Access to community events, workshops and consultations via online mechanisms, is often the only way for many people to participate. Live-streaming and interactive online gatherings removes one of the common barriers to participation for people with physical or intellectual disabilities (including sensory sensitivities) and single parents, people facing financial hardship and those still 'coviding'. During the COVID-19 lockdowns, organisations, companies and the government, managed to move almost all activity to online platforms. Sadly, since mandates were lifted in October 2022, we have seen most online participation options disappear from our communities; leaving some of our most vulnerable people more isolated and alone than ever. Since the beginning on 2023, we have also seen more companies begin to demand staff return to the office if they wish to keep their jobs; but for many of the aforementioned people, entering or re-entering the workforce was only possible because of the increased availability of work from home jobs. To ensure these people are not left behind and are included in our society, we need to legislate mandatory online options for participation. This would be restricted to local and state government initiatives or events funded either in part or in full, by any level of government. Furthermore, the Victorian Government needs to encourage and incentivise online access to events, workshops, seminars or consultations provided by private businesses and organisations, so that we can ensure everyone in the state of Victoria, can live a fully participatory life in their community. The Victorian government must also legislate work from home concessions by any business or company who can reasonably pivot to these arrangements, for people with disabilities, single parents and those who cannot afford the cost of physically going into the office, as well as those still 'coviding'. We must be a truly equitable and accessible state for ALL people living in Victoria.

As of 2023, trans and gender-diverse Australians cannot identify on any intake form at any RTO because of the current data set by NCVER / DEWR. The Workplace Gender and Equality ACT excludes the participation of gender-diverse people, It only collects information on cis-gendered men and women. This affects every medium to large business in Australia. Nearly Every data set in Australia excludes gender-diverse people including studies on Alcohol and Drugs, Suicide, and first-year indicators in schools. Orchidectomies are given to cis-gender men in the public health system but denied to trans women who need to get off testosterone blockers and affirming their gender. Mastectomies are given to cis-gendered women in the public health system but denied to trans men who need this so they can stop binding, avoid scoliosis and affirm their gender. Breast Surgery is given in some public hospitals to cis-gendered women after mastectomies because it is important to their mental health, gender and well-being but denied to trans women who also need this for mental health, gender and well-being. To my knowledge, no politician or report has stood up to say we could be doing these gender-affirming surgeries right now. And they could be done right now! If the government provides gender-affirming leave and supports trans and gender-diverse people but then there is no way that they can get medical interventions then they are forced to go overseas and sometimes put their lives at risk for surgeries that are substandard compared to Australia. If they can afford them at all. Medicare has an ongoing review process and according to them, no one has ever put in a submission to ask them to review Medicare based on the needs of trans and gender-diverse people. The Sexual Discrimination ACT was updated in 1984 to say there are legally more than 2 genders and yet the Australian Bureau of Statistics which affects all the other data sets I have mentioned failed for 40 years to update their dataset. Thus forcing every other dataset that relies on it to be discriminatory Still to this day, they will only allow us to identify if their stakeholders ask for it, if an average Australian can fill out the question and if politicians ok it to happen. (How can this be in 2023, surely this is sexual discrimination?) Pathology forms across Australia are still behind in allowing us to identify and there are currently no pathology profiles for trans men and trans women. GP software like Best Practice for doctors cannot pull gender identity onto a pathology form which leads to gender-diverse people being misgendered and at times receiving the wrong reference ranges. The Australian Human Rights Commission has failed to advocate adequately and so there is no one else to hold the Government to account why has this happened? Public Health Systems across Australia still don't have pathways for gender-diverse people and to my knowledge, not one of them provides medical interventions for adults. There is no suitable training for doctors, surgeons medical staff in our training establishments. We suffer many forms of discrimination at Services Australia, Medicare and other departments. Many Public Hospitals systems have only recently started to make attempts at updating their computer systems to include gender and to find ways to reduce misgendering but there is no uniform adherence to the 2020 ABS Dataset for sex and gender. And datasets across the medical sector are not unified. The government's own AIHW website contains no health data on trans and gender-diverse people in Australia because we don't have population data because the ABS has never included us in the census. And finally, the Australian Defence Force has a suicide rate of 8.8% which is twice the national average. They have 85,000 serving members. For that, they get a Royal Commission, and over 50 reports + millions of dollars in funding. Gender-diverse Australians number at least 700,000 (equal in number to Indigenous Australians) with Transgender youth alone having approx a 48% attempted suicide rate and we have never had a royal commission or a federally funded report of any kind that I know of. How is it that the Government can be so apathetic towards a mental health and health crisis for more than 700,000 Australians? It was as recent as 1989 that the last Trans woman was fined for wearing the 'wrong clothing' Before that Trans and gender-diverse people were harassed, locked up, fined and had acts of violence inflicted on them. This has never been apologised for. Psychiatry and Psychology pathologised trans and gender-diverse people for 80 years but then reversed this and there has not been to my knowledge an apology. There is no current federal department for LGBTIQ+ people and no independent organisation to hold media accountable when reporting. We need to stop studying Trans and Gender diverse people and start studying the reasons behind being excluded and ignored and why there is and has been a complete and continuing lack of human rights for this cohort. We must address one of the biggest factors in poor mental health which is a lack of medical intervention and there appears absolutely no initiatives to fix this. That is a complete lack in duty of care. It doesn't take time to make change. It IS time to make change.

