Economic Growth Australia Project #54268

Transition 43 women from welfare to work

by Dress for Success New South Wales & Australian Capital Territory

Project Report | Oct 25, 2022
Changing women's lives, one woman at a time

By Amelia Lawrence | Head of Philanthropy and Partnerships

Our showrooms

In the first 12 months of the pandemic, women experienced the bulk of the cumulative losses in employment, despite making up less than half of total employment prior to the pandemic. While there has been a bounce back in employment, the long-term impact of lost income will be lifelong for many women across Austrialia.

Women are also more likely to be in casual and insecure work in comparison to men, or employed part-time, placing them at a disadvantage aligned with the job losses incurred in the workforce. They are also more likely to be in the industries hit hardest by covid, such as tourism, hospitality, arts and recreation, health care, child care and higher education.

Covid has exposed deep gender divisions in parenting and household labour, which has contributed to the precarity of women’s economic independence. The already entrenched construction of women’s paid work as ‘secondary’ was exacerbated during lockdown. As such, women took on more of the increase in unpaid household chores and caring responsibilities than men, including supervising children learning remotely. Women were also more likely to drop out of work and study to accommodate caring responsibilities.

All of this means thatthe increase in demand for Dress for Success Sydney's services that we saw during the pandemic has not eased. In fact, while the media continues to report on compettive labour markets and opinion writers worry about the idea of "quiet quitting", our clients tell us that their unique circumstances mean they are still struggling to find and secure work.

In the first six months of 2022 alone we have seen more than 1,500 clients come through our services, whether that be in person at our Marrickville, Newcastle, or Illawarra showrooms, or online at one of our workshops, resume reviews, or mock interview sessions.

We also launched our National Career Hub in June 2022, an online portal that supports women at every step of their job search and career journey. At as 30 June, 1,900 women accessed the portal, almost doubling our original target of 1,000.

Dress for Success Sydney is hosting our 2022 Annual General Meeting online on Tuesday, 29 November from 5:30pm. A 'year in review' will be presented for the past financial year plus an exciting look ahead for Dress for Success Sydney and the Dress for Success global brand.

If you would like to join us at this online event, please get your ticket before 11 November to hear more about how your support has been transformational this year.

Thank you so much for being a champion of our cause. We couldn't do it without you.

Our volunteers

Jenny Leong MP visited us in 2022

Jo Haylen MP visiting in 2022

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Jul 3, 2022
Our changing rooms change lives

By Amelia Lawrence | Head of Philanthropy and Partnerships

Thank you for empowering women like Anita

Many women looking for work face bias.They create opportunities where they can. But discrimination, stereotyping, and exclusion can leave them feeling discouraged and without confidence. Gender equality is an urgent issue, and your support for disadvantaged women is something we are grateful for every single day.

At Dress for Success, we believe that a woman’s disadvantage should not mean her unemployment. When we talk about disadvantaged women, we think of women like Anita*, who when we met her had been out of the workforce for 13 years, had gone through a relationship breakdown, and was struggling to find her feet in a job market that had changed dramatically in her absence.

Anita had once been a strong independent woman, working in an administrative role for a large company. However, when on maternity leave she was made redundant, and so it was decided that Anita would focus on raising the family and keeping a home.

Thirteen years later, Anita was ready to get back to work but... didn't know where to start. Over the course of her marriage, she had found herself increasingly shut out of decisions about the family’s finances. With her husband as the breadwinner, her bank accounts slowly dried up and ultimately were closed. She was given smaller and smaller “allowances” to pay for the family’s expenses, while her husband was vague about where the rest of their money was spent.

Anita could see that her family’s finances were changing for the worse, but her husband denied it. Anita and her husband began fighting about money. It was when he threatened Anita and their daughter that she knew she had to leave.

Anita left with her daughter, and soon discovered that there was no money for them to live on. They were drowning in debt, and the few things they owned would not cover their commitments.

Anita needed to find a job to support her new life as a single parent however, she had been out of the job market for so long, that she had no idea how to start. She was positive that, with a bit of support, she could turn her situation around. Her drive to show her daughter a better life was fierce. She simply needed a community like Dress for Success to support and guide her.

Anita was referred to our Styling Service, where our volunteer stylist gave her the confidence to see herself as she is – a woman willing to move the world to keep her daughter safe and housed.

Anita then learned about our Career Support Program, and took advantage of as many workshops as she could. Job hunting had changed so much while she had been a full-time carer, so workshops around core job hunting skills (like LinkedIn and resume writing skills) changed the way she approached her job search.

After taking advantage of Dress for Success’ resume review and interview one-on-ones, Anita was able to secure a new job - that she loves - that supports her and her daughter in their new home.

“I am so grateful to everyone at Dress for Success. Your service moved me to tears. I hadn’t counted myself as worthy of support.

My experience with Dress for Success has been life-changing.”

You can hear more women like Anita talk about how support like yours changed their life at our YouTube page.

Thank you for being a part of this journey with us, to change the lives of even more women like Anita. We couldn't do it without you.

*Names and images have been changed to protect the identities of the women we support

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Mar 21, 2022
Changing women's lives, one woman at a time

By Amelia Lawrence | Head of Philanthropy and Partnerships

Marina: Dress for Success Client Advocate

At Dress for Success, we believe that a woman’s disadvantage should not mean her unemployment. When we talk about disadvantaged women, we think of women like Marina, who decided in her 50s to follow her children from Mexico to Australia and start a new life. She had been a Kindergarten teacher for many years, shaping the minds of young children.

The pandemic meant Marina’s job was unsustainable and she was made redundant, her housing situation soon collapsed, and she faced homelessness. Away from the family and community she knew, Marina felt alone in Australia.

Once a poised professional, the blow to her self-esteem and confidence following redundancy was making the job hunt a challenge and distressing.

“I didn’t feel employable or capable. I had lost my confidence, and my experiences at work with previous managers wasn’t helping me at all.”

Many women looking for work feel unemployable. Your support for our work changes these women's lives for the better.

This all changed when Marina discovered Dress for Success’ Chill, Chat, and Connect sessions which allowed Marina to connect with women from all walks of life, to reassure her she wasn’t alone. “The Chill, Chat, and Connect showed me other women who were struggling, who had also been employed with good jobs in their home countries.”

Through the sessions, Marina built up her confidence through building community. The process reaffirmed Marina’s self-worth and changed her approach towards her career and life. This support also led to multiple interviews, one of which soon became her permanent full-time role.

Many women like Marina have been put in a precarious financial situation due to the pandemic. Women are more likely to be employed in the industries that face the longest road to recovery – like education. We continue to provide practical support for women seeking employment to overcome any barriers faced when rebuilding their careers.

When women work, families thrive and our whole community prospers.

Marina is now thriving in her new job, which she plans to keep until retirement. “Thanks to Dress for Success I was able to be confident and have the clarity of what path to take. People in Dress for Success believed in me when I was not believing in me; their support was paramount for my career change and to achieve and land the role I have now... I am very fortunate and very thankful.”

You can hear Marina talk about how support like yours changed her life at our YouTube page.

Thank you for being a part of this journey with us, to change the lives of even more women like Marina. We couldn't do it without you.

Empower Hour Client Advocates

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