Marie Moloney (Labour) | Oireachtas source

Is it a choice if it is introduced into law? Again, we can thrash all that out and tweak it a bit. I am worried about it. A mother who may have had a caesarean section would need longer maternity leave than one who had a natural birth. Again, I would be worried about having these women go back to work too soon. Obviously, that is a health and safety issue. They are some reservations I have.

On the flip side of that, there are some very good proposals here. In particular, women participating in the workplace is fantastic. We have come a long way because women can make a valuable contribution to the workforce. We have come a long way from the days of the marriage bar, about which I spoke this morning at a meeting of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Education and Social Protection. Women could not even go to work in those days, never mind get maternity leave. They had to give up their jobs just because they were married. It did not matter whether they had children or not. We have come a long way where we are now looking for leave for fathers, never mind women returning to work. This morning, I again raised with the Minister for Social Protection the fact that those women should have been entitled to a credited contribution. That has all been sorted and we have what is known as a homecarer's credit for women at home looking after children. Back in those days, it was not their fault. They had no choice because that was the law. One had to give up one's job simply because one got married.

The Cathaoirleach is giving me notice that my time is up. Time flies when one is enjoying oneself. I commend Senator White and hope this Bill will go the whole way and that we will be behind her on it.