Childcare and the need for a family-friendly working environment have replaced low pay as the most important concern of women workers, a survey for the Irish Congress of Trade Unions has found. It also shows that full day-care prices in the Republic absorb 20 per cent of average earnings, compared with an EU average of 8 per cent.
However, low pay remains the biggest single grievance of women trade unionists, whose average hourly rates are still over 20 per cent below those of male workers in the Republic. In Northern Ireland, the average differential is 26 per cent.
The survey was carried out to establish what the priorities of women workers are ahead of the adoption of ICTU's new equality programme at the biennial conference in Killarney next week. A report based on the survey will be discussed by delegates on Tuesday.
Women now account for 42 per cent of trade unionists in Ireland, which is almost on a par with their participation rate in the workforce - 39.9 per cent in the Republic and 50.4 per cent in Northern Ireland. The report calls for the implementation of the Government's inter-departmental group report on childcare by the end of August and its implementation from January 1st, 2000. It says that priority should be given to "affordable, good quality childcare", including regulation of the childcare sector, certification of carers and "strategies to assist children and parents in disadvantaged urban and rural areas'. Part of the strategy should be the inclusion of trade unionists in "Childcare Partnerships".
Maternity leave should be increased from 14 to 20 weeks, the report says and paid paternity leave introduced. This should be five days initially. It also wants paid parental leave of up to three months for working parents.
On equal pay the reports recommends that the new National Minimum Wage should be used as a platform to boost the earnings of low-paid, atypical workers, the vast majority of whom are women. It says that existing pay negotiation structures should be equality audited, to ensure they are not reinforcing inequality by artificially segregating male and female workers when wages are set.