DESPITE the fact that most women workers earn less than men for the same job, that their working conditions are poor and, compared to men, they stand little chance of promotion, more married women than ever are joining the workforce.
Mr Manus O'Riordan, head of research at SIPTU, said yesterday that there had been a four fold increase in the number of married women at work in 25 years. He was speaking at a two day ICTU Women's Conference in Dun Laoghaire.
Mr O'Riordan said that, in 1981, one sixth of married women worked outside the home. This had doubled to one third by 1991 and this year it will have risen to over one half. The projection for 2006 is a further rise to over two thirds of married women being in the workforce.
The congress president, Mr John Freeman, described responsibility for child rearing as "systematically disadvantaging" to women, saying: "Even when employed, women earn consistently less than men. In Northern Ireland, women's earnings in manual occupations are about 75 per cent of men's and just over 70 per cent of the male average. In the Republic, women's hourly earnings are just over 70 per cent of the male average.
Ms Lenore Mrkwicka assistant general secretary of the Irish Nurses' Organisation, called on all women workers to support the nurses in their dispute with the Department of Health. Ms Mrkwicka, who is also a member of the executive council of ICTU, said: "Many people may not realise that the next few weeks are vital in ensuring that a situation is not allowed to be arrived at where nurses are forced into confrontation with the Department of Health.
"The facts are simple nurses are under paid and under valued. Listening to the Minister for Health, it appears he is unaware of the work nurses do. We are a highly trained, highly qualified and specialised group of workers who are totally committed to the delivery of health care.
No nurse wishes to engage in strike action. However, nurses at last realise that it is only a strike that will concentrate the minds of the Minister and his officials. If there is a strike, it will not be the choice of nurses - it will be a position forced on us."