Petition to the Australian Fair Work Commission & Employment and Workplace Relations Minister Tony Burke to immediately consider a rise in the minimum wage that is higher than the current inflation rate as of May 2022. Australian Real Progressives supports the Australian Council of Trade Unions' case for an increase in the minimum wage by 5.5% or better, given the current rate of inflation is 5.1% as an immediate need. (RBA May Chart Pack 05-2022). While Australian Real Progressives understands that the current inflation is driven in part, by worldwide supply chain disruptions, we recognise that disrupted worldwide supply chains have prompted increases in the cost of shipping that are passed on to consumers. Weather conditions across Australia have also impacted food supply - with prices 4.3 per cent higher than a year ago (ABS CPI March Quarter Data 04-22). Prices of fruit & vegetables have increased to be 6¾ per cent higher over the year-to-date (ABS 04-2022). Australian Real Progressives would like to see an increase in the Federal Minimum wage of 5.5% for each successive year until FMW reaches $25.19 (casual rate $31.49) restoring wage growth in line with productivity growth since at least the late 90s. Australian Real Progressives believes that an increase in the minimum wage will drive demand for goods that will deliver economic security for Australians, and especially those who have and are supporting the health of our economy during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. It will also restore the quality of life that has been eroded and provide independence, security and dignity for all of our people. If you too, believe the minimum wage must be increased as soon as possible, please sign to support our petition.

Forty years ago, the Australian Association for Environmental Education (AAEE) was formed to champion education reforms (Education for Sustainability is the latest term to describe that) focused on positively connecting students with nature, developing critical thinking and analytical skills and empowering them to help develop solutions to our human induced environmental problems. Now, we need an education revolution to save the planet. In Our campaign supports other international campaigns to develop grassroots support and on the ground efforts by students, educators, and civil society to demand national level commitments from Ministries of Education and Environment. Through this campaign, we will ensure that students in Australia and across the world benefit from high-quality education to develop into informed and engaged environmental stewards. AAEE believes that every school in the world must have compulsory, assessed climate and environmental education with a strong civic engagement component focused on achieving a sustainable society.

