The impact of pay inequality on birth rates

Sir, – Maria Steen effectively highlights the sense of loss some women feel in today’s society when trying to have a family. Her solution, however, is to undermine the very efforts that make work and remuneration more transparent (“Gender pay gap agenda is contrived, pointless and ignores the reality of women like me”, Opinion, April 4th).

While there is no singular solution to improving birth rates, a combination of policies – such as access to affordable childcare, paid parental leave and inclusive working conditions – has consistently driven positive results.

If Steen genuinely wants to enable the women of Ireland to have families, she should support the systems that demand transparent corporate reporting on pay and inequality. While no country has perfected this balance, it remains a stark fact that South Korea holds the dual title for both the widest gender pay gap and the lowest birth rate of any OECD country.

Ultimately, Steen constructs a straw-man argument that attacks the very structures designed to protect women. The women of Ireland, who face the very real dilemma of balancing work and care, deserve a higher standard of debate.