Niall Crowleyoutlines the Equality Authority's strategy, being launched this week, on implementing European Year of Equal Opportunities for All in Ireland.
More than six out of seven Irish people think that we need more women in management. The same percentage think that we need more people with disabilities in the workplace and that we need more women in the Dáil. Nearly five out of six people think that we need more people over 50 in companies and almost one in two people think that we need more minority ethnic people in the Dáil.
These are some of the findings in a Eurobarometer survey published to mark the opening of the European Year of Equal Opportunities for All 2007. The survey communicates a significant level of ambition in Ireland for a more equal society - a level of ambition that is well above the European average.
This is a timely message as the Equality Authority launches a strategy for the European Year in Ireland. This demand for further progress on equality needs to be heard by politicians and policymakers. In this way the European Year could be a source of new commitment and initiative in Ireland towards achieving full equality in practice for all.
The participation of under-represented groups in all sectors and at all levels of society has been identified as one of the objectives for the European Year of Equal Opportunities for All by the EU Council and the European Parliament. In Ireland we can celebrate the equality legislation, the equality institutions established under the legislation and the wide range of national strategies targeting resources to improve the situation of groups that experience inequality and that have supported participation by under-represented groups.
However, new commitment and new initiatives towards achieving full equality in practice are required because significant inequalities persist for many groups in Irish society. The European Year must serve as a challenge to eliminate these inequalities.
In the workplace, for example, women experience a 15 per cent gender pay gap despite 30 years of gender equality legislation. Lone parents, Travellers and people with disabilities have low rates of employment. Carers have difficulties in reconciling paid employment and their caring responsibilities. Many minority ethnic people are employed at a skill level below their qualifications.
Transsexual people do not have access to necessary treatment in the health services and older people face barriers of ageism in accessing health services. Early school leaving rates are higher for boys than girls. Few Travellers advance through post-primary education to sit the Leaving Certificate examination.
Minority ethnic people experience difficulties in securing accommodation in the private rented sector. Lone parents are over-represented on local authority waiting lists.
Young people report their institutional relationships with adults as being for the most part unequal, troubled and rooted in stereotypical ideas about their attributes and abilities. Few of the rights, responsibilities and benefits assigned to married heterosexual couples are available to gay and lesbian couples.
This list of inequalities is merely illustrative. It captures the breadth of the inequalities that need to be eliminated. It underpins the need for a European Year of Equal Opportunities for All in Ireland. It emphasises the importance of a longer-term legacy from the European Year of Commitment and Initiative to achieve full equality in practice.
Individual attitudes that prize diversity will assist in addressing these inequalities. Individuals who experience discrimination must also have the confidence to exercise their rights under equality legislation. Institutional change has a central role to play in addressing these inequalities. Equality and diversity also need to emerge at the heart of society's value base
Equality mainstreaming and equality competence are identified in the strategy for the European Year as priority areas for action. These two processes are at the heart of the institutional change necessary.
Equality mainstreaming needs to be an integral part of policymaking. It is a process to assess at design stage the likely impact of new policies on groups experiencing inequality. In this way new policy can make adjustments for the diversity of people who are targeted by the policy and can contribute to achieving equality for this diversity of people.
Equality competence involves enterprises and organisations in pursuing a planned and systematic approach to equality for their customers and for their employees.
Equality competence involves enterprises and organisations having an equality policy setting out their commitment to equality for customers and employees, providing equality and diversity training for staff to ensure they have the skills to put this equality policy into practice, and implement an equality action plan that sets out in practical terms what the enterprise or organisation will do to achieve equality for customers and employees.
"Play Your Part" is the slogan for the European Year in Ireland. This slogan emphasises the importance for the success of the year of private and public sector organisations taking action to develop equality competence and equality mainstreaming.
Such widespread involvement will secure a lasting legacy from the European Year of Equal Opportunities for All in a more equal Ireland.
Niall Crowley is chief executive officer of the Equality Authority.