In this paper the authors investigate the changing characteristics of working age women, focusing on their financial independence. They combine an examination of policy and institutional changes that occurred in Australia during the 1980s and 1990s with an analysis of income survey microdata for the years 1982 and 1996-97. They argue that demographic changes (relating to marriage and fertility) and public policies in the fields of childcare and social security helped many women achieve financial independence during the 1980s and 1990s but the effects of restructuring and deregulation in the labour market dominated.