There are about 80,000 job vacancies in the State, representing 6.5 per cent of jobs, according to Mr Brendan Butler, IBEC's director of social policy. This was one of the reasons why employers would have to embrace family-friendly policies, he said.
Mr Butler was speaking to The Irish Times at the launch of a joint IBEC-ICTU initiative on family-friendly policies, cosponsored by the Government and the Equality Authority.
He said that there was a very small take-up of such policies in the workplace at the moment. Research showed that employees might be fearful of seeking such arrangements in case it had a negative impact on their career prospects.
Flexible arrangements like part-time working were associated in the past with the reduction of staff numbers and overheads. But they were now needed to attract and keep staff, he said.
"We know of cases where a person went for two job interviews, and chose the job which was more sympathetic to family commitments over one which paid more," Mr Butler said.
Mr Turlough O'Sullivan, director general of IBEC, said at the launch: "We are strongly of the view that family-friendly policies can deliver considerable benefits to employers and our workforce." He said it was necessary to encourage more companies to adopt them.
Family-Friendly Workplace Day will be an occasion for doing that.
March 1st has been chosen as a day for companies and workers to explore ways to make the workplace more positive for those attempting to combine work with outside interests and responsibilities, and it will be marked by the launch of a website and brochure.
Companies are being urged to use the day to discuss the issue with staff.
Mr Peter Cassells, general secretary of the ICTU, said the initiative should be targeted at both men and women, to encourage men to participate in family life.
"It is crucial to ensure that people feel confident and secure in taking up these arrangements, and that they are not seen as peripheral if they do so," he said.
The Minister of State for Enterprise and Employment, Mr Tom Kitt, agreed. "These policies must be applied in a way that brings no negative consequences to the career prospects of those who take them," he said. "If not, all we will do will be to address inequalities in labour market participation but worsen inequalities in labour market position and career."