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JOB-SHARERS who double their workload by going full time are
entitled to double their salary, the European Court of Justice ruled
in July. Kathleen Hill and Ann Stapleton worked as clerks in the
Irish Civil Service, on a job share, week on, week off basis. When
Kathleen returned to work full time she was informed that, in the
complicated points system operated by the service, two years
job-share was equivalent to one year's full time work, her new grade
was lower than her old one and her salary would be correspondingly
lower. This occurred because the job-share incremental scale did not
correspond to the scale for full-timers. Based on the fact that 98%
of job-sharers in the Irish Civil Service are women, Kathleen and
Ann, who had the same experience although slightly later, took their
case to an Equality Officer and from there to the Irish Labour
Court.
The Court decided the outcome of the case would decide on an
interpretation of Community law and asked for a ruling from the
European court on three questions. The main question for
interpretation was whether the principle of equal pay is contravened
if employees who convert from job-sharing to full-time work regress
on the grade scale and therefore on their salary scale due to the
employer using a length of service criteria calculated as time worked
in a job? The European Court of Justice ruled firstly that the point
in question did come under Article 119 - the
equal pay for equal work principle. The judges agreed with the Irish
court that no direct discrimination was evident. However, existing
case law suggests that the application of a supposedly neutral
measure which works to the disadvantage of far more women than men
was precluded under the equal pay directive.
The Court found that workers who convert to full-time work after job
sharing should expect both their hours and their level of pay to
increase by 50%. The case now goes back to the Irish Labour Court who
will have to decide between the applicants and the employers, but
this time the civil service must justify their actions on new grounds
bearing in mind the interpretation of the European Court.
SINGLE PARENTS account for one in ten families with children in the European Union. And between 80 and 90 per cent of all single parents are women. But access to employment, training, social security, housing and child care varies across the Community and this is a situation that women MEPs want to change. Ludvinia Garcia Arias MEP produced a report which was adopted by the parliament's womens rights committee calling for measures to be adopted by the Union.
These included: guidelines and policies to be drafted at EU level to help the integration of single mothers; greater support from social security systems and greater efforts to ease access to employment and the labour market; improvements to the legal system to ensure both parents fulfil obligations; changing the structural funds criteria so that assistance to single parents is taken into account; and tax credits to firms providing employees with childcare facilities.
How did the two Parties encourage women to stand for the European Parliament?
A CONSERVATIVE PARTY spokesman emphasised that selections were always on the basis of merit and that his party would not use positive discrimination so that more women would stand simply for the sake of it. Candidates were chosen 'by ability' at regional one-member-one-vote (omov) meetings. Constituency associations were responsible for encouraging members to to come forward to stand, and standard application forms were dispatched. All candidates were asked the same questions at interview but 'where a candidate has a particular expertise they were asked more detailed questions on that subject'. The Conservatives published 'broad outlines' of the procedure.
UNDER LABOUR PARTY procedures, every candidate standing completed a standard application form. Over half of the 400 members who requested a form were women. Each local branch was entitled to nominate one woman and one man from amongst the candidates. These nominations were included in the constituency party's shortlist and candidates were invited to hustings and constituency meetings to speak and answer questions. members voted to select one woman and one man from the constituency party shortlist. These nominees then went forward to an omov ballot of all members living in a European constituency. Members could vote for one male and one female candidate by preference voting. Sitting MEPs appeared separately on the ballot and members can indicate whether they want this person's name to go forward. Candidates successful in this ballot are interviewed by a panel, after which a board will finalise the regional lists based on the panel's recommendations. The panel should ensure that there is at least one woman on each regional list. The lists will be presented to the Labour Conference for endorsement.
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