Per Capita undertakes research and develops policy recommendations in a number of focus areas. Our overarching focus is fighting inequality in Australia. Once our ideas are developed, they are subjected to rigorous peer review, and then communicated widely, both in the public domain and through our own extensive network of senior decision makers in government, industry, and the public service.
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Progressive Economics
September 22, 2023
Submission to the ACTU Inquiry into Price Gouging and Unfair Pricing Practices
Our submission discusses how the state of competition in Australian industries can harm consumers and workers, and fuel inequality. It advocates for expeditious reforms to our consumer and industrial law, to empower consumers and workers, and lessen the effect of future shocks.
Work and Workers
September 18, 2023
Cracks in the Foundation: Exploring barriers to successful sectoral programs for young workers
The IT industry says yes to sector programs to solve its skills shortages and give young people a go at better quality jobs
Social Innovation
September 7, 2023
We have to do more: Examining School Leader Perspectives on Hygiene Poverty within Australian Schools
The benefits of access to hygiene products transcend the notion of hygiene alone, likely conferring significant benefits to reduced absenteeism, reduced presenteeism, improvements in mental health and better engagement with school and civic systems.
Equitable Housing
August 31, 2023
Light as Air: Regulating Short Term Rentals in Australia
The impact of short-term rental (STR) platforms such as Airbnb has become increasingly problematic, particularly since the end of the COVID-19 lockdowns, as long-term rental dwelling availability has shrunk, and prices increased.
Education
August 25, 2023
Submission to the Inquiry into the Higher Education Support Amendment
Per Capita supports the five priority actions outlined in the Interim Report, as well as the Government’s commitment to implement them all.
Equitable Housing
August 15, 2023
Regulating Rentals in Australia: what works?
This paper examines the data to establish if there is, indeed, a rental crisis in Australia, and surveys local and international research to determine what would work to improve the experience of renting a home in the Australian market.
Work and Workers
July 27, 2023
Towards Fairness and Security: Reforming Casual Employment in Australia
Casual employment is meant to be about irregularity, or the absence of a firm advance commitment of continued work. Instead, the real characteristics of casual employment are: low pay, low power, low safety and low security.
Equitable Housing
July 17, 2023
Submission to the Inquiry into the Rental and Housing Affordability Crisis in Victoria
Many of the causes of the rapid increase in rental prices and mortgage costs are national in origin. However, there are many areas in which the Victorian government can work with federal counterparts to address these national level policy issues or work on mitigating some of the effects at the state level.
Work and Workers
Work and Workers
September 18, 2023
Cracks in the Foundation: Exploring barriers to successful sectoral programs for young workers
The IT industry says yes to sector programs to solve its skills shortages and give young people a go at better quality jobs
Work and Workers
July 27, 2023
Towards Fairness and Security: Reforming Casual Employment in Australia
Casual employment is meant to be about irregularity, or the absence of a firm advance commitment of continued work. Instead, the real characteristics of casual employment are: low pay, low power, low safety and low security.
Work and Workers
May 26, 2023
Response to the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations Measures
This submission covers employee-like reforms; casual workers; criminalising wage theft; stronger protections for workers against discrimination, adverse action, and harassment; and the 'Same Job Same Pay' legislation.
Work and Workers
April 29, 2023
Submission to the Workforce Australia Inquiry
The employment services system is failing. Privatisation, announced with much fanfare 25 years ago, has not delivered on its promises, and substantial change is urgently needed.
Work and Workers
April 27, 2023
Submission to the Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Protecting Worker Entitlements) Bill 2022
We acknowledge that the Bill is the next step in building a fairer more securing workplace relations system, after years of neglect, and look forward to making further submissions relating to governments agenda of closing the loopholes some businesses use to undercut worker security.
Work and Workers
April 21, 2023
Sharing the Spoils: A Gender Lens Analysis of the Four Day Week Trial at Our Community
In recent years, calls for shorter working ours without a reduction in pay, in terms of a four-day week (4DW), have become increasingly prominent around the developed world.
Work and Workers
December 19, 2022
Submission to the Workforce Australia Inquiry: Pre-Employment Programs and ParentsNext
This submission focuses on pre-employment programs, and specifically examines the role of ParentsNext in providing early intervention services to disadvantaged parents as part of the employment services system.
