With 54 per cent of the region’s workforce being women, the Central Coast could well be on the way to a possible “pink recession”, said Business NSW Central Coast Regional Director, Paula Martin.
Martin was responding to a call from The Parenthood, a community of mums and dads working together to create positive change for kids, for more quality affordable early learning education and child care to keep mums in the workforce as the impacts of COVID-19 continue to be felt.
An announcement from the State Government on August 20 that it will extend COVID-19 relief funding for community and mobile preschools to the end of Term Four is welcome, but more needs to be done.
“We have over 35,000 working mothers in the region contributing valuable skills and knowledge to the economy and with this number of working mothers exceeding the state’s average, we need to ensure that the appropriate support and measures are in place to support this growing cohort of local workers,” Martin said.
“Healthcare, hospitality and retail are the largest employers of females on the Central Coast and these industries have been the hardest hit by COVID-19 restrictions.
“Over the last decade we have also seen a marked increase in jobs for women in professional services, clerical and administrative roles and this increase coincides with more females obtaining diplomas and degrees.
“Female participation is an important part of our local recovery strategy.
“The region is still suffering from chronic skills shortages in traditional trades and growing industries like advanced manufacturing and high tech.
“Helping women to pursue fulfilling careers in these industries not only fills these gaps but we will also see new industry innovation emerge as female owned start-ups are on the rise thanks to easy access to technology and low barriers to launch.
“Smart businesses across the globe are going beyond flexible work arrangements to offer modern work practices more in line with working mothers and families.
“If we can get the balance right between this and sustainable child care options, we will be well on our way to economic recovery.”
Nathalie Ainsworth of Ainsworth Accounting Solutions based at Tuggerah said caring for three small children while keeping her business afloat during the pandemic had been “a struggle”.
With one child in Year Three and twins who began Kindergarten this year, Ainsworth said home schooling had presented huge challenges.
She said she had kept the children at home during the period of social isolation, feeling that she did not classify as an essential worker.
“I also didn’t want to expose my children to the virus so, at that stage, sending them to school was not an option,” she said.
“My twins had just started school this year and having to try to teach them to read and write as well as run my business was extremely trying.
“A lot of my clients were relying on me in those tough times for advice on how they could access government help and I had to constantly watch the news to keep abreast of developments I needed to advise them on.
“It was a very tough time, but most of my clients were understanding.”
Ainsworth said she had welcomed the resumption of school and organised sport.
“It was hard when they had no real outlet for exercise,” she said.
“And it’s still sad that as parents we can’t actually walk them into the school grounds, but things certainly feel a lot more normal now and things are easier.”
Ainsworth said she felt more help with childcare would definitely be a help to the working women of the Coast.
For those with school aged children, she said, a compromise on school hours could be helpful.
“It’s difficult when women who normally work until 5 have to pick up children, sometimes from different schools, around 3,” she said.
That situation was exacerbated, she said, for those who had previously relied on grandparents to help with after school care and now found that avenue closed because of COVID-19.
Parliamentary Secretary for the Central Coast, Adam Crouch, said providing free preschool throughout Term Four was one of the ways the State Government is working to take the pressure off families during COVID-19.
“Our Government is pulling every economic lever available to create new job opportunities, keep people in jobs and support the community at this difficult time,” Crouch said.
Terry Collins