A report out recently showed a worrying trend of women on paid parental leave being unable to secure loans, which is clearly unethical and possibly illegal. 

According to an ABC news story, banks and other lenders are routinely discriminating against women who apply for loans and credit cards while on paid parental leave.

The story outlined many examples of loan applications being cancelled, or onerous requirements imposed on women, simply because they are on birth, parental or maternity leave.

Plus, when they’ve challenged the banks, the institutions have been unable to produce a written policy to justify their decisions.

The report goes on to say that some lenders won’t accept a woman’s parental leave pay as income when assessing their loan application or they are requesting a formal letter from their employer to verify their return-to-work date and the nature of their employment. 

It is discriminatory policies like that these that have the potential to set women back financially even more during their working lives.

The financial outcomes for women are already well below men, often because they take time out of the workforce to raise children, let alone if lenders are now discriminating them at the same time, too.

It is serious issues such as these that should inspire more women to take charge of their financial futures as soon as possible so they can start to create financial freedom, wealth, and security earlier in their lives.

Raising awareness and starting initiatives to combat this type of gender based financial discrimination should be the very start of a movement to stop this.