Friday, August 16, 2002
Australian navy experiencing rise in divorce rates
A story published today by the West Australian reports that the divorce rate among Australia’s navy crew who had been married for less than five years and were subjected to long deployments at sea has risen to 60 percent.
Rockingham MLA Mark McGowan - a naval officer before entering Parliament
- said he also had been told that 28 crew off one ship with a total crew of
200 had been taken off and sent home because of morale and welfare problems.
"We are doing this to our own people," Mr. McGowan told the Legislative
Assembly.
"As a country, we are supposed to be family-friendly and to take account of
the wishes of our citizens," he said.
He called for a more "family-friendly" navy, with more money and support
services provided to the families left behind while their serving husbands
and wives were at sea.
McGowan added that no other job in Australia required workers to be away
from their homes and families for an average of nine months a year.
