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CoE group finds progress on gender pay

A report from the European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR) has found that Ireland has made progress on the issue of the gender pay gap.

The committee has published the findings of its 2023 report on how Ireland has responded to complaints made about its compliance with the legally binding European Social Charter, a Council of Europe (CoE) treaty that guarantees civil and political rights.

The report found that Ireland was now in compliance with the charter on gender pay after the Gender Pay Gap Information Act 2021 entered into force.

It said that measures had been taken to collect reliable and standardised data on the gender pay gap, and noted “measurable progress” on female participation on the boards of large listed companies.

Traveller strategy ‘stalled’

On Traveller accommodation, however, the ECSR said that Ireland was still not in conformity with the charter, despite some progress on the issue of Travellers’ rights to housing.

On complaints about the inadequate condition of Traveller sites, the committee found that “some measures have been taken to improve the situation”, but added that no evidence of “tangible and meaningful improvements” had been provided.

It added that key Traveller Accommodation Expert Review recommendations had yet to be implemented, and work on a new strategy on Roma and Traveller issues “appears to have stalled”.

Right to strike

The report said that the Government had submitted no new information on a complaint about a prohibition on the right of gardaí to strike, and that Ireland was still not in compliance with the charter.

There was a similar finding on the ban on military representative groups joining national workers’ organisations, though the report noted that the Minister for Defence had provided his conditional temporary consent for military groups to be involved in public-sector pay negotiations.