Equity Program.

Broken Hill City Council has long pioneered gender equity, and their Deputy Mayor, Darriea Turley is Chair of the Australian Local Government Women's Association.

In applying for the Award, Broken Hill City Council achieved accreditation in the areas of:

Commitment and Leadership
Nomination and Recruitment
Remuneration, Recognition and Training

As well, staff at Broken Hill City Council participated in an online climate survey, where 75% of survey participants agreed that “Its important that council addresses gender equity issues” and 82% were "able to maintain a good balance between work and family life"

For more information about Broken Hill's journey to Silver please contact:

Karen Purser,

50:50 Vision Program Coordinator

karen.purser@acelg.org.au

Kristal Comeadow,

Project Officer for Business Excellence

Broken Hill City Council

Kristal.Comeadow@brokenhill.nsw.gov.au

Program update...

ACELG — 2011-09-13 15:52:22 +1000

Just over 20% of councils a cross the country are registered for the program, with more signing up every week.

Councils who have acheived Bronze Award Status include:

Northern Territory:

Tiwi Islands Shire Council
Victoria Daly Shire
Darwin City Council
Victoria Daly Shire Council

New South Wales:

Holroyd City Council
Sutherland Shire Council
Broken Hill City Council
Queanbeyan City Council
Penrith City Council
City of Canada Bay Council
City of Ryde
Hornsby Shire Council
Bankstown City Council
Leichhardt
Wollongong
Mid-Western Regional Council
Kogarah City Council
Mosman
City of Newcastle

Queensland:

Central Highlands Regional Council
Gympie Regional Council
Mackay Regional Council

South Australia:

City of Unley
Sailsbury Council
Tea Tree Gulley Council

Tasmania:

Waratah-Wynyard Council
Devonport
Glenorchy
Circular Head Council
Clarence City Council
Kingborough
Latrobe Council

Victoria:

City of Ballarat
Boroondara
Cardinia Shire Council
City of Kingston
Whitehorse City Council
Nillumbik Shire Council

Western Australia:

Shire Augusta-Margaret River Western Australia
Nedlands Western Australia
Dardanup Western Australia

Unley Council to be awarded first National Silver Award

ACELG — 2011-09-13 14:47:46 +1000

Later this month Unley Council will become the first Australian Council to achieve the Silver Award in the national 50:50 Vision - Councils for Gender Equity program, at a gala dinner in Adelaide to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Australian Local Government Womens' Association (ALGWA). Unley Council has been a leader in addressing gender equity for some time and Unley's CEO, Ray Pincombe was chair of the 2010 Year of Women in Local Government National Steering Committee.

Unley Council has done some outstanding work and a case study including examples of policies and procedures developed in response to the 50:50 gender Equity program will be added to the website soon.

Broken Hill Council in NSW is close to completing the requirements for their full Silver Award, and Kogorah Council, also in NSW have acheived their first Silver Accreditation.

ALGWA 60th Anniversay Dinner

ACELG — 2011-07-18 13:38:10 +1000

The Australian Local Government Women's Association celebrated the 60th anniversary of the founding of the national organisation, at a sumptuous dinner at historic Old Parliament House in June.

Nearly 300 guests, including federal and state MPs, Mayors and a veritable whose who in local government attended the function, which was opened by Her Excellency, Quentin Bryce, the Governer General.

The Governor General spoke warmly of the great acheivements of ALGWA, and the importance of women in representative roles in all levels of governmen. She also spoke of the depth and reach of local government, noting that as she travels around the country, she sees clever innovative ideas translated by local government into programs and services that are vital to families, in education, health, sustainability, cultural and sporting life.

She noted that while more women are involved in all of these local government activities at every level - Leading, organising, doing the hard yards in the background, statistics showed that there is still a very long way to go in terms of achieving gender equity in local government.

