Working mammas: why do we feel like being a constantly productive part of an economic system created by men for men is so inherent to our value? Asking for a friend.
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Kat George | Κατερίνα Γεωργακόπουλος
@kat_george
Writer. Consumer policy, economic and social inclusion, responsible business, human rights. The only Greek in Melbourne. Opinions mine.
Kat George | Κατερίνα Γεωργακόπουλος’s Tweets
I'm in the today talking about customer service and the 'profits over people' mentality that has hollowed out call centres and consumer support services in big businesses
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Unfortunately, new technologies, data and algorithmic decision-making are too often operating in a way that excludes people from equitable access their most basic needs.
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If it were up to me, essentials like housing wouldn't be markets in the first place, but while they still are, we need to do everything we can to minimise the power imbalance between businesses and consumers.
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It's always incredible to see consumer advocates putting businesses on notice and creating the conditions for systemic change. Now it's up to governments and regulators to make sure we have appropriate and enforceable rules in place to prevent consumer harm in the rental market.
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Another excellent report by into rental apps, with bonus comment from the incredible in today abc.net.au/news/2023-04-1
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Really useful piece by the brilliant and the perils of personalised pricing in online marketplaces - very timely
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Clothing should probably not be the same price as a Big Mac.
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Following recent high profile data breaches (which are going to continue happening), we need laws and regulations that prevent companies from holding personal information indefinitely and for no reason, and that give individuals the right to have their personal data erased.
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I think it's important for us to interrogate the technology we let into our homes, but also equally or more important to advocate for better legal protections for our privacy and data.
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My latest for , which as a parent who owns a baby monitor, was hard to write! Thanks to for comments.
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This means changing our inherent perception of working mothers from 'unreliable' or 'less than' to see them for what they really are--no less capable than any one else, but probably a whole lot more tired and completely sick of this shit.
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The other half of the story is perception, and changing attitudes to not only value the professional capabilities of working mothers, but to grant them the grace to do both their jobs without having to sacrifice one for the other.
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Reforming the system is an important step in the process, but it's only half the story. While free childcare and flexible parental leave are excellent, these only represent steps towards equality, not equity.
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To support mothers in the workforce, families and communities, we need ask why working mums aren't seen to be as worthy, committed, or capable as working dads. We have to reconsider where we place value, and why productivity in paid work is seen as the pinnacle of humanity.
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Couple that with a chronic autoimmune disease caused by post-partum hormones (because pregnancy doesn't end at birth), and days taken off to unexpectedly fulfil caring duties and you've got yourself a recipe for workplace obsolescence.
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I'd be lying if I said taking time off work to birth and raise my child hasn't hampered my career. There's at least a year deficit where I have nothing professional to 'show' for myself, and no way to 'prove my value' as a worker, excluding me from earning more or being promoted.
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But that doesn't mean I don't enjoy paid work, or that I don't strive to be great at my paid job. Even more than that--my family requires two incomes to afford our mortgage, bills and groceries. My wage is significantly higher than that of my husband, and essential for us.
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Becoming a mother to my tenacious, busy, funny little girl is the best thing I have ever done--far better, more challenging and more rewarding than any paid job I have or will ever have.
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How frustrating to be told you can have it all, when by "all" they mean be completely devalued in both the paid and unpaid workforces.
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Becoming a mum in Australia has a high price for women.
There's a "motherhood penalty" according to a new Treasury analysis.
Mums' earnings fall by an average of 55 per cent in the first five years of parenthood. Fathers' earnings are "unaffected".
womensagenda.com.au/latest/motherh
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Billionaire philanthrocapitalism will not save us. The Gates Foundation invited me to speak at their annual #Goalkeepers2030 event and I could only show up in that space if I challenged it. Here’s some of what I said:
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Maybe if we valued domestic and care work, raising families, hell, even ENJOYING OURSELVES, at least half as much as we value the corporate grind we could create a world where women really can excel at work and at home.
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The kicker is that those men made it in the corporate world because they had WIVES AT HOME, doing all that labour that they are now telling us is trivial and worthless. Those men would not know the value of work if it bit them on the dick.
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The hard truth is that a majority of care and domestic work STILL falls to women. And many of same women are ambitious working women that have been sold the lie, BY MEN, that they can make it in the corporate world without the system changing.
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The things we do at home—cleaning, cooking, repairs (yes, going to Bunnings sometimes), caring for loved ones—are essential to keep our society functioning. And yet a section of our society persists in seeing these parts of our lives as inconsequential.
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Ah the old, women, if you want to beat sexism, you must comply with a patriarchal capitalist system that devalues everything except office productivity! Because no one could possibly be doing anything of value in the home.
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OPINION: The generation of 35-50 year olds is fast becoming the forgotten generation. They seem to have convinced themselves that their careers still have potential while working from home. bit.ly/3famjmY
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omg thanks for ending the meeting 4 minutes early and "giving me some time back" -- now I can finally pursue my passions
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Are there any safe spaces where I can go to rant about Patagonia and how much of a farce I think the deification of a billionaire is?
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Here's the excellent granting us the fortitude to politely decline when we're asked to sign up to a new loyalty scheme (IE: every time we buy something)
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Shout out to for this excellent piece on loyalty schemes. The trade off (your data) is not worth it for the minuscule rewards!
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I’m back on the byline talking about loyalty cards, data collection, and the power imbalance between consumers and business for
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Never not disappointed that While You Were Sleeping doesn't make it into 'best Christmas movies' conversations.
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What do you do if your dad says he wants a Jordan Peterson book for Christmas? Asking for a friend.
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I want to be mad about this inane Cazzie David book excerpt but also the book is called 'No one asked for this' so we can't say we weren't warned.
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the excerpt itself is deeply, deeply unfunny however i’m cracking up that the hot new comedy heiress hit the scene with “too much pizza fills up my vag” ?? thecut.com/2020/11/too-fu
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I've realized how shockingly Greek I am based on my level of excitement about being able to go to Bunnings again this week.
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Once again, yesterday there were no new cases and no lost lives reported. In Melb, cases with unknown source are down, as is the 14 day rolling average. In regional Vic, 14 day average remains stable. dhhs.vic.gov.au/averages-easin
#COVIDVicData
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It's almost as if democracy and public participation are important or something.
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Long voting lines in New York aren’t a symptom of the pandemic. They’re the result of years of broken politics and party patronage, writes @NickA_Martin. bit.ly/2J0We9I
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