December 8th was Mrs. Luzia Borges’ last day of work after 35 years. The Prime Minister and opposition leader surprised her by honouring her contributions in Parliament while surrounded by her family. So what did she do to earn such a high honour? She has been cleaning Parliament House since it opened in 1988.
The Speeches
“Luzia has such a genuine and joyful presence, a warmth that cheers even the coldest Canberra morning, a light that brightens even the glummest day.” – Anthony Albanese, Prime Minister
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese praised Mrs. Borges for being “one of those rare certainties, here from day one when the flag first went up”. He spoke about how she has a collection of pictures with prominent figures from Barack Obama to the Dalai Lama, thanks to her magnetism. Paying tribute to her colleague, Anna Jancevski, he called the pair “such a perfect partnership”. He commended her as a “proud trade unionist, standing up for the rights of cleaners.”
Mrs Borges led a strike in 2015 to demand a wage increase for parliament house cleaners, who do not receive a pension.
“You’ve said to us that there will be no book published in retirement. So that will be a relief to prime ministers…and ministers, past and present” – Peter Dutton, Leader of the Opposition
Opposition leader Peter Dutton highlighted Mrs. Borges’s discretion, friendship, and beautiful nature. Reminiscing how they swapped stories about their children and her grandchildren, he thanked her family for their support over her “very long career”. He ended by wishing her good health.
Retirement: A Pipe Dream?
Year after year, the cost of living grows while average salaries remain stagnant. Many millennials and Gen Z-ers have expressed that retirement seems unattainable due to the inability to save enough under current economic burdens. While Mrs Borges was able to retire comfortably after working as a cleaner, a growing number of folks with a variety of jobs – many holding more than one – are living paycheque to paycheque.
The government presented Mrs Borges a gift in line with her love of gardening. Today, most of us can only dream of owning a house to build our lush gardens to tend to. With a rise in quiet quitting and an increasing number of stories of bad bosses, many would find it near impossible to stay in a job as long as Mrs Borges did.
@sbsnews_au Both sides of politics have paid tribute to cleaner Luzia Borges, who is retiring after 35 years of working at Parliament House since it opened in 1988. #auspol #news #australia
Many reactions to this gesture highlighted that though it is sweet, it stings. One user commented, “Can someone tell me how this helps the cost of living?”. Another said, “Who cares what about cost of living?”. There seems to be general discontentment at Australian politics, with one comment joking, “Must be a wonderful lady! Cleaning up after this lot!”.
While it is heartwarming to watch Mrs Borges smile ear to ear as Parliament sang her praises, it begs the question: is this just another unattainable fairytale for the younger generations, something doomed to fade into history, just as affordable housing has? Will Mrs Borges’s grandchildren recount this story to their grandchildren, reminiscing how things were different, how once upon a time, a happy and fulfilling retirement was the norm, not a dream out of reach?
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