Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, to the House. I apologise I was missing for a good chunk of the debate.I heard his opening address, but I was trying to deal with a pressing matter.

This Bill is very welcome. It is embarrassing that we are still only at this stage when it comes to the gender pay gap. It really and truly should not be an issue in 2021 and that it is necessary to bring in legislation to force companies to provide information. To think that women are paid 14% less than their male counterparts, who are doing precisely the same type of work, is unforgivable. In the EU, I think that figure is 16%, which beggars belief given the principle behind the EU programme. One has to wonder. In addition to that, people with disabilities tend not to have the confidence and strength of character to negotiate with a strength of character, conviction and belief because they are grateful to get a job in the first place, to a large extent. It is shocking to think that approximately 80% of people with disabilities in this country still rely on State support. In this day and age, one can see the depth of quality of people with disabilities and the contribution they can make and are making, yet eight out of ten find themselves needing State supports. It is breathtaking. It all feeds into the overall discussion of equality of opportunity, employment, pay and conditions.

This Bill is welcome. I remember, in the last Seanad, Senator Bacik highlighted this issue among many other issues that affect people in employment, women in employment in particular. It is an incremental step in the right direction, that is for sure. I share concerns that a company with 150 employees or less will not be subject to scrutiny for a protracted period of time. Looking at the community I come from, most of the businesses there employ fewer than 150 people. I would struggle to think of one, outside of a public service operation, that employs more than 150 people in the north-west Clare area. Therefore, workers in all those companies will not have their situation and the discriminatory nature of their payment articulated for some time.

I cannot see any logic in not fast-tracking this, to be quite frank about it. Business is a bureaucratic nightmare in this country anyway. Including a simple reporting mechanism once a year in terms of what people are paid – the figures and the data are there anyway – is not going to add to the bureaucratic nightmare that is running a business in this country. I urge the Minister to talk to his officials on whether it is possible to accelerate the timeframe of this, because our generation is the generation that will be judged on dealing with this issue for once and for all. Previous Oireachtas Houses dealt with glaring issues like the eighth amendment, which needed to be dealt with and was dealt with by the last Oireachtas, as was the marriage equality situation. We became world leaders when we had a popular referendum on marriage equality which passed. Let us become world leaders and show the EU how it is done. Let us bring the figure of 14% down to nil and do it at an accelerated pace. There is no reason this cannot happen within months rather than years. If we do that, we will have the moral authority to lecture and talk about equality to other countries, not just in the EU, but worldwide. However, not until such time as we get our house in order. We can do it, we should do it, we will do it and it is the right thing to do. Let us do it in a reasonable period of time. Let it be one of the legacies of this Government. Let us not rush to get this done at the end of the term of this Government. Let us backfill it and do it at the start of the term of this Government. We are a year into its term, at the end of this month. By year 2, let us have grasped the nettle on this issue and have dealt with it. Then we can show ourselves as an example, yet again, on social issues to other parts of the world.