Seanad debates

Wednesday, 24 May 2017

Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (Gender Pay Gap Information) Bill 2017: Second Stage

 

10:30 am

Photo of Rónán MullenRónán Mullen (Independent) | Oireachtas source

That is very much appreciated. I take this opportunity to welcome the Minister of State to the House and the opportunity to speak to this Bill.

The perspective I am coming from is that I believe we should work increasingly for the introduction of family friendly work practices in our society as well as flexible working arrangements such as flexi-start and finish, which enables women in particular to combine being a parent without sacrificing the level of their career, but also allows men to take on more of a co-parenting role. This Bill is something different, however, and I believe it goes the wrong way in many ways.

Senator Bacik and her colleagues want to determine if there are differences in the pay of male and female workers and the nature and scale of such differences, and create a power for the Human Rights and Equality Commission to compel employers to disclose information on the gender pay gap, if any, in its operations. It is presented as a diagnostic rather than a curative measure to enable information to be gathered, but the Human Rights and Equality Commission may command an equality review. It may prepare and implement an equality action plan, and it would be an offence not to implement the requirements of such a plan. It is a little more than information gathering. Why not ask the Central Statistics Office to carry out an exercise gathering payment information? This Bill is more of a fishing exercise designed to trawl up data for advocacy purposes and to advance a discredited analysis of earnings as opposed to pay differences between the sexes.

We have employment equality legislation, which rightly makes it illegal not to provide for equal pay for like work or to discriminate on the basis of gender. The problem is that there is no clear regulatory purpose to this Bill. Because we have the law that prohibits discrimination, there is no role here for the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission Act and the creation of new offences In law for failure to comply what I said was a burdensome fishing exercise.

In a company there can be differences in earnings between men and women, young employees and older employees and employees with degrees and those with experience. If it can be explained by discrimination due to age, race, gender and so on, there is then a legal avenue. The unjust differences are already guarded against in law, and that is right and proper.

This Bill comes from the premise that gender is the reason for gaps in remuneration. It should be noted, however, that according to the World Economic Forum, Ireland was the fifth most equal country in the world out of 145 countries. Male and female educational attainment in third level was virtually identical, with the only difference being that women were scoring higher in completion rates. Again, it is about an agenda distorting the real reasons for an earnings gap to advance a false narrative.

When one factors in time in the workplace, experience, chosen career and length of service, the earnings gap closes to a very low level. The UK Office for National Statistics found in 2014 that men earn more in their teenage years, but that women are paid more between the ages of 22 and 29.

The origin for the proposals in this report seems to arise from a 2016 document published by Morgan McKinley. It suggests that the gender pay gap actually widens against women with years of experience from 12% through to 28% where they have more than 15 years experience, but then they contradict themselves later. Showing that where women have greater experience in a job they earn more than men, and that is right and proper. Dr. Catherine Hakim of the London School of Economics criticised the flawed thinking behind calls for further equality legislation in the UK by showing that experience is what is crucial for remuneration. That is borne out by the UK office I quoted earlier.

It is interesting to note in this regard that even the feminist utopia of Sweden, despite all its family friendly and equal opportunity policies, does not have a better record than Anglo-Saxon countries in terms of eliminating sex differences in the labour market.

It is necessary to reiterate that there are two distinct issues that must be discussed regarding the pay gap: the unadjusted versus the adjusted pay gap. An adjusted pay gap takes into account differences in hours worked, occupations chosen, education and job experience. This Bill does not attempt to undertake such a practical analysis, nor does it proceed from same.

I note with sadness that it is often the case that some feminists dismiss the idea that mothers choose to reduce hours or go part-time as structural inequality. If women make a decision they approve of they are empowered, but if they make a decision that is not liked, it is cultural expectations or structural inequality that is to blame. However, some of these people would hold personal choice as the highest goal. For example, the choice to end the life of an unborn child is not due to any structural "whatsits". Women involved should not be encouraged in any way socially or assisted formally and publicly to make a better choice or even the identification of a better choice. Everything is neutral on that issue, yet there is a clear agenda to promote certain goals on this issue. I do not understand the disparity in that thinking.

If anything, what the gender pay gap proves is that even after 40 years of relentless propaganda, in many cases women still prioritise caring responsibilities over career and pay. In that vein, the specific reference in Article 41.2.1o to the role of women in the home, and to mothers' duties in the home, has given rise to criticism. I would support making that provision gender neutral, but I do not support any attack on the value of parenting in our society.We must not confuse equality of opportunity with equality of outcome. We should not restrict or interfere with people's family or personal decisions about work. If that leads to gaps in overall earnings, that are rooted in the exercise of choice, that is fine as long as people are treated fairly in the work that they do. Many women choose to interrupt their careers to care for children. We should not deprecate that choice. We should make it easier for them to return to work if necessary, but sadly, this burdensome Bill is not about that.

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