Anna Stewart Memorial Project continues in 2020

At this year’s Anna Stewart Memorial Project in South Australia, 13 women participated in the five-day program. They came from a variety of sectors including plumbing, electrical induction, primary, secondary and tertiary education It was inspirational to see the effort that everyone made to attend this vital project. Women travelled from regional areas, took recreation leave and even brought their young children with them. Everyone who attended had the same goal of being able to better contribute to their respective unions. In the morning of our very first session we were asked to do two things: Consider what we wanted to get out of the project, and consider which issues were most important to us For the first task, inspiration and reconnection to the purpose was a common thread. This has been a tough year, particularly for our sisters, and balancing work and home demands amidst a global pandemic has been an extraordinary feat; no wonder so many of us felt fatigued. Finding confidence and conviction in our voices was another commonality between the women. Often, we find ourselves in male-dominated industries and trying to prove our validity can be a challenge. With one participant not even having access to female facilities at her workplace – it can often feel like an uphill battle to find equal footing. For the second task, a blank piece of poster paper was placed on an A-Frame with the words: What is most important to you? We filled it with: • Secure employment. • Superannuation equity: dignity in retirement.

Above: Anna McCarron and Jess Jacobson with their Anna Stewart certificates

• Normality in family/caring roles shared between both parents. • Quality free childcare. • Diversity in all workplaces including parliament. • Genuine opportunity for women in leadership. We spent the next four and a half days learning the techniques and finding the confidence to step forward, take charge and make meaningful change on these issues. Power comes from organising – and we are ready and equipped with the tools. We learned about how we can become great leaders who empower others, inspire action and turn division into solidarity. We learned about how we can become great campaigners by experimenting with different leadership structures, team building tools and communication strategies. We learned about the power of women by studying the great women who have shaped our society and continue to do so, by looking at social 'norms' through a range of lenses, and by finding the confidence to speak up. continued overpage...

Below, left: Angus Story (SA Unions Secretary) with Anna McCarron. Right: 2020 Project group participants.

...continued from previous page All the women within the project were so respectful and supportive of each other. Everyone formed such a strong bond with each other in just five days and we formed a Facebook group to keep in touch, invite each other to union related events such as ‘Feminism in the Pub’ and to support each other as women and unionists. It was fascinating to learn about how different Unions operate and the difference that women are making. It was energising to be surrounded by other women who shared the same ideologies and are committed to making change so that the women that follow us do not have to fight as hard for equal rights. At the conclusion of the week we felt empowered, reconnected, confident and ready to make change. What do we want to see for the university sector? We want a sector that no longer requires 'diversity targets', as the workforce is naturally diverse. We want a sector where women are represented equally in the leadership stakes. We want a sector that supports secure career progression for both academic and professional women. We want a sector that is more than accommodating to flexible working arrangements and paid parental leave for both parents. And we want a sector that uses their resources to continue to progress women’s rights. We know how to organise and to bring people together for a cause. We have the tools to progress each of these visions and we intend to use them. ◆ Anna McCarron, NTEU delegate, UniSA Jessica Jacobson, NTEU delegate, Adelaide

A number of Anna Stewart Memorial Project (ASMP) graduates have gone on to become Union leaders. Elizabeth Dabars and Gail Gago are two ASMP graduates who became union leaders in SA.

Elizabeth was elected Secretary of the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation SA Branch) in 2008 at the age of 30. She still holds that position. In 2014, she received an Order of Australia award (AM) for her services to medical administration, particularly to nursing and midwifery, and to community and mental health organisations. Gail also was elected Secretary of the SA Branch of the Australian Nursing Federation Union and later was elected to the SA Legislative Council representing the Australian Labor Party. Between 2006 and 2016, she held 12 different Ministerial portfolios including Minister for Employment, Higher Education and Skills. She was also Leader of the Government in the Legislative Council from 2011 to 2016. She retired from Parliament in 2018.

There have also been international participants in the Victorian program including six women who now work in their home country for APHEDA (Australian People for Health, Education and Development), the global justice organisation of the Australian union movement. Those women are Hoang Hang (Vietnam), Teng Rany (Cambodia), Vilada Phomduansy (Laos), Hiba Yasin (Palestine), Elizabeth Araujo (Timor Leste) and Ricar Pascoela (Timor Leste). ◆ Anna Stewart Memorial Project: www.unionwomen.org.au/asmp

A former journalist and active Victorian union official from 1974 to 1983, Anna Stewart died in 1983 aged only 35. Anna was a founding member of the ACTU Women's Committee established in 1977 and worked tirelessly on programs to be incorporated into the Working Women's Charter. In 1974 Anna joined the Federated Furnishing Trades Society of Australasia as research officer. She quickly saw that the few places that employed women failed to provide job security, flexibility, skills recognition, childcare and unpaid maternity leave.

In 1975, she moved to the Victorian Branch of the Vehicle Builders' Employees' Federation of Australia where she fought for childcare facilities in car plants, argued work value cases, initiated campaigns against sexual harassment, and compelled employers to recognise sexual harassment as an industrial issue.

Above: Anna Stewart (Miranda Salt)

She assisted with the ACTU Maternity Leave Test Case, regarded as a breakthrough in winning the right of working women to 52 weeks of unpaid maternity leave and the right to return to the same job. ◆