Homepage Feature
December 15, 2022
Full Employment in 21st Century Australia: a lode star policy in an age of uncertainty
A submission to the Employment White Paper Consultation
Gender Equality
Gender Equality
October 5, 2022
A Home of One’s Own: Philanthropic and social sector solutions for women’s housing
Australia is experiencing a housing crisis, and its impact is highly gendered.
Homepage Feature
September 30, 2022
Submission to the Senate Select Committee Inquiry into Work and Care
Consideration of how we might better balance the demands of paid labour with the needs of our families and loved ones is fundamental to creating a more equitable and just society.
Gender Equality
November 30, 2021
Submission to the Review of the Workplace Gender Equality Act
Per Capita welcomes the opportunity to contribute this submission to the Review of the Workplace Gender Equality Act, 2012 (the Act), which sets the scope of work for the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA). The Act has not been reviewed since its introduction in 2012, and the public’s understanding of the gender pay gap, and ... Read more
Gender Equality
August 31, 2020
The ‘Herstory’ of Superannuation
This report looks at the history of superannuation for Australian women, marks its progress towards equity, and identifies what more could to be done to improve the system in order to mitigate women’s vulnerability to poverty in retirement.
Gender Equality
March 3, 2020
Measure for Measure: Gender Equality in Australia
Gendered data matters. Regular, transparent reports on performance against an agreed set of indicators are critical if we are to achieve the goal of gender equality. Without accountability, closing the gender gap in Australia and across the globe will remain merely an aspirational goal, rather than an achievable target. This report is intended to provide the foundation for a long-term project to produce a national, comprehensive longitudinal study of the progress towards gender equality in Australia.
Ageing
April 2, 2019
Per Capita’s 2019 Fantasy Budget
Every year, progressive think tank Per Capita releases its fantasy budget: a set of budget priorities that, if implemented, would progress Australia towards a more equal society. Here are our budget priorities this year.
Work and Workers
February 28, 2018
The Future of the Fair Go: Securing Shared Prosperity for Australian Workers
The government must intervene to secure the hard-fought-for right of Australian workers to receive a living wage in return for their labour.
Gender Equality
November 10, 2017
Eliza’s Project: Gender Inclusion in the Co-op Sector in Australia
Women make up 46 per cent of the Australian workforce, but in every industry and sector, women are under-represented in leadership positions. This is true for the corporate sector as well as the co-operative and mutual sector.
Post Carbon Economy
Post Carbon Economy
May 27, 2023
Submission to the Victorian Offshore Wind Transmission Consultation
We believe that these reforms will ensure that offshore wind is sustainable, both ecologically and economically, and will be part of a prosperous future in Portland and Gippsland.
Work and Workers
August 24, 2022
A Blueprint for Better, Cleaner Jobs
The political, ecological and economic challenge of decarbonising Australia’s energy and industrial base is crying out for leadership. The next five to ten years are crucial to ensure that the worst outcomes of the climate crisis are mitigated, and we have a unique opportunity to reframe our economy in the interests of the people who work within it.
Progressive Economics
Progressive Economics
September 22, 2023
Submission to the ACTU Inquiry into Price Gouging and Unfair Pricing Practices
Our submission discusses how the state of competition in Australian industries can harm consumers and workers, and fuel inequality. It advocates for expeditious reforms to our consumer and industrial law, to empower consumers and workers, and lessen the effect of future shocks.
Progressive Economics
May 28, 2023
The Australian Inequality Index
The Australian Inequality Index is a ground-breaking new tool that provides a multidimensional measure of inequality across a range of economic, social, and demographic indicators.
Progressive Economics
March 30, 2023
Not a One-Stop Shop: The NDIS in Australia’s social infrastructure
Government support to NDIS Tier 2 services was diminished under the previous government, despite calls from the sector, and the Productivity Commission, to return the scheme to its original design.
Progressive Economics
March 27, 2023
Submission to the Inquiry into the Extent and Nature of Poverty in Australia
Poverty is best understood as neither a personal failing nor as an historical accident. Rather, it is the consequence of power relations, such as those between working people and their employers, or between citizens and the state.
