MC Labour continue their fight towards gender equality for the prevention of violence against women

On Monday the 8th of February, MC Labour proudly hosted our fourth annual MC Labour Golf Day Fundraiser. Once again, Greenacres Golf Club welcomed over one hundred MC Labour clients who, in 18 teams, played their way through the course and learned about gender equality, diversity, inclusiveness, and the fight against domestic violence.

But why the Carlton Respects program? The Carlton Respects Program is the Carlton Football Club’s community initiative that aims to create a society of equality and respect in schools, communities, and workplaces. Violence against women is a critical issue in our country, with one woman killed on average every week as a result of domestic violence. The Carlton Respects program launched in 2016, with guidance from Our Watch, to promote gender equality for the prevention of violence against women. The program aims to challenge gender norms and promote gender equality to bring about attitudinal and behavioral change, and has already had an enormous reach; engaging 8500 students, making 1.5 million social media impressions, and engaging 13 workplaces (including the entire MC Labour team from all across Australia in December 2019).

The purpose of our annual MC Labour and Carlton Respects Golf Day is to educate and instigate conversation within our industry, and to help raise funds for the Carlton Respects schools and community education programs, as well as their awareness-raising campaigns. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, two-thirds of women who experienced physical or sexual violence by a current or former cohabitating partner said the violence had started or escalated during this time, making it important that now more than ever we share this information and educate in the aim of preventing violence against women and children.

Gender inequality is the core of the problem and it is the heart of the solution.

We kicked off our 2021 Golf Day at 7.00am with registration and breakfast for all players, including members of the MC Labour management team, valued partners, and clients. At 8.00am, golf carts (hosting single players to remain COVID-safe) rolled out after a pre-game speech from Relationship Manager, John Morris where he reminded the players of what they were all there to support, the fight against violence against women.

For four hours, players golfed from tee to tee, enjoying complimentary massages on the 1st hole, expresso martinis, mojitos and music on the 8th Party hole, delicious sandwiches on the 12th hole courtesy of Barkly Smokehouse, and the opportunity to win a brand-new car with a hole in one thanks to Hyundai on the 17th hole. On the 10th hole, players purchased raffle tickets for the chance to win one of six prizes, with all proceeds of their purchase going to the Carlton Respects program. AFL legend and MC Labour Account manager David Rhys-Jones, MC Labour’s Operations Manager Matt Vido, and MC Labour’s National Interstate Manager Tim Myles ran our roving Footy Challenge, traveling from hole to hole giving golfers the opportunity to deduct 2 strokes from their score if they could kick a football into a bin, but risking adding 2 strokes if they missed.

At 1.00 pm, the last of the golfers returned to the Greenacres function center where they were treated to a delicious sit-down meal and a drink or three. As players enjoyed their lunch, returning MC Ian Coutts conversed with Tommy Greer, former professional basketball player and current CEO of the South East Melbourne Phoenix of the National Basketball League. We then heard once more from John Morris who spoke on the reason behind the fundraiser, and why MC Labour supports the cause. He then introduced our special guest speaker for the day, Detective Sargent Shaul Allen.

Detective Sergeant Shaun Allen of the Family Violence Unit, Metropolitan police was driven to start his work as part of the family violence unit because of the lack of choice and control children have in situations of domestic violence; “I do it for the children,” he began. Allen spoke about the issue of domestic violence, explaining how the Police force treats domestic violence as seriously as terrorism. “The reason I stand here and advocate for women and children is because the statistics show that women are most likely to be hurt is in her own home by someone she knows”. Shaun explained.

“The most likely place a woman is hurt is in her own home by someone she knows” – Detective Sergeant Shaun Allen

Shaun then proceeded to talk about the effects violence in the home has on the children. “We don’t want our kids playing violent video games, but are okay exposing them to violence in the home. Why is that?” He asked. Detective Sergeant Shaun Allen explained to a room full of engaged listeners how children who grow up in violent homes are more likely to become violent themselves. “80% of what children learn is caught, 20% is taught,” he informed. Allen illustrated this fact with an example from a recent domestic violence case he worked on. He described arriving at the property, arresting the husband, and sending the wife to hospital with serious injuries. They noticed children’s toys in the front yard. They discovered three kids, all under the age of 13, hiding in the garden shed in their backyard. Upon questioning the kids, they learned this was the place they hid every time their parents fought. The  9-year-old son while speaking to the police stated that “I guess it’s my job now to keep Mum in line.” This statement was incredibly disturbing and just went to illustrate Detective Sergeant Allen’s points on how domestic violence influences children.

Shaun’s confronting speech was followed by the commencement of the live auction ran by John Morris and Ian Coutts, in which grand prizes such as reserved AFL Grand Final tickets, and NBA Courtside tickets (courtesy of Tommy Greer) were some of the highlights. This was followed by the announcement of the silent auction winners and the drawing of the raffle.

The presentation of the day’s golf prizes concluded the day’s proceedings. This year we gave out four prizes. The prize for the Runner-up Team of 4 went to the team from Icon Construction, our Nearest to pin winner, Tommy Greer, our Nearest to pin #2 winner went to KMT, and our Winning Team of 4 for our 2021 MC Labour and Golf Day Fundraiser was awarded to Built.

At the end of the day, through the various auctions, raffle tickets, hole sponsorships, and tickets for the players themselves, MC Labour managed to raise significant funds for the Carlton Respects program. All funds raised from the day will contribute to the mission towards gender equality for the prevention of violence against women.

MC Labour has been a proud supporter of Carlton Respects since 2016 and will continue our partnership with the program in the future to aid the program in educating the public about respect and equality.

Gender equality for the prevention of violence against women.

Thank you again to all participants of the day, to everyone who bought a raffle ticket or bid on an auction item. Thank you to all the representative teams from the day from Multiplex, Lend Lease, KMT, RSM Australia, Built, Icon, Master Builders Victoria, Rapid EPS, Mirvac, ADCO, Delta Group, Wetspot, Safeman, City Circle Demolition, and Hyundai. An extra special thank you to all of this year’s hole sponsors: KMT, RSM, Built, Rapid Height Safety, ADCO, Probuild, Hyundai, and City Circle. To all our special guests and guest speakers, Tommy Greer and Detective Sergeant Shaun Allen, and to Greenacres for hosting our fourth annual MC Labour fundraising Golf Day.

Our 2021 MC Labour and Carlton Respects Golf Day was operated with strict COVID-19 restrictions to make sure players, MC Labour, and Greenacres staff alike were as safe as possible.

 

 

 

For more information on Carlton Respects, head to: https://carltonrespects.com.au/

For more information on the devastating impact domestic violence has on families, head to https://www.ourwatch.org.au/quick-facts/

1800 RESPECT : National sexual assault, domestic and family violence counseling and information referral service. Or visit https://www.1800respect.org.au/

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