It is undeniable that the ‘mutual’ obligations system needs a major overhaul at the very least, but this bill is not the way to do it. It introduces hundreds of pages of amendments without any substantive positive change, and the government hasn’t given anyone enough time to fully think through the consequences of these changes. Ever since the start of the Coronavirus pandemic, the government has suspended mutual obligations during periods of lockdown. This is an admission that mutual obligations make things harder for the unemployed and underemployed, so it makes zero sense that at the same time they're trying to make it even tougher through this bill. In addition, research shows that if you do mutual obligations it is harder to get a job. There is hard evidence to back up this claim, so these changes appear to be nothing more than purely ideological. This is a dramatic overhaul of a law that is crucial to protecting vulnerable people and the department can’t even explain the potential implications of some of these changes. The PJCHR raised many concerns about this and the need for more information. There are numerous worrying changes proposed in this bill, including; Removal of backdating payments, potentially leaving recipients up to $457 worse off A new points based system that gives points for things like attending a job interview, which is not in a recipient’s control. Automated decision making. This won't just apply for mutual obligation penalties, it will be delaying people's payment starting at all. What happens if there's a problem with the online system? Time and time again we have seen that we can’t trust this government to implement digital solutions. Together we can expose this latest attack on unemployed people and make sure Morrison feels enough political pain to reconsider the welfare bill. But we need all of our voices. Sign our petition!

These changes have the potential to have qualified fire professionals not able to continue with routine maintenance and reporting after November 1. This transitioning period is not adequate, the transitioning period needs to be in line with the time that it will take to upskill to the required new level of qualification to ensure that all current qualified and licensed technician's are not disadvantaged. For example, for technicians to continue to service a un-pumped hydrant after the November 1, they will need to have completed Certificate III in Fire Protection CPC32820 - this is a 3-year apprenticeship. Jobs could be lost, small fire protection companies may see the only option is to close and ANY business that uses these facilities will see an increase in prices for these services. On a recent review of 30 fire protection business against the new QBCC requirements, only 5 large organisations are ready for the changes. We encourage you to sign this petition to show Hon Michael (Mick) de Brenni that these changes will impact all business and fire service technicians and they need to be reviewed.

Many of us will be affected by the cuts. It will mean it's harder to get to the airport without paying through the roof for limited train options, it will mean less connections between the Eastern Suburbs and the rest of Sydney, and it will mean longer wait and transit times. These cuts are being rammed through for 2 reasons: to pay for the light rail they're trying to force people into using, and to further their privatisation agenda. But just relying on light rail will mean longer trips and more transfers for many residents. And privatising the remaining and modified bus routes will be bad for transport workers and bad for us, like it's been in the Western Suburbs. It's also important we take a stand against these undemocratic changes that barely any of us were consulted on. It's our lives that are being affected, not the rich politicians who can pay for drivers to take them where they want. Bus routes that will be cut include: 300, 301, 302, 309X, 310X, 314, 316, 317, 338, 353, 357, 372, 373, 376, 377, 391, 393, 394, 395, 400, 400N, L94, X40, X93, X99. We need to stop this assault on our public transport! References: Dozens of Sydney bus services cut in eastern suburbs transport overhaul, Sydney Morning Herald, 6 May 2021 Outrage as popular bus routes used by thousands are SCRAPPED to pay for Sydney's $3billion Light Rail project, Daily Mail, 7 May 2021

