Mary Maher

President Higgins leads tributes to Mary Maher


Tributes have been paid to the well-known trade unionist, feminist and journalist Mary Maher, who died today. She was a founder member of the Irish Women's Liberation Movement. President Michael D. Higgins said Mary 'was a true trailblazer, role model, and inspiration'. Congress General Secretary...
Children crafting

The State’s hands-off approach to childcare must end


All European welfare systems were originally built around the assumption that women are full-time caregivers in the home and men earn a wage to support the family. From the 1950s onwards, this male-breadwinner model of work and family life began to be replaced by social policies that facilitated...

No Going Back: For a Fairer Future - Congress Budget 2022 Priorities

This is the second set of budgetary recommendations that the Irish Congress of Trade Unions(ICTU) has issued during the Covid-19 pandemic, the most severe global health crisis in living memory. Due to the enormous personal and communal efforts made since March 2020, as well as the unprecedented...

gender race equality

NGOs and Unions call on Government to ratify Convention 190


Gender Equality a key focus in Convention ratification campaign. ActionAid Ireland, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions and Men’s Development Network have joined forces to push for the prompt passage of new laws protecting workers – most particularly women – from harassment and abuse. Tánaiste Leo...

Congress Submission Towards a National Action Plan Against Racism for Ireland

Congress welcomes the work of the Anti-Racism Committee, including the Interim Report, and this opportunity to feed in views in relation to the development of a new National Action Plan Against Racism (NAPAR). We believe that a NAPAR is urgently needed, as there has been little coordinated State...

Rainbow umbrella

Have a safe happy and enjoyable Pride!


Recent events in Hungary, where a new law was passed that discriminates against LGBTQ people while claiming to protect children, illustrate that homophobia is alive and well in the EU. Ireland has played a leadership role in promoting the rights of the LGBTI+ community in recent years but recent...
workplace women meeting

Women in the World of Work -Citizens Assembly


As the Citizen's Assembly prepares for sessions on Women in the world of work, we examine some of the issues they will be discussing. Gender Pay Gap This week marked "Equal Pay Day", the date that women in Ireland effectively work for free for the remainder of the year when compared with their male...
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