It’s been a difficult few months to be a woman or gender diverse person watching elections being fought and lost on abortion rights.
Firstly, there was the state election in Queensland where abortion became a last-minute voting issue when it became apparent that a vote for now-State Premier David Crisafulli and the Liberal National Party could trigger the recriminalisation of abortion.
Then there was the US election won resoundingly by Donald Trump, raising the possibility of a national ban on abortion.
But the potential impacts on rights are not just local to Queensland or the US: the ripples of stigma reach us interstate and internationally. It can all feel disempowering, controlling, threatening and stigmatising. It can feel like our bodies are under attack.
But in amongst it I see are glimmers of hope – there’s many places that reproductive rights are being supported and campaigned for.
In Australia, abortion is decriminalised in every state and territory for the first time in history, access to abortion is arguably better than it has ever been (though still far from perfect), and our Federal Government is driving an agenda to address medical misogyny.
Another frontline worth watching is our workplaces.
Historically our workplace system has been designed for cis white men, and it has given lower structural value to caring and parenting – roles that typically belong to women.
Over many years, steps have been taken toward shifting this assumption of the ideal ‘worker’ and recognising the caring responsibilities of workers.
Carer’s leave become part of the National Employment Standards in 2006. Paid parental leave was another step toward valuing women’s bodies and caring through our workplaces, and it was only won in 2010.
And now our workplaces are turning to our periods, menopause and abortion.
An example of this is the recent increase and interest in reproductive health policies, which provide flexible work arrangements or leave you can take for self-care and appointments to manage your reproductive health, including menstruation, menopause, having an abortion or accessing fertility treatment.
Earlier this year, Queensland Unions successfully campaigned for the Queensland Government to introduced reproductive health leave. Now, the Australian Council of Trade Unions is leading a campaign to include 10 days of reproductive health leave in the National Employment Standards.
The evidence is still out on the effectiveness of these entitlements and what may be needed to make them work well, something I will be investigating in 2025 through a Churchill Fellowship provided by the Winston Churchill Trust.
If not done properly, there’s a risk they could further draw attention to women’s bodies or lead to discriminate against women in the workplace. Or, as a recent review into family and domestic leave found, they may be underused if taboos around reproductive health are not addressed at the same time.
Even still, the efforts to recognise and give rights to reproductive bodies in the workplace are something to be hopeful about.
The US activist adrienne maree brown says that “what we pay attention to grows”, and these words ring true for stigmatised issues likes reproductive health and rights.
We can focus on recent election losses and the way they stigmatise our reproductive bodies and rights. Or we can focus on where the progress is happening, and choose ourselves to be part of the change.
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