Women

UWS Employer of Choice for Women

UWS is a recipient of the prestigious citation Employer of Choice for Women 2011. UWS received this award because it demonstrated that the University:

• has policies in place (across employment matters) that support women across the organisation
• has effective processes and practices (across employment matters) that are transparent
• has strategies in place that support a commitment to fully utilising and developing its people (including women)
• educates its employees (including supervisors and managers) on their rights and obligations regarding sex-based harassment
• has an inclusive organisational culture that is championed by the CEO, driven by senior executives and holds line managers accountable
• delivers improved outcomes for women and the business.

Equal Opportunity for Women

Women have been traditionally under-represented in senior management and in a number of occupational areas. Under the Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Act 1999, UWS has a continuing obligation to improve employment prospects, remuneration and training and development for women.

Equity and Diversity works with supervisors and managers to develop strategies and programs to assist women's development.

UWS Women's Network

The UWS Women's Network was launched by the Vice-Chancellor  in 2007 to provide a forum where women from different areas of the university can meet, network, share information and discuss issues of particular interest to women. 

Equity and Diversity facilitates two or three seminars per year. The seminars are free, open to all female members of staff and generally held from 12.00 pm - 2.00 pm. Attendance at the seminars is considered to be a staff development training experience and time taken to attend is recorded as being on duty.

Previous Seminar topics have included:

Gender Equality in Australia - Are we going backwards? - Guest Speakers Emma Partridge, Research Principal Institute of Sustainable Futures, UTS and Amanda Tattersall Deputy Assistant Secretary, Unions NSW and Executive Director Working NSW.

Work Life Balance - The rhetoric, the options and why nothing will work without men- Dr Leslie Canard Bio-ethicist, Researcher, Writer, Commentator, Fellow Philosophy Department of the University of Melbourne, Honorary Senior Lecturer at the Centre for Gender and Medicine at Monash University

Women and Money, Improving your Financial Literacy - Speaker Karen Morrison Certified Financial Planner IPAC Securities Ltd.

Step Into Your Personal Leadership- How to Work and Live Assertively - with Award-winning International Speaker, Facilitator, Women’s Executive Coach and MC Sandi Givens

International Women's Day

International Women's Day (IWD) is celebrated every year around the world on 8 March. 

To mark the  special significance of the 100th anniversary of IWD in 2011 , UWS partnered with UN Women Australia to support the coordination of IWD events throughout Australia.

At UWS  IWD was celebrated at a Staff Breakfast , hosted by the Vice Chancellor  and at the Annual UWS Women of the West Awards.  

Equal Pay Day

Equal Pay Day, initiated by EOWA in 2008, is an annual event to highlight the serious issue of gender pay inequity. The Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show that the average gender pay gap for full time workers as of February 2011 is 17.2%. Women have to work an extra 63 days to match what men earn.

UWS is an official supporter of Equal Pay Day and the need to address the gender pay equity gap.

For more information, see the EOWA Website page for Equal Pay Day (opens in a new window)

External Sites

• Australian Government Office for Women website (opens in a new window)
• Universities Australia -Women in Universities website (opens in a new window)
• Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workforce Agency website (opens in a new window)
• NSW Premier's Department Office for Women website (opens in a new window)

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