asked the Minister for Labour what progress has been made towards the implementation of equal pay for equal work in the public service; whether it is Government policy that the principle should operate throughout industry; and whether action is contemplated to further this principle.
Ceisteanna — Questions. Oral Answers (Resumed). - Equal Pay.
66.
A claim for the application of equal pay for equal work by men and women in the Civil Service has been lodged under the Civil Service Scheme of Conciliation and Arbitration and, as I stated on the 22nd October last in reply to a question, it would be inappropriate for me to comment on it at this stage. It is relevant to state, however, that recent pay revisions in the public services have provided for the same minimum increases to both men and women.
Under the system of free collective bargaining developed here the pay and conditions for workers in industry generally are settled by direct negotiations between the parties concerned. Improvements for women workers can be, and are being, negotiated within the framework of that system. The question of the principle of "equal pay" is part of the question of the status of women generally and, as the Taoiseach announced recently, the Government will shortly consider the setting up of a commission to consider this matter.