Reaching out to disadvantaged workers

To mark International Women’s Day, UNSW’s Kingford Legal Centre (KLC) has launched materials to support vulnerable female workers in the community.

The Women at Work factsheets give information to migrant women about issues such as discrimination about pregnancy and inadequate pay.

Created in conjunction with Asian Women at Work, the factsheets -- available in English, Bengali, Chinese and Indonesian -- are a resource for workers and community legal centres.

“We hope these targeted factsheets will allow women to recognise workplace issues and seek legal advice at an early stage,” says Emma Golledge, the KLC’s Acting Director.

Informed by workshops run over a year in Auburn, Hurstville and Cabramatta, the Women at Work factsheets feature case studies and outline preventative steps and avenues for dealing with issues.

“Publishing the factsheets in community languages is key to ensuring we reach vulnerable workers, and we hope to expand into more community languages in the future,” says Maria Nawaz, an employment solicitor at KLC. 

A Partnership Project grant awarded by Legal Aid was instrumental to the development of the Women at Work factsheets.

Kingsford Legal Centre is a community legal centre that provides free advice and casework to people who live, work or study in the Randwick and Botany local government areas. For more information about this work, go to the KLC website.