Progressive Economics
March 20, 2023
Multiples Matter: Investigating the support needs of multiple birth families
Families with multiples face a greater set of challenges compared to those with singletons.
Progressive Economics
February 13, 2023
Submission to the Senate Standing Committee on Economics National Reconstruction Fund Corporation Bill 2022
In this submission, The Centre for New Industry (CNI) welcomes the opportunity to make a submission to the Department of Industry, Science and Resources’ consultation on the National Reconstruction Fund (NRF) and argues in favour of the Bill’s passing.
Progressive Economics
August 15, 2022
Submission to the Inquiry into the Repeal of the Cashless Debit Card
Per Capita welcomes the vision and policy leadership shown by the current government in its prioritisation of the scrapping of this harmful, degrading and disempowering policy.
Progressive Economics
July 28, 2022
Our Culture, Our Value: The Social and Economic Benefits of Auslan
The value of language is often taken for granted in both research and policy.
Equitable Housing
Equitable Housing
August 31, 2023
Light as Air: Regulating Short Term Rentals in Australia
The impact of short-term rental (STR) platforms such as Airbnb has become increasingly problematic, particularly since the end of the COVID-19 lockdowns, as long-term rental dwelling availability has shrunk, and prices increased.
Equitable Housing
August 15, 2023
Regulating Rentals in Australia: what works?
This paper examines the data to establish if there is, indeed, a rental crisis in Australia, and surveys local and international research to determine what would work to improve the experience of renting a home in the Australian market.
Equitable Housing
July 17, 2023
Submission to the Inquiry into the Rental and Housing Affordability Crisis in Victoria
Many of the causes of the rapid increase in rental prices and mortgage costs are national in origin. However, there are many areas in which the Victorian government can work with federal counterparts to address these national level policy issues or work on mitigating some of the effects at the state level.
Equitable Housing
June 22, 2023
Glass Ceilings: Gendered Inequality in the Housing System – The Australian Housing Monitor, Report 2
This paper explores some of the gendered inequalities within the housing system, based on the Australian Housing Monitor, a recent survey of nearly 4000 people. Differences in how men and women experience affordability, security, and quality of housing are evident across nearly every metric.
Equitable Housing
March 30, 2023
The Australian Housing Monitor: Housing affordability experiences, attitudes and appetite for change
The Australian Housing Monitor is a new annual survey of public attitudes toward, and experiences of, housing.
Equitable Housing
May 2, 2022
Housing Affordability in Australia – Tackling a wicked problem
Owning one’s own home has long been understood as the Great Australian Dream. The truth is, secure housing in Australia is increasingly out of reach for a growing proportion of the population – arguably more so than in any comparable country.
Equitable Housing
July 22, 2021
Generation Stressed: House Prices and the Cost of Living in the 21st Century
In this discussion paper, we estimate the total cost of a mortgage as a proportion of wages over the 30-year life of a standard home loan. To do this, we compared home prices, mortgage rates, and wage changes to see what proportion of a median income would go to covering the cost of the median ... Read more
Equitable Housing
April 9, 2021
Per Capita Submission to the Ten-Year Social and Affordable Housing Strategy for Victoria
Per Capita was excited and gratified to see the Victorian government announce the $5.3 billion Big Housing Build in 2020. As our advocacy has made clear, we believe that an investment in social housing construction of that scale or more is not only desperately needed to begin to tackle the housing and homelessness crisis in this state, but also represents one of the most effective and efficient forms of economic stimulus that we could employ as we recover and rebuild from COVID-19.
Education
Education
August 25, 2023
Submission to the Inquiry into the Higher Education Support Amendment
Per Capita supports the five priority actions outlined in the Interim Report, as well as the Government’s commitment to implement them all.
Education
February 28, 2023
Submission: Abolishing Indexation and Raising the Minimum Repayment Income for Education and Training Loans Bill
In this submission, we argue in favour of the Bill, agreeing with its stated aims of improving the fairness of the funding schemes for post-secondary education and the two proposed solutions, namely to increase the repayment threshold to the median wage and abolish indexation of the loans.