The Honourable Kate Ellis MP, Minister for the Status of Women also spoke at the dinner, congratulating ALGWA on their fine work and noting that for 60 years, ALGWA has been working hard to support women’s participation in local government and to ensure that women’s voices are heard and represented equally.

MS Ellis recognised that ALGWA has taken a powerful role in addressing the gender imbalance in leadership in this country, and has made a number of significant achievements which the Government has been proud to support including the 2000 Victorian campaign, “Don’t Get Mad. Get Elected,” where women were elected in all but three Victorian local government councils. Ten years on, in 2010, it was the Year of Women in Local Government, and ALGWA conceived the 50-50 Vision strategy.

Minister Ellis described the 50:50 Vision - Councils for Gender Equity Project as the driving force to get councils across Australia to address the gender balance of elected members and senior council staffing, by setting achievable goals, implementing initiatives, capturing statistics and recognising those who enhance women’s participation in local government.

Professor Graham Sansom, from the Australian Centre of Excellence for Local Government also spoke at the dinner, noting that during his long association with ALGWA he had been privileged to work alongside many of the inspiring women of ALGWA in partnering with them in the research and delivery of their key programs, and acknowledged the passion and commitment ALGWA women brought to the table.

Clr Janet Davidson OA, was the MC for the event, and she spoke of the history of ALGWA, staring with the birth of ALGWA in Canberra in October 1951, at a meeting,chaired by Dame Enid Lyons, of the Jubilee Women’s Convention – a part of the Commonwealth of Australia Jubilee Year.

Vale Kaele Way AM

ACELG — 2011-07-07 11:21:02 +1000

National ALGWA President Councillor Darriea Turley today paid tribute to former National President, Kaele Way, who sadly lost her battle with cancer on Friday 1 July 2011, passing away peacefully with her children and family members present.

Cr Turley said, "ALGWA members from across Australia are truly saddened by Kaele‟s passing".

"Kaele had such a strong work ethic and set a bench mark that we can all only aspire to reach. Kaele was a catalyst for the Australian Local Government Women's Association and her efforts ensured that ALGWA as a national body did have a 'Way Forward', said Cr Turley.

"It was indeed a great honour that Kaele was able to attend ALGWA's 60th Anniversary celebrations in Canberra recently. On the night of the ALGWA Gala dinner she spoke with so many old friends and colleagues".

"It is testament to her personal strength and commitment to ALGWA that right up until the end of her life Kaele continued her passionate advocacy for women in local government".

Cr Turley said, "All of ALGWA‟s thoughts are with Alan and the children, Kaele's mother, family and friends at this sad time."

More Bronze Awards announced...

ACELG — 2011-06-08 17:09:41 +1000

The following councils have all acheived their Bronze Awards, and are gearing up for the Silver Award Accreditations. Many of theses councils have implemented great gender equity projects and we will start sharing the details of some of these projects here on the website soon.

As Silver Award applications come in we will be sharing the policies and procedures that have been developed as part of the accreditation process, so that councils with fewer resources will be able to step on the sshoulders of those with many!

Council State

Tiwi Islands Shire Council Northern Territory

Victoria Daly Shire Northern Territory

Darwin City Council Northern Territory

Holroyd City Council NSW

Sutherland Shire Council NSW

Broken Hill City Council NSW

Queanbeyan City Council NSW

Penrith City Council NSW

City of Canada Bay Council NSW

City of Ryde NSW

Hornsby Shire Council NSW

Bankstown City Council NSW

Leichhardt NSW

Wollongong NSW

Mid-Western Regional Council NSW

Kogarah City Council NSW

Central Highlands Regional Council Queensland

Gympie Regional Council Queensland

Mackay Regional Council Queensland

City of Unley South Australia

Waratah-Wynyard Council Tasmania

Devonport Tasmania

Glenorchy Tasmania

Circular Head Council Tasmania

Clarence City Council Tasmania

City of Ballarat Victoria

Boroondara Victoria

Cardinia Shire Council Victoria

City of Kingston Victoria

Whitehorse City Council Victoria

Nillumbik Shire Council Victoria

Shire Augusta-Margaret River Western Australia

Nedlands Western Australia

The 50:50 Vision Silver Awards are open - apply now!

