Could I say that it is appropriate that Motion No. 5 dealing with the reports on proposals relating to equality of opportunity should be on the Order Paper at this time when we also have on the Order Paper a motion that Seanad Éireann takes note of the Joint Committee on Women's Rights Interim Report dealing with education.
As a member of that committee I have a particular interest in looking forward to the debate on the latter motion. There can be no doubt in anybody's mind about the extreme discrimination against women in every sphere. I spoke about this at greater length last time that we were dealing with the motion on EC developments. Some people may not realise that the rate of progress in rectifying this injustice is unacceptably slow. In spite of legislation but possibly because this discrimination has been so long and deeply rooted in our society, movement to redress the problem is proving unacceptably sluggish. Against that background reports such as this must receive an unqualified welcome.
We have a wealth of information and reports from the EC on women's rights. In the European File No. 484 for February 1984 it goes into this in great detail and points out that in the European Community 52 per cent of women aged between 14-59 have a job or are looking for work. The proportion is increasing under the double pressure of women's desire for independence and their need to boost the family income. Out of a total working population estimated at 118 million, women account for about 44 million. Of these 69 per cent work in services, 25 per cent in industry and 6 per cent in agriculture. Women are also to be found among Europe's unemployed. There are more women out of work than men in proportion to their share of the total workforce. Women make up 41 per cent of Europe's jobless. They are often the victims of the fact that their training is no longer suited to present-day economic needs. The recession has also made women's jobs more vulnerable. Unemployment has indirectly had a negative effect on the rights of women. At the same time women occupy 90 per cent of Europe's part-time jobs. Such jobs frequently carry the same benefits as fulltime work. They rarely lead to promotion or a more responsible job.
The unemployment of women raises other problems which cannot be illustrated in figures. Equality in education and training, equal pay and equal social security rights are objectives set by society, but in many cases there is still a wide gulf between principle and practice. We have a wealth of information on this problem in the area of discrimination against women. I would like to quote three very short paragraphs from "The Situation of Women in Europe" which was published in May of this year. I will quote from the foreword by Piet Danker. It states:
It is no coincidence that the term "equal treatment" should recur so frequently; although the legal texts establish it as a general principle, in reality there is discrimination between men and women, and this cannot be tolerated by anyone, let alone a democratic institution such as Parliament. Women have an inviolable right to play a full part in the life of society in all its forms, and can no longer be denied the means of doing so. Although some progress has been made, women, when they are not trapped in their role as mothers find it difficult to rise to positions of responsibility in working life. The few exceptions do not invalidate this rule, which is borne out by experience. We can no longer permit differences in the treatment of working women and men, and it is the responsibility of the Community to ensure that the laws adopted on the basis of Community directives are observed. Yet, at the same time, it must also ensure that, once the legal provisions have entered into force, indirect and insidious forms of discrimination do not deprive them of all effect.
Action at the sources is needed to attempt to free our society from this regrettable discrimination: education and vocational training have a vital role to play here, while the advent of new technologies could also open up new opportunities. A great effort should be made to capitalise on them.
Parliament has not confined its activities to making requests, it has also been instrumental in securing the necessary budgetary funds. It will need to continue along this road.
The report points out that the female unemployment rate in Ireland, unlike most of the other member states of the European Communities, is lower than for males. Unfortunately the trends in registered unemployment here shows that female unemployment is rising, although the Industrial Development Authority, AnCO, the Youth Employment Agency and the National Manpower Service, according to the report, play an active part in seeking fair and just female participation in the employment area. I believe there is a greater injustice than simple arithmetical equity in numbers. The type of work is most important. The joint report on Women's Rights at paragraph 10.2 stated:
Since the early years of the present century the number of women teachers in primary schools has increased steadily with the result that today there are more women than men working in this area, where once men were numerically stronger. The situation is unlikely to change in the foreseeable future because of the imbalance at entry to the Colleges of Education, where females now constitute over 70 per cent of the student population. However, the predominance of women teachers, 15,500 (75 per cent) to 5,100 (25 per cent) is not reflected in the figures for posts of responsibility, with 53 per cent of principalships being held by men and 47 per cent by women. A system in which 25 per cent of the work force holds more than half of the principalships illustrates the extent to which inequality between the sexes is entrenched in the teaching profession. While the representation of women in the lesser posts of responsibility, i.e. Vice-Principal, Grade A and Grade B posts is more equitable, even in these grades, male teachers, having regard to their overall numbers, hold a disproportionate number of the posts, i.e. 18 per cent, 33 per cent and 27 per cent respectively.
I suspect that this denial of opportunity applies to every sphere of activity. There is no doubt that the Joint Committee on the Secondary Legislation of the European Communities is firmly committed to removal of all obstacles which hinder the principles of equal pay for work of equal value and equal opportunities in all areas for men and women.