Ageing
April 2, 2019
Per Capita’s 2019 Fantasy Budget
Every year, progressive think tank Per Capita releases its fantasy budget: a set of budget priorities that, if implemented, would progress Australia towards a more equal society. Here are our budget priorities this year.
Education
July 12, 2018
Submission: Inquiry into the Competitive Neutrality of the National Broadcasters
Public broadcasting exists to serve the interests of the public as citizens, not as consumers.
Education
June 4, 2017
Stories to Tell: Protecting Australian Children’s Screen Content
Australian children’s screen content is facing an existential threat as a result of several distinct, but interrelated factors. This paper outlines these challenges and proposes a way forward for the ongoing support of original Australian children’s screen content in the digital age.
Education
March 6, 2014
Who’s Afraid of a Public School? Public Perceptions of Education in Australia
Children's education has become the new topic du jour in Australia. This report measures and explores the attitudes of Australians towards public education. By Verity Firth and Rebecca Huntley.
Education
October 21, 2013
Social Innovation, Public Good: New Approaches to Public Sector Productivity
How does one 'price' a well-educated child or a rapidly cured patient? This report argues that that we should look to the not-for-profit sector to measure social return on investment. By David Hetherington.
Education
July 21, 2013
Training Days: Models of Vocational Training Provision: Lessons from the Victorian Experience
Per Capita evaluates the experience of contestability in vocational training in Victoria. By David Hetherington.
Ageing
Gender Equality
August 31, 2020
The ‘Herstory’ of Superannuation
This report looks at the history of superannuation for Australian women, marks its progress towards equity, and identifies what more could to be done to improve the system in order to mitigate women’s vulnerability to poverty in retirement.
Ageing
July 13, 2020
Home for Good: Communities for Wellbeing
In this fourth Home for Good policy brief, we explore ways to build ‘communities for wellbeing’. By this, we mean the ways in which good housing outcomes extend beyond individual housing circumstances to the context of neighbourhood and broader community.
Ageing
May 6, 2020
Home for Good: Social Housing for an Ageing Population
In this, our third policy brief, we turn our attention to Australia’s social housing sector. In the context of declining home ownership and growing housing insecurity among older Australians, we ask whether social housing can provide the three critical functions of home as we age.
Ageing
March 23, 2020
Home for Good: Improving the Private Rental Market for Older Australians
This policy brief, the second in a series looking at housing options for an ageing population, draws on the work of Per Capita and TACSI, to explore and propose new and innovative pathways for private rental housing.
Ageing
February 25, 2020
Home for Good
This policy brief is intended to restore the idea of home as both a psychological and social asset to our discourse on housing, rather than just a financial asset. It is specifically concerned with the role of the home as we age, positing that successful ageing is dependent on a person’s access to a home that provides security, community, safety and autonomy.
Ageing
September 9, 2019
Mutual Appreciation: a social innovation thinkpiece
A triple threat is looming in relation to ageing in Australia, one with particular implications for women. While access to secure and affordable housing can mean the difference between poverty and a decent life in older age, full homeownership in Australia is increasingly a privilege.
Ageing
April 2, 2019
Per Capita’s 2019 Fantasy Budget
Every year, progressive think tank Per Capita releases its fantasy budget: a set of budget priorities that, if implemented, would progress Australia towards a more equal society. Here are our budget priorities this year.
Ageing
May 3, 2018
Emerging Ageing: Co-designing Responses to Positive Ageing for New and Emerging Migrant Communities
Emerging Ageing: co-designing responses to positive ageing for new and emerging migrant communities. A report by Per Capita's Centre for Applied Policy in Positive Ageing, in partnership with the Ethnic Communities' Council of Victoria.
Social Innovation
We have to do more: Examining School Leader Perspectives on Hygiene Poverty within Australian Schools
Australia’s Science and Research Priorities: Conversation Starter
Submission to the Inquiry into the National Cultural Policy
Multiples Matter: Investigating the support needs of multiple birth families
False Economy: The economic benefits of the NDIS and the consequences of government cost-cutting
Submission to the Inquiry into Media Diversity in Australia
Per Capita Submission to the Ten-Year Social and Affordable Housing Strategy for Victoria
Home for Good: Communities for Wellbeing