ACELG — 2011-03-08 12:21:15 +1100

Councils who have completed the requirements for the Bronze award can apply for Silver at any time. The Silver Award is central to the 50:50 Vision – Councils for Gender Equity Program, and is the Award with most opportunity to generate real change within councils.

Silver Accreditation:

Silver accreditation involves self assessment on progress in one or more of four categories of achievement:

Leadership
Nomination and recruitment
Remuneration, recognition and training
Work and family balance

Councils need to achieve accreditation in three of the four categories of achievement to qualify for the Silver Award.

Achievement in each of the areas of accreditation is expected to bring about a cultural change in the organisation, and in many cases councils will need time to prepare and implement policies and procedures before applying for the accreditation.

Councils can find out more about applying for the Silver Awards here.

Councils can register their interest in applying for the Silver Award here.

22 Councils win inaugural Gender Equity Awards, leading the way in local government in Australia.

ACELG — 2010-12-06 13:42:16 +1100

Councils from as far away as the Tiwi Islands in the Northern Territory were awarded Bronze Awards in the ALGWA 50:50 Vision Councils for Gender Equity Program at the Women Going Places Australian Local Government Women’s Association (ALGWA) national conference Gala Dinner on November 26th.

The councils, from all states in Australia, are the first to achieve the Bronze Award and accreditation, and are looking forward to working towards the Silver Award, and then the prestigious Gold Award.

The awards were presented by Glenys Beauchamp, Acting Secretary, Department of Regional Australia, Regional Development and Local Government.

In presenting the awards, Ms Beauchamp emphasised the commitment of her department to gender equity in local government, and reminded dinner guests that local government could not hope to represent the community it serves, or meet future staffing challenges without greater diversity.

Ms Beauchamp congratulated each of the winning councils and noted that they would serve as fine examples for councils not already enrolled in the program.

The 50:50 Vision- Councils for Gender Equity Program is designed to bring about cultural and organisational change in councils – increasing the numbers of women in senior management roles; and to increase the representation of women on councils.

All councils are encouraged to participate in the program, which was endorsed by the Local Government and Planning Ministers Council (LGPMC) in February 2010.

National President of ALGWA, Clr Darriea Turley, said: “In many ways, Local Government offers outstanding opportunities for women and they account for about 52% of the 558 strong Council work force nationally. However, only around 7% of CEOs and 21% of Mayors are women, so the statistics speak for themselves.”

Councils who participate in the program will be better able to compete for talent when recruiting, and will encourage greater participation of women on councils.

More than 150 Councillors, Mayors and Local Government staff from every state and territory attended the Awards Dinner, including a large contingent of twelve from across the Northern Territory.

Councils receiving awards

Council
Bankstown City Council
Broken Hill City Council
Cardinia Shire Council
Circular Head Council
City of Ballarat
City of Boroondara
City of Canada Bay Council
City of Nedlands
City of Ryde
City of Unley
Darwin City Council
Devonport City Council
Holroyd City Council
Leichhardt Municipal Council
Nillumbik Shire Council
Penrith City Council
Queanbeyan City Council
Shire Augusta-Margaret River
Sutherland Shire Council
Tiwi Islands Shire Council
Waratah-Wynyard Council
Wollongong City Council

Sex Discrimination Commissioner launches 2010 Gender Equity Blueprint

ACELG — 2010-06-25 14:22:20 +1000

The Sex Discrimination Commissioner, Elizabeth Broderick, launched the 2010 Gender Equity Blueprint at Canberra's Press Club on 23 June.

Commissioner Broderick spoke passionately, stating that for all our achievements in this area, "there remains a major gap between women and men, and there's still a long way to go."