Young transgender people face enough hardship without the attacks of transphobic politicians. More than half of non-binary and transgender youth have considered suicide, according to studies [1] - and that's why it's vital that we ensure this harmful bill is voted down. The Education Legislation Amendment (Parental Rights) Bill 2020 would "prohibit schools, teachers, and training courses from teaching gender fluidity", which the bill defines as “a belief there is a difference between biological sex and human gender and that human gender is socially constructed.” This means that a teacher or counsellor would be sacked and disaccredited if they: a) used a students' preferred pronouns b) mentioned transgender issues in the classroom c) opposed transphobic bullying in the playground d) did not hide that they themselves were transgender Although Mark Latham may seem like a fringe crackpot, he is a powerful figure in state politics. Latham's anti-trans bill now has the open and uncritical support of the NSW Liberal parliamentary secretary for education. [2] In December 2020, he got his way with a "clean out" of 42,000 professional development courses for teachers based on whether they taught gender and sexuality content. [3] A second bill by Latham, which acts as a state version of the federal government's proposed "Religious Freedoms" bill, would give bigots in public positions immunity from consequences of spouting their anti-LGBTI, anti-abortion and anti-women bigotry. This bill has been supported by 11 of 14 members of a parliamentary committee, including 3 out of 4 ALP members on the body. [4] All of this shows that this is not a matter of letting the politicians stop him. If we do not challenge Latham publicly, his bills will only appear more and more safe for other MPs - especially the huge Liberal majority - to entertain them, and eventually pass them either in part or in whole. The community must come out publicly and in large numbers to defeat this bill, and put pressure on all politicians to back down from his discriminatory legislation. References: [1] https://www.forbes.com/sites/dawnstaceyennis/2020/07/15/largest-survey-of-transgender-and-nonbinary-youth-says-more-than-half-seriously-considered-suicide/?sh=2444b33f3404 [2] https://alastairlawrie.net/2021/03/11/nsw-liberal-parliamentary-secretary-for-education-supports-bill-to-erase-trans-kids/ [3] https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/dec/20/is-mark-latham-running-education-policy-in-nsw-no-but-the-direction-is-concerning [4] https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/shield-not-a-sword-committee-backs-new-religious-freedom-laws-20210331-p57fni.html

Andrew Laming has admitted to the accusations levelled against him in regard to his treatment of women, taking inappropriate photographs and stalking. This type of behaviour is totally unacceptable, not only of people in general, but more so from the people who sit in our parliament and other elected places. The only reason that can be attributed to his remaining in the Liberal party is fear on the part of the government that they may lose power. This is about ethics and standards of behaviour which cannot be tolerated. This is an opportunity for the Prime Minister and to show leadership and send a clear message this behaviour is not acceptable in the Liberal Party. They set an exceptionally poor example to society as a whole as to what is acceptable. The standard you walk past is the one you are prepared to accept. Let us not walk past this one.

This proposed new hotline would put even more power in the hands of dodgy bosses, and create additional pressure on marginalised groups to accept bad jobs that won't work for us. There are a lot of good reasons to turn down a job - a creepy boss, having to spend hours on public transport, or even conflicts with parenting commitments like picking your kids up from school. I'm Imogen, I'm 22, and I was recently on JobSeeker. My job services provider would push jobs that were completely unsuitable to me with my disability. The idea that I could be left unable to pay rent because a dodgy boss dobbed me in for turning down a bad job really frightens me. This is the last thing unemployed people need in the midst of Australia's worst employment crisis in a century. The problem is there are not enough jobs out there - there are 2.3 million unemployed and underemployed people and only 250,000 jobs available. You can’t bully people into accepting jobs that don’t exist. Unemployment isn’t a choice – it’s an unavoidable reality for millions. This proposed new hotline hasn't been launched yet. With your help, we can make this petition big enough to show that the public won't stand for bullying unemployed people - and we can stop "DobSeeker" in its tracks. Can you sign this petition and share with your friends?

This company is the only one in Darwin that does not pay their staff properly thereby giving them an unfair advantage on tendering for work at the expense of the poorly paid workers. They are known by NT DIPL to act in this way and Darwin council. They are ripping of workers.

A Clean Recovery will make energy cleaner and cheaper, and create more jobs than dangerous fossil fuels like methane gas. Australia can be a clean energy superpower, proudly exporting energy from our wind, waves and sun. We can power our businesses and homes with solar, make our houses more affordable and energy efficient, and restore the natural landscapes we love. To make it a reality, we need widespread support from key politicians and community members across the country. Sign the petition for clean, affordable energy and climate-friendly jobs for people across the country.