Kevin Humphreys (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I commend my colleague, the leader of the Labour Party group, on the work she has done on the Bill. Senator McDowell mentioned that many Bills are coming forward but nothing is happening. This is constantly happening in the House. I have counted 141 Bills that have been passed Second Stage in the Seanad and the Dáil but have not progressed. To me this is unacceptable. If the Government does not agree with a Bill, for heaven's sake just oppose it on Second Stage and do not give false hope that legislation will be progressed. There is a possibility that one piece of legislation brought forward in Private Members' time will actually get through this session.

Senator Conway said the Labour Party is a party of social justice and we certainly have a proud record on this, from opposing the eighth amendment, to the right to remarry, to the X case legislation, to same-sex marriage and to the gender recognition Bill. All these are achievements of the Labour Party. We fought those battles when they were not popular or profitable, and the fact I am in this House is recognition of this.

There are surprising facts in this. I must hold up my hand in my ignorance. The fact we will face 170 years before we break the gender pay gap is not acceptable. What I have always said to my daughter, as she goes through education, is that through education she will achieve equality. In fact, the more females are educated, the more likely there will be a gender pay gap with their colleagues. This is what the data states. A man who does the same masters with the same results and makes the same contribution to the workforce as a woman will earn more than her. Unfortunately, this is true and it is what we have to address.

Senator Mullen will have to forgive me, because during his contribution all I could see was the image of him putting forward that a woman's place is in the home beside the sink. That is how it came across. It should be as much of a choice for men and women as to whether they want to stay at home and raise their families. There should not be an ingrained inequality with regard to salary for the same work with the same qualifications.

Recently I submitted a series of freedom of information questions on bonuses in the semi-State sector. No bonuses are paid but there are performance-related increments. A woman working in the sector came back to me and said quite honestly that she never knew there were performance-related increments. How can people look for pay equality if they do not know that the worker next to them is paid more or that performance related increments operate in the company? It hit me and, unfortunately, I say this against myself, that it is the old boys' club, or the men's club in the pub or on the golf course, giving a tip-off not to look for a bonus but to go for a performance-related increment. This can be isolating for female colleagues. This is why the key in the Bill is information. Through information comes power, which becomes a route to equality. We have to take every opportunity to challenge inequalities in society.

I thank the Minister of State for his attention during the debate. I ask him to go to his colleagues in Government and to speak to the Labour Party about a pathway forward, so we can move this legislation forward and in some way tear down the wall of inequality between men and women in the workplace.