Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-j824f Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-02T22:43:59.983Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Her Rights at Work: The Political Persecution of Australia’s First Female Prime Minister

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2023

Anne Summers
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Extract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

On 24 June 2010 Julia Eileen Gillard became Australia’s first female prime minister. She had served as deputy prime minister to Kevin Rudd in the Labor government that was elected on 24 November 2007. As deputy prime minister she had enjoyed great popularity and although the means by which Gillard assumed the top job was controversial — and became more so over the course of time — initially her elevation was greeted with widespread enthusiasm. There was a palpable sense of history in the media coverage, with most outlets treat ing Gillard’s ascension as an important event, to be taken seriously. The public seemed pretty pleased as well. Her popularity rating was high. Many women and girls, especially, were thrilled at this milestone having been reached. A few weeks into the job, Gillard called an election, seeking to legitimise her position through the validation of a popular vote. The election, held on 21 August 2010, failed to deliver her an outright majority. However she was able to form a government by negotiating agreements with the Greens and three Independents.

Type
Current Issues
Information
The Economic and Labour Relations Review , Volume 23 , Issue 4 , November 2012 , pp. 115 - 126
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s) 2012

References

Australian Human Rights Commission (2012) What is sexual harassment? Available: http://www.hreoc.gov.au/sexualharassment/index.html [accessed 1 October 2012].Google Scholar
Cassidy, B. (2010) The Party Thieves. The Real Story of the 2010 Election, Melbourne University Press, Melbourne.Google Scholar
Comcare (n.d.) Comcare’s workplace bullying campaign, available: http://www.comcare.gov.au/safety_and_prevention/health_and_safety_topics/bullying/Comcares_workplace_bullying_campaign [accessed 1 October 2012].Google Scholar
Coorey, P. (2010) ‘Gillard saves Labor’, Sydney Morning Herald, 26 June, available: http://www.smh.com.au/national/gillard-saves-labor-20100625-z9qy.html?autostart=1%22&gt [accessed 30 August 2012].Google Scholar
Damian O’Keefe v Williams Muir’s Pty Limited t/a Troy Williams The Good Guys [2011] FWA 5311.Google Scholar
Dover-Ray v Real Insurance Pty Ltd (2010) 204 IR 399; [2010] FWA 8544.Google Scholar
Durkin, P. (2012) ‘Settlement in porn case’, Australian Financial Review, 30 August, p. 15.Google Scholar
Facebook (2012a) http://mashable.com/2012/01/12/facebook-1-billion-users/ [accessed 23 August 2012].CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth).Google Scholar
Farr, M. (2011) ‘Tony Abbott tells Julia Gillard to “make an honest woman of herself” on carbon tax’, Herald Sun, 25 February, available: http://www.news.com.au/national-old/tony-abbott-tells-julia-gillard-to-make-an-honest-womanof-herself-on-carbon-tax/story-e6frfkvr-1226012034629 [accessed 1 September 2012].Google Scholar
Fox news.com.au (2007) ‘Barren Gillard “unfit to be PM’”, available http://www.news.com.au/top-stories/barren-gillard-unfit-to-be-pm/story-e6frfkp9-1111113448384#ixzz248ixawJX [viewed 23 August 2012].Google Scholar
Hansard, HR (House of Representatives) (2012) 20 August, available: http://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;db=CHAMBER;id=chamber%2Fhansardr%2F2d5112d9-d29f-4121-aa4c-332814189972%2F0024;query=Id%3A%22chamber%2Fhansardr%2F2d5112d9-d29f-4121-aa4c-332814189972%2F0018%22 [viewed 23 August 2012].Google Scholar
Kelly, J. (2011) ‘Mark Latham says Julia Gillard has no empathy because she has no children’, The Australian, 4 April, available: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/mark-latham-says-julia-gillard-has-no-empathy-because-shes-childless/story-fn59niix-1226033174177 [accessed 23 August 2012].Google Scholar
Kitney, G. (2012) Abbott gets hammered’, Australian Financial Review, 21, p. 6.Google Scholar
Mack, Melissa (2012) ‘“Old cow” insult for PM Gillard’, InDaily, 3 August, available: http://www.indailycom.au/?xml=mob&iid=66169#folio=1 [accessed 23 August 2012].Google Scholar
Parliament of Australia House of Representatives Committees (2012) Inquiry into workplace bullying, available: http://www.aph.gov.au/parliamentary_business/committees/house_of_representatives_committees?url=ee/bullying/tor.htm [accessed 1 October 2012].Google Scholar
Quinn, K. (2012) ‘Defiant Pickering says he’s not finished with PM yet’, smh.com.au, 24 August, available: http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/defiant-pickering-says-hes-not-finished-with-pm-yet-20120823-24p11.html [accessed 26 August 2012].Google Scholar
Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth), available: http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/sdal984209/ [viewed 23 August 2012].Google Scholar
Summers, A. (2010) ‘It is Gillard’s ability to connect with, surprise and delight a wide range of people that is her ace card’, The Age, 26 June, Insight, p. 3.Google Scholar
Summers, A. (2012) ‘The gender agenda’, The Sunday Age, 26 February, pp. 11–12.Google Scholar
Trapman v Sydney Water Corporation & Ors [2011] FMCA 398 (2 June 2011).Google Scholar
van Onselen, P. (2012) ‘Backbench push for survival fuels leadership noise’, Weekend Australian, 21–22 July, p. 13.Google Scholar
‘What Julia told her firm’ (2012) The Australian, 22 August, p. 11, available: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/features/what-julia-told-her-firm/story-e6frg6z6-1226455281078 [accessed 1 October 2012].Google Scholar