The Gender Equity team identified five areas of concern for the blueprint:

balancing paid work with family and caring responsibilities;
ensuring women's lifetime economic security;
promoting women in leadership;
preventing violence against women and sexual harassment;
and strengthening laws pertaining to gender equity.

Under these five areas are 12 recommendations, including 2.1 making flexible work an accepted part of Australian workplace culture and 3.1 lifting the voices of women in civil society.

The first of the Recommendations, 1.1 Improving the Paid Parental Leave Scheme, has already been achieved.

The Gender Equality Blueprint can be found on the Australian Human Right Commission's website.

50:50 Vision - Councils for Gender Equity Launched at the Australian Council of Local Governments Dinner

ACELG — 2010-06-25 14:03:14 +1000

Minister Tanya Plibersek and Parliamentary Secretary Maxine McKew launched the 50:50 Vision - Councils for Gender Equity Program at the Australian Council of Local Governments Dinner at Parliament House in June 17th.

In her speech Parliamentary Secretary McKew drew attention to the importance of local government in the lives of the community and commended the program for providing an innovative and national accreditation and award scheme.

In front over 500 Mayors from across Australia, Minister Plibersek congratulated Darriea Turley, President of ALGWA on the hard work ALGWA had put into developing the program, and recognised the significant role Jessie Byrne had played in the design of the new award and accreditation system.

Minister Plibersek went on to remind those present of some of the early history of women in local government, and noted that while we have come a long way since the first women was elected to local government in Australia in 1919, we haven't come far enough:

"Forty years after Susan Benny's election, women's representation in local government had only reached one percent. Now, ninety years later it is still only 30%."

In case anyone thought that there were not good business reasons for pursuing a 50:50 vision, Minister Plibersek quoted from a recent McKinsey report:

"The companies where women are most strongly represented at board or top management level are also the companies that perform best, on both organisational and financial performance"

In conclusion, Minister Plibersek reminded local government of the major challenges it is facing in the areas of skills shortages and ageing workforces and said:

"Tonight we are taking a major step towards ensuring the survival – and enhancement - of local government in Australia as we launch the 50:50 Councils for Gender Equity Awards."

At the end of the speeches Minister Plibersek and Parliamentary Secretary Maxine McKew presented Darriea Turley with an award recognising her contribution to the program and thanked the Australian Local Government Womens Association, the the Australian Centre for Excellence in Local Government and the Australian Council of Local Governments.

Does your council have 50:50 Vision? Apply for the Bronze Award now!

ACELG — 2010-06-16 15:34:06 +1000

Applications are now open for the first level of accreditation in the 50:50 Vision - Councils for Gender Equity program - the Bronze Awards.

In order to achieve a Bronze Award a council must:

provide a council endorsed statement of commitment to address gender equality issues
conduct a self assesment of staff/elected representative gender ratios
outline at least one project they will undertake to address gender equity issues
nominate a 50:50 Vision champion to have carriage of the program within the organisation.

The first round of Bronze Awards will be presented at the ALGWA national Conference "Ticket to Ryde" in November this year.

If you want your council to lead the way and be among the first to be awarded this prestigious accreditation - click here and register for a full information and entry pack.

50:50 Vision - Councils for Gender Equity Program launches at ACLG dinner

ACELG — 2010-06-16 14:48:21 +1000

The 50:50 Vision - Councils for Gender Equity Program will be launched tonight at the Australian Council of Local Government dinner by Ministers Anthony Albanese and Tanya Plibersek and Parliamentary Secretary Maxine McKew.

The program, funded by the Australian Government, is the first national accreditation and awards program to address gender equity in local government in Australia.

Importantly, the program provides for both elected representatives and officers of councils. While the first women was elected to local government in 1919, in 2009, only 21% of Mayors in Australia were women.

The Australian Local Government Women's Association (ALGWA) have developed the program, which is designed to assist all councils, regardless of size or location.