The careers of Irish mothers are hampered by the lack of adequate affordable childcare, a lack of support at work and limited flexible workplace options, according to a new report.
The OECD study entitled Babies and Bosses shows less support in public policy for Irish working mothers than in Austria and Japan.
Ireland also stood out because single-parent families, usually headed by females, have a higher incidence of unemployment than in other countries.
The report examined family friendly policies in Ireland, Austria and Japan, which were the latest addition to the ongoing study. By 2005, the OECD will have surveyed 13 countries.
Mr John Martin of the OECD, who presented the report yesterday, said the face of Ireland's labour force has changed dramatically over the last 15 years.
"Nearly half of Irish mothers with infants are now at work," he said.
Since the 1990s, female employment in Ireland rose by almost 20 per cent to 56 per cent in 2001, particularly among women of childbearing age.
Dr Eileen Drew of Trinity College Dublin said that the Celtic Tiger was a misnomer. It's rather the Celtic Tigress who is fuelling the workforce and caring for her cubs.
The Minister for Social and Family Affairs, Ms Mary Coughlan, said: "Not that long ago in Ireland, the norm was for the father to care about the boss and the demands of employment and for the mother to care for the babies. Much of our social policy in particular over the past number of years reflected that. There is a need, therefore, to modernise our policies."
Irish workplaces have not changed their policies along with their altered workforce.
Although two-thirds of Irish enterprises offer part-time work, the option often derails a woman's career, according to the OECD results. It serves to reinforce the gender pay gap and often there are no full-time options of a comparable rung on the ladder once a mother is ready to re-enter the work force.
"There should be a warning on part-time work like on a cigarette packet. This will seriously damage your career," Dr Drew said.
The OECD report recommended that Ireland enact government-audited workplace family initiatives that could be tailored to the needs of individual firms, particularly small and medium-sized firms that are less likely to have family friendly options.
Ireland also lagged behind the other two countries in adequate and affordable childcare.
There was a gap in childcare for children under two years old, and the expense was often prohibitive.
"It may not pay to work for second earners once you take account of the high cost of childcare," Mr Martin said.
The cost of Irish childcare amounts to 33 per cent of an average worker's salary compared to 15 per cent in Austria and Japan, where public subsidies offset the cost.
However, one of the most striking results of the report was the high unemployment rates among single parents, who are overwhelmingly single mothers. Single parent families comprise one-sixth of all family units, 85 per cent of which are headed by females.
Mr Martin said the Irish social welfare policy is a disincentive to finding work, since families can live off welfare until their youngest child is 18. In Austria, the cut-off age is two, and in Denmark it is one.
"Ireland should rethink its policy and move towards a system of mutual obligations for lone parents. The report suggests that the Government offer assistance with a job search and childcare solutions, and the parent has to take steps to find work and improve employability," Mr Martin said.
The "mutual obligation strategy" would not be "draconian" or "coercive" according to Ms Coughlan, but rather encouragement into the workforce.
"Our system of benefits isn't working and we need to break the cycle of poverty," she said.