Not surprisingly economists refer to the motherhood penalty – the amount of previous earnings an average mother gives up after having children. In Australia, it is huge – 55 per cent – and the average loss in earnings lasts for at least 10 years. 

New fathers are increasingly taking parental leave however, women remain the primary caregivers in Australia, taking time out from their careers. 

When people take leave because they are sick or having a holiday, they don’t return to the office with a lower superannuation balance than their colleagues.  It is important to pay superannuation on paid parental leave, so we are not disadvantaging parents in their retirement.  

I have been fortunate to experience parenthood and the challenges of my children’s early years first-hand. I took time off after each of my three children, and despite having a supportive and committed husband, I subsequently returned to work part-time instead of full-time and sought out different types of jobs, based on the need to balance my work responsibilities with the time I needed and wanted to spend with my kids. 

Women aged 60 to 65 are retiring with 25% less superannuation than men the same age, largely attributable to the caring responsibilities they take on. 

The Government introduced legislation that will benefit about 180,000 families annually by providing an extra 12 per cent of their government funded paid parental leave as an annual lump sum payment of up to $3,000 to their super fund. 

I supported this bill because recognising the loss of superannuation during time taken to look after children normalises paid parental leave as a workplace entitlement.