Agreement Reached in the Multi-Party Negotiations - Transitional ...

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task of facilitating integration and equality? For example, an Equality Commission document, 118 effectively a guide for employers, outlines the measures needed to create equal opportunity in the workplace. Mindful of the range of categories, suggestions are broad, such as provision of resources to close the equality gap. However, as regards women, the resources could have been specified, i.e. provision of childcare facilities. Essentially inclusion in a broad equality agenda may mean imprecision in detailing what is required, making it more difficult to measure outcomes. 6.4.1 Women and Good Relations ‘Good relations’ should be promoted between persons of different religious belief, political opinion and racial group, the only three categories to which the duty applies. Presumably this is an effort to change sectarian mindsets and division, to get at less visible motives behind sectarianism. There is no such attempt to change prejudices and assumptions behind gendered discrimination. Is there an opportunity to at least explore gender issues within the three categories? An Equality Commission report on good relations states that because it deals with the three stated categories, ‘women and the LGB [lesbian, gay and bisexual] community have therefore generally been omitted from this report.’ 119 This means that within the report, for example, there is no gender perspective on racism. Yet women have a track record with regard to fostering relations between divided communities and many councils have included women’s groups as a way of promoting good relations. 120 As will be seen across the various headings of this report, strategies to deal with sectarianism are more robust than strategies around sexism. 6.5 Single Equality Act The Equality Commission in its submission to CEDAW in April 2003 described the equality situation for women in Northern Ireland as follows: ‘Although there have been dramatic changes in the roles of women, particularly at work and in education, inequality between women and men persists in all areas of social, economic and political life in Northern Ireland.’ For example: • • • • • 65% of women over 16 years of age are economically active compared to 80% of men. women workers are concentrated in low paid, low status jobs and in part-time, casual and temporary work associated with poor terms and conditions. women earn 85% of men’s gross weekly earnings, including overtime. Northern Ireland has 62.4 day nursery places per 1000, 0 – 4 year olds, compared to a United Kingdom average of 95. women comprise only 14% of the NI Assembly, 18% of local councillors and 31.7% of the membership of public bodies. 121 Much sex inequality stems from society’s failure to recognise and accommodate the fact that women continue to be the primary carers of children, older people and others who require support and assistance. Therefore given the close links between the economic, social and political spheres, women’s disadvantage will continue until the inequalities in men and women’s overall circumstances are addressed. 122 118 Equality Commission, Model Equal Opportunities Policy, 2004 119 Equality Commission Section 75(2) of the Northern Ireland Act 1998, Audit of Progress on the Good Relations Duty 2000 – 2003 120 For example, Derry Council’s Women’s Programme, The Women Into History Project 121 Equality Commission Submission to CEDAW, April 2003 122 Ibid. 33
With regard to the economy wide gender pay gap, in April 2002 in Northern Ireland, average hourly earnings for all women were 85 per cent of the average for all men, giving a whole economy gender pay gap of 15 percentage points. 123 The Equality Commission submission also noted that failure to enact Single Equality Legislation meant that ‘the present framework of equality legislation in NI is fragmented, inconsistent and incoherent. There are important gaps in the coverage of the legislation, and the law in NI falls short of the requirements of EU law and international and European human rights law.’ 124 A Single Equality Act could simplify and clarify existing laws; harmonise existing and new areas of protection and develop a best practice approach; allow for the legislature to revisit and to expand the list of groups to which equality must be guaranteed; focus on clear commitments to equality with an increasing emphasis on equality of outcome. Legislation should take a unified approach to equality across all grounds, where the best of existing laws are applied to all. 125 6.6 The Single Equality Act and Women 126 The Northern Ireland Executive in its first Programme for Government 127 committed itself to consulting on a Single Equality Bill, 128 with a view to introducing this in 2002. A number of factors made this timetable unrealistic: the need for more information and further debate on issues; 129 all EU equality Directives had not been finalised, and an Assembly election was timetabled for May 2003, 130 creating difficulties in the passage of primary legislation. A number of European Union Directives 131 were set to impact on 123 The gender pay gap for full-time women now stands at 11 percentage points. The trend is upward, with the gap closing at a rate of about 0.8 percentage points per annum. The gender pay gap for part-time women is wider, standing at 32 percentage points in April 2002. This gap has not been improving. The figures highlight how equality measures may impact differently on groups of women. 124 Equality Commission Submission to CEDAW, April 2003 125 The Framework Employment Equality Directive 2000 (FEED) and the Race and Ethnic Origin Directive 2000 (REOD) each has a ‘non regression’ clause, whereby implementation of the Directive cannot be used to lower pre-existing national standards. In order to achieve universality across the grounds protected, the ‘best standard’ within exiting regimes would have to be applied across all grounds. 126 See the Equality Commission Response to OFMDFM Consultation Paper, A Single Equality Bill for Northern Ireland, November 2004, which largely reflects the well-established position of the Commission as articulated in earlier papers. 127 Programme for Government: Making a Difference 2001-2004, Northern Ireland Executive, 2001. 128 See OFMDFM consultation document: A Single Equality Bill for Northern Ireland. 129 OFMDFM, Promoting Equality of Opportunity, 3 May 2001. 130 A joint manifesto was produced by the Equality Commission, the Women’s Committee of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions and the Women’s Policy Group and endorsed by numerous women’s groups and other organisations. The Manifesto presents a set of demands around a number of key gender equality areas that needed to be addressed by the incoming Assembly: • Improved gender equality legislation • Social security and tax arrangements that meet the particular needs of women • Access to affordable childcare • Increased financial support for community development and voluntary organisations • Encourage women’s political participation and promote greater representation of women in public appointments • More accessible health clinics including for sexual and reproductive health • Access to refuge centres • Resources to prevent violence and abuse Women’s Manifesto for Northern Ireland Assembly Elections 2003 131 Race and Ethnic Origin Directive (REOD) 2000/42/EC; Framework Employment Equality Directive 2000/78/EC; Equal Treatment Amendment Directive 2002/73/EC. 34
Page 1 and 2: Women and the Implementation of the
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Page 83 and 84: REFERENCES Bell, C. (2003) PEACE AG
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