Dismissed, delayed, doubted: The age pension audit and what it doesn't say

Emma and Suzi examine the Auditor-General's comprehensive performance audit of age pension administration in light of evidence AAWAA submitted to the Australian National Audit Office one year earlier. The audit validates systemic failures – $5 billion in incorrect payments, processing delays up to 4.2 years, only 48.55 per cent of phone calls answered – but contains no sex-disaggregated analysis despite women constituting 55.55 per cent of recipients. They discuss specific cases of older women dismissed, delayed, doubted, and subjected to greater scrutiny than male counterparts, and why gender-neutral reform recommendations will fail to address how women experience administrative failures differently. Without making women visible in data and analysis, pension system reform will continue to assume a recipient who does not exist.__DonateIf you wish to donate to AAWAA you can do so by making a direct deposit or bank transfer to:Account name: Affiliation of Australian Women’s Advocacy AlliancesAccount number: 04201471BSB: 325-185__Disclosure statementVoices in this podcast are AI-generated clones of real, named AAWAA members, created and used with their informed consent to help amplify women's words and stories. All scripts and spoken content are written by AAWAA women, and all editorial judgement, fact-checking, and production decisions remain entirely human. AI is used only to voice this content: never to generate, alter, or invent what is said. Learn more at womensadvocacy.net.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.