Election Survey: Sue Kedgeley (Greens)

Earlier today I put up the Greens' party response to questions 2 through 10, and indicated that individual candidates would provide their own personal replies to questions 1 and 11. Here is the first of those individual responses, from current Green MP, Sue Kedgeley, who is their candidate for Wellington Central, and number 5 on the Green party list.

Question 1. What do you believe is currently the single biggest issue facing New Zealand women, and how would you like to address it if you are elected?
The chronic stress many women endure as they juggle full time work and family commitments. We would extend paid parental leave to 13 months, and extend my Flexible Working Hours bill to cover all employees, and not just those with dependents, as is the case at present.

(Greens' party response to Q2 - 10)

Question 11. Do you have any further comments that you wish to make about the role of women in our society? Please feel free to share your thoughts here.
While significant gains have been made for women over the past few decades, women are still clustered in low income jobs, and jobs that are predominantly done by women are among the lowest paid in New Zealand. We need to increase the minimum wage and introduce pay equity into aged care and other female dominated professions.

The time women are able to spend with their children has declined steeply over recent decades, as more and more women work full time. We want to extend paid parental leave and introduce flexible working arrangements to spend more time with their children, and reduce the stress so many women working long hours experience.