Demands for additional paid leave and a standard 34-hour working week are two of the key aspirations in a new Equal Rights Charter being launched today by SIPTU to mark International Women's Day. The document is entitled "Not Only Equality, But Quality Too".
The union's national equality officer, Ms Rosheen Callender, said the charter would "bring us closer to the kind of better work-life balance and better society" to make work more family-friendly.
The document had its origins in the demands of working women, but "its aspirations apply equally to men, of course", Ms Callender said.
"This is a set of basic aspirations for trade unionists everywhere, whatever their age, sex, race, religion or other personal characteristics - and wherever and whenever they work.
"It will form the cornerstone of SIPTU's gender agenda in the early part of this century, just as the Irish Congress of Trade Union's `Working Women's Charter' inspired much of the work of the trade union movement in the final quarter of the last century."
The charter widens the definition of equality to reflect the increasingly multi-cultural nature of Irish society. It emphasises the importance of international campaigns to secure women's rights in the workplace.
The charter's aims include the equal enjoyment of fundamental social, economic and human rights, including equal access to basic necessities such as housing, healthcare and education at all levels; equal access to all forms of employment; and positive action to facilitate equal labour market participation by under-represented groups.