Gender quotas to be considered for state boards
Data being compiled for the Department of Justice is expected to show women make up just 34% of state board positions and an even lower percentage of chairperson positions.
The figures fall far short of the 40% target set by Fine Gael and Labour in the Programme for Government.
It is understood that some departments have had difficulty meeting this target because not enough women applied for positions advertised in May.
The Department of Justice has set up a working group chaired by Minister of State with responsibility for equality Kathleen Lynch to look at ways of ending this “jobs for the boys” culture.
The department said: “The group is looking at the advancement of women into leadership and decision-making roles including on state and corporate boards.”
The group is represented by a number of departments as well as the Equality Authority and the National Women’s Council, who favour withdrawing funding for boards that do not meet quotas.
The group will produce a report in the autumn for Justice Minister Alan Shatter.
Fianna Fáil made a similar promise in 1997 to have 40% representation of each gender on state boards.
But an investigation by the Irish Examiner recently revealed that less than one-third of the 4,400 appointments to state boards made by the previous administration were to women.
Labour TD Ann Ferris is urging the Government to introduce quotas, claiming many women do not have the confidence to apply for positions, particularly those who have spent time out of the workplace raising children.
“Women have a great contribution to make to state boards. But there must be formal quotas put in place or else it will never happen,” she said.
