A woman's work

This is not the result of feminism - this is the continued impact of a patriarchal culture that remains fundamentally unchanged at its core. Workplaces are still built around the idea that there is a good women at home taking care of the household. Childcare is expensive and waiting lists are long. Maternity leave is not provided for most Australian workers, and part-time work is difficult to secure.

Despite all the rhetoric of family values and the (ridiculous) urgings from the government that we breed, no real effort has been made to actually make our society one that is supportive of women’s choices - abortion is vilified, while the choice to have a child receives a “baby bonus” and then nothing.

I say all this as a truly lucky person. I have a scholarship that provides paid maternity leave, a wonderfully supportive husband and extended family, and the freedom to go back part-time and to work from home - and, above all, I happen to love children and to genuinely want to be a mother.

All of these things have made my decision easier, and yet I still struggle with the implications for my life. How it would feel to be facing a future without some of those supports is something that I find very difficult to even contemplate.