Every parent returning to work after the birth of a child faces a logistical minefield fraught with childcare concerns, flexibility needs, commuter stress and sometimes the necessity of being away from home.
For state and federal politicians, the trepidation is amplified by the need to be available for more than half a year’s worth of sitting weeks and committee meetings.
Then there are minor matters like election campaign preparations, attending community events and addressing constituency matters.
For Victorian Animal Justice MP Georgie Purcell and federal Labor MP Josh Burns, the juggle is even more complex.
In December they welcomed baby Lilah who joins the family alongside Mr Burns’ eldest daughter Tia who he co-parents with his ex-wife.
The political couple are navigating high-pressure jobs as members of parliament and living across two electorates, alongside caring for two children and a variety of animals.
While Lilah’s arrival conveniently occurred between parliament closing and reopening for the year, Ms Purcell returned to work for the first sitting of the Victorian parliamentary year last week.
Mr Burns is taking extended leave to be the primary carer of their newborn, although the whole family travelled to Canberra in January for the passing of landmark hate speech and gun reforms.
As an MP in a party with a large majority in the lower house, numbers are not as tight as they could be, which allows him to be absent from votes while on parental leave.
As a lone MP in Victoria’s upper house, Ms Purcell doesn’t have the same luxury as the government often relies on crossbenchers to pass legislation.
“The reality for me and my office is a bit unique in that there is no one else who can do my job,” she tells AAP.
Parliamentary staff have made efforts to set her up with a room close to her office to ensure she can have Lilah at work which allows her to sit late and bring someone in to look after her if she has to work a really long day.
“Only a few terms of parliament ago that sort of thing would have been laughed at,” she says.
“It wasn’t that long ago that women were being kicked out of the chamber for breastfeeding.”
Ms Purcell recalls first announcing her pregnancy and feeling the need to constantly reassure people she would continue working and intended running for re-election in 2026.
“We won’t have really ‘made it’ in gender equality until it’s not a story that a male MP is taking parental leave,” she says.
“Family-friendly policies are often written as though they are only for women, when in reality they benefit parents of all genders.”
In 2008, following a long-running campaign to establish a childcare centre at parliament house in Canberra, MPs formally approved its establishment after a proposal introduced by the Rudd government.
But research by the Inter-Parliamentary Union, a global organisation of national parliaments, found building gender-sensitive legislatures must go beyond providing childcare and respond to parental caring needs.
It suggests the use of new technologies to allow remote working and voting, as well as implementing specific parental leave policies to support equality and a more family-friendly culture.
A supportive team of staff, flexible working conditions and ability to pre-record media interviews is allowing Mr Burns to continue ticking off the to-do list of a politician while taking parental leave.
Although some measures have already made federal sitting weeks more family-friendly, he says more could be done so MPs can take care of their families while doing their jobs.
“As a federal MP from Victoria, the hardest part is being away from your family and I still haven’t gotten used to it,” he says.
“People from all walks of life should be able to participate in our democracy while also being able to have a family.”
In 2024, Senator Raff Ciccone became the first father to bring his baby into the chamber, something that surprised him at the time.
“Not all workplaces allow children and that’s understandable but where possible workplaces should be welcoming to that flexibility within a reasonable setting,” he says.
“For me it was important to demonstrate that if we can do it in the national parliament then workplaces around the country need to take note.”
Since that first day in the chamber, Senator Ciccone has regularly brought his son to Canberra and has a cot set up in his office alongside an array of toys.
He says the presence of children in the building is humanising and allows him to connect with colleagues across the political aisle.
“I’ve been working in this building for a while as an advisor and now as a senator, and there are more and more people with young kids, and because of that it changes the mindset and culture,” he says.
“No one should be disadvantaged at work because they have children or family responsibilities.
“The best way to continue lowering the gender pay gap is for men to take an active role in childcare, allowing women to access work and benefiting the family, society and the economy.”
