TRANSCRIPT
When Sam Cahill took maternity leave, she thought that would include superannuation payments.
She soon realised that wasn't the case - her husband already $60,000 ahead of her in retirement funds.
Instead of sitting back, Sam decided to do something - pushing the government to add superannuation to paid parental leave.
Ms Cahill says after four years of campaigning the government, that work has paid off.
"Since she was four months old, I came here, I was breastfeeding still. So she's about to turn five. So to have this come through is absolutely amazing, it feels like it's one step closer. It's not going to help me currently or in the future but it will help many generations of women in the future."
The Federal Government has announced superannuation will be added to paid parental leave scheme from July 1, 2025.
It's part of Labor's Working for Women strategy, Australia's first national strategy to achieve gender equality.
Minister for Women, Katy Gallagher, says it's the sensible thing to do.
"You're paid super on your sick leave, you're paid super on your annual leave, and there is no reason why it shouldn't be paid on paid parental leave too. The government has taken this decision because it is the right thing to do."
The goal is to reduce the gap between men and women's super.
The Parenthood CEO Georgie Dent says there's a serious discrepancy between the two at the moment.
"On average women in Australia retire with around 25% less in their superannuation balances than men do. Now that gap is really a reflection of the fact that women do take more breaks from paid work to take on the caring responsibilities."
Parents will receive an extra 12 per cent payment into their superannuation - $106 each week.
It's a move long pushed for by advocates, and a recommendation from the government's Women’s Economic Equality Taskforce.
CEO of the Super Members Council Misha Schubert says it will mean thousands more for mothers come retirement.
"We know that for a mother of two across the course of her working life, she accesses the scheme twice, is likely to be $14,500 better off at retirement. That will make a powerful difference both to those individual women and to the country."
About 180,000 people access the paid parental leave scheme each year, 99 per cent of them women.
The cost of the scheme will be revealed in the May budget.
Opposition spokesperson for women, Sussan Ley says the coalition supports the principal of the announcement.
"The coalition supports the principle of funding superannuation on government funded paid parental leave. We support the principle. We also will scrutinize all of the detail. That detail wasn't there today. It's important that we get across the detail. It's important that we hear from the minister who is also the finance Minister about those costings."
The scheme won't fully close the gap between men's and women's super.
Misha Schubert says it's critical to consider what more can be done to support working parents.
"It's really important to keep asking ourselves what more can we do to support working parents. Women at the moment pay this sort of financial motherhood penalty when they step out of the paid workforce to do the really important work of raising children in the earliest years of life."
