School of Social and Political Sciences - Research Publications
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ItemGender, sexual harassment, and violence in the hospitality industry(Newcastle Youth Studies Centre, University of Newcastle, 2023-08-22)This report shows that gender-based violence, particularly sexual harassment, is a serious and persistent problem in the hospitality sector. Gender-based violence refers to harmful acts directed at an individual based on their gender, and can include sexual, physical, mental and economic harm. It is rooted in gender inequality, the abuse of power and harmful norms (UNHCR 2023). This report draws from a program of empirical research with young hospitality workers to provide evidence of the impacts of gendered harms at work, and provides recommendations regarding required changes in the sector. While sexual harassment is an entrenched problem in many different workplaces and industries, the gendered dynamics of interactive service labour make the hospitality sector a particularly important site to address gender-based violence. This report centers the voices of young women, queer and nonbinary hospitality workers to illustrate how gendered dynamics underpin the problem of gender-based violence in the industry. Women, queer and nonbinary workers are central to maintaining hospitality venues as safe and enjoyable spaces for patrons, yet these workers are also most likely to suffer from harms related to gender-based violence. This report highlights the need to better understand and support the young workers in hospitality who are on the front line responding to, and managing, gender-based violence in their venues. There has been progress in recent years in efforts to address gender-based harms in the sector. For example, since 2021, 60 venues have signed up to a previous union-led “Respect is the Rule” campaign. However, further efforts are needed which address the underlying gendered norms in the industry which can enable discrimination, harassment and violence to flourish. For example, there remains pressure to serve offending customers and for staff to simply ignore gender-based harassment in their workplaces. The findings of this report highlight that gender inequalities underpin not only the attitudes and behaviours leading to violence in these workplaces, but also the manner in which they are frequently responded (Our Watch, 2021). This report provides recommendations drawn from the experiences of young workers in hospitality to suggest changes targeting employers, policy, and resourcing in order to create safe and respectful workplaces for all.
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ItemNo Preview Available'In Normal Circumstances': Understanding the Structural Nature of Racial Violence in the Northern Territory(Coroner's Court of the Northern Territory, 2023)
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ItemInquiry into the Migration Amendment (Evacuation to Safety) Bill 2023(Compartive Network on Externalisation of Refugee Policies, University of Sydney, University of Melbourne, 2023-02-23)
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Item2023 State of the Future of Work(Work Futures Hallmark Research Initiative, The University of Melbourne, 2023-03-01)The 2023 State of the Future of Work Report is the first report from the Work Futures Hallmark Research Initiative (WFHRI), a team of interdisciplinary researchers from The University of Melbourne. Drawing on data on the work experiences of 1,400 Australian workers since the pandemic, we identify four critical future of work themes: 1. Unsafe: Australians feel their work and workplaces are unsafe, sites of discrimination for women, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, caregivers and people living with chronic illnesses. 2. Unwell: Work, as it currently stands, is making many Australians unwell, with many working harder and reporting greater exhaustion than prepandemic, especially those in their prime working ages. 3. Uncertain: Australian workers have a limited understanding of how the upcoming technological changes driven by automation and artificial intelligence will impact their jobs, creating greater uncertainty. Work, as it currently stands, is rapidly changing, with many Australians unclear on how to keep up. 4. Opportunity: Despite these massive issues, Australian workers see greater opportunity to support workers to build happier, more satisfied work lives especially through the rise of flexible workplaces and flexible work practices.
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ItemSecurity Through Sustainable Peace: Australian International Conflict Prevention and Peacebuilding(The University of Melbourne, 2020)Review of the Australian Department of foreign Affairs and Trade's experience with conflict prevention and peacebuilding and recommendations for policy development and strengthening capacity.
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ItemThe effectiveness of minimum non-parole period schemes for serious violent, sexual and drug offenders and evidence-based approaches to community protection, deterrence, and rehabilitation(Sentencing Advisory Council QLD, 2021)Purpose: This review presents a summary of research that is relevant to the implementation of the serious violent offences (SVO) scheme in Queensland. This scheme requires a person declared convicted of a serious violent offence1 to serve 80 per cent of their sentence (or 15 years, whichever is less) in prison before being eligible to apply for parole. Three separate but related questions are considered. The first relates to conceptualisations and stakeholder (i.e., community, victim and professional) perceptions of crime seriousness, risk, and harm - and how these influence determinations about the appropriate length of imprisonment and setting of non-parole periods. The second concerns current empirical evidence about the effectiveness of mandatory or presumptive minimum non-parole period schemes; and the final question considers what is known about the impact a range of other sentencing or programmatic approaches that might also be used to achieve community protection, deterrence, rehabilitation, punishment, and denunciation. These questions are answered with specific reference to those who have been convicted of Schedule 1 offences and who therefore may be subject to the SVO scheme, including those convicted of sexual violence, non-sexual violence, and serious drug offences.
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ItemShocks and safety nets: financial wellbeing during the COVID-19 crisis(Brotherhood of St Laurence, 2021)We use ANZ's Financial Wellbeing Indicator, which draws on multiple questions in the continuous Roy Morgan Single Source survey. The Indicator brings together three dimensions based on Kempson and colleagues’ (2017) model of financial wellbeing. These include the ability to meet everyday commitments, feeling comfortable about one’s financial situation and resilience to financial shocks. For most people, the COVID crisis led to a decline in financial wellbeing, driven by a sharp fall in the Feeling Comfortable dimension. People with low incomes, particularly those in the workforce, faced more serious declines. For example, low-income workers showed a 21% decline in ability to Meet Commitments from the pre-COVID period to the September 2020 quarter. On the other hand, COVID-19 responses made it easier for those relying on income support to buy essentials and pay bills on time: Our findings suggest that harmful impacts from the crisis were less severe where people had access to government support as well as their own savings or other resources. Real, widespread recovery will require not only adequate social security that allows resilience but also investment in full employment and social infrastructure such as affordable housing. This report is part of the Financial Lives in Uncertain Times project. The research was made possible by the generous support of ANZ through the ANZ Tony Nicholson Fellowship and the provision under licence of Roy Morgan Single Source Survey data.
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ItemEconomic security and dignity: a financial wellbeing framework(Brotherhood of St Laurence, 2020)This paper proposes a financial wellbeing framework that recognises the drivers, impacts and experience of economic insecurity and is based on the concept of economic dignity. The framework builds on BSL research into economic insecurity and financial stress. It was developed through a series of workshops with BSL staff, informed by the conceptual thinking undertaken as part of the ANZ Tony Nicholson Fellowship. It will be used to guide the development of programs that directly address financial hardship among those experiencing disadvantage, and to support advocacy for government and institutional policies that create the conditions for the financial wellbeing of all Australians.