Equal opportunities knock

When Mr John Keenan took on the role of human resources manager for Iarnrod Eireann he identified certain key issues which needed to be addressed. In an organisation of just under 5,000, there were no more than 650 female employees and these were largely located in the clerical administration area. It represented, he says, a "waste of human resources".

When he looked into the issue, it emerged that there were two primary reasons for this employment vacuum that is still in evidence today. The first lay with restrictive trade union agreements that prohibited employees from moving from one area to another. A secretary with her eye on an operative position, for example, would have difficulty being moving to such a role.

In addition, the physical nature of some jobs and the traditional perception of the railway as a male domain had seen women opt for more clerical posts. Even in this area women were not rising to the same level as male employees. Of 150 executives in the company, only 14 per cent are women and there are no female train drivers in Iarnrod Eireann.

This is changing. Women, such as Ms Patricia Ryan, a polymer engineer with manufacturing company Sealcon, in Newbridge, are choosing to carve out careers in traditionally male dominated areas. Recognising this shift in attitudes Mr Keenan last year set up a joint-committee, comprising members of staff and trade unions, to examine the situation. The broad terms of reference of the committee was to explore gender issues in Iarnrod Eireann, particularly promotional opportunities for women. "Why should we have male dominated decision making when it would be much more efficient to utilise all our resources," asks Mr Keenan. "While I am not in favour of positive discrimination, I want to create an environment where there are opportunities for everyone, regardless of gender."

It is an admirable goal and when consultant Ms June Lambert, who chairs the committee, presents her report in June, Iarnrod Eireann will have the research that could help put theory into practice.

Women and business is an area that many companies are exploring as the benefits of supporting women in a variety of business roles become more apparent. The two main banks have both introduced initiatives aimed at making life easier for women in business.

For Bank of Ireland the decision to donate £50,000 worth of sponsorship to the women in business organisation, Network, last year was as much driven by commercial reasons as it was by the company's sense of social justice. The bank found that in line with a global trend, a significant percentage of all business start-ups were run by women. Last year small businesses created more than 50,000 jobs, half of which were firms set up by women.

AIB has established a task-force to assess the business requirements of women. Their report will be launched in June; "It will take a fresh look at our policies concerning women in business. They are a very important market to AIB," says Ms Valerie O'Keefe, head of women's corporate affairs with the bank.

The food industry has also become involved with the WITS (Women In Technology and Science) NOW project. Mr Pat Lunny of the Greencore group says one of the specific aims is "to increase the participation of women in senior management and decision making in the industry".

Women comprise only 30 per cent of the food industry workforce with less than 10 per cent at managerial and supervisory level. The programme includes a University of Limerick accredited diploma in Management with tutors drawn from a panel of business and academic practitioners who guide and give mentorship to participants. Even with all these initiatives the overall picture for women in the workplace remains somewhat gloomy especially at a higher level. The ubiquitous glass ceiling may be a little less solid but it is still quite firmly in place.

In a recent survey, it was found that only 5 per cent of business executives here are female and those that do make it often earn less than their male counterparts. Prof Joyce O'Connor, president of the National College of Industrial Relations says there are a number of "barriers" to the advancement of women in their careers.

"There are certain variables for both men and women in terms of career development. One key thing is having a mentor. Men are more willing to mentor male employees than female and that can be detrimental for budding females executives," she says.

A supportive corporate environment is also important as family obligations can often halt the march of women in the workplace. "Another barrier can be that women don't plan their careers as early as men do," says Prof O'Connor. Yet another stumbling block is discrimination, she maintains, with a lot of men feeling uncomfortable around women in positions of power.

Some career choices are virtually barrier free and offer equal opportunities to both genders no matter how high they go. Amway Ltd is affiliated to Amway Corporation, one of the worlds largest direct selling companies. Many of its distributors are self employed husband and wife partnerships or women.

It suits successful Irish distributor Ms Carole Melville who says direct selling works for her "because it allows me to spend time with my family ... we have now achieved a lot of our financial goals."

According to Prof O'Connor there are three main attributes that will help both men and women climb the career ladder and achieve their goals against all the odds.

"The development of self-esteem, self-confidence and the ability to take control of a situation are absolutely vital in business and students that come from schools which focus on these aspects have something of an advantage," she said.