THE Minister of State for Labour Affairs, Ms Eithne Fitzgerald, said yesterday she will shortly be announcing proposals for job sharing and career breaks. It is expected to lead to greater flexibility in the workplace.
Speaking at a conference of EU ministers for equality in Dublin Castle, she said there was a huge demand for a more flexible approach to working hours. It was time "to offer a grange of work options which allow people to tailor their work commitments to their family circumstances and choices, and not always the other way around.
"I would like to see options like morning only, term time working, and four day weeks, for instance, offered as choices to people who want to balance work and family," she said.
Ms Fitzgerald expressed the hope that people would be able to choose whichever option suited them best, "without suffering discrimination or being regarded as second class workers. Women rearing children would find her proposals "particularly attractive".
The conference passed a resolution calling on the Taliban militia in Afghanistan to reopen schools and admit pupils without discrimination on grounds of sex.