CAREER BREAKS should be offered as a means of reducing unemployment, Labour has said.
CAREER BREAKS should be offered as a means of reducing unemployment, Labour has said.The party’s spokesperson on social and family affairs, Róisín Shortall, said that employers should be encouraged to offer career breaks to their employees as part of a series of measures to help address the mounting unemployment problem.
Speaking at the Labour Party Conference in Kilkenny, Shortall said: “We are not just in the midst of a recession, we also happen to be in the midst of a baby boom. Not since 1980 have we had such a surge in births – 72,300 in the 12 months to April – while 100,000 have joined the dole queues in the last year.
“That presents a scenario where very many people do not have enough work, while many others have too much.”
She continued: “Career breaks are rarely offered to employees outside of the public service. I believe a scheme should be introduced that incentivises employers to offer career breaks or flexible working arrangements and at the same time provides employees with a legal entitlement to their job back and security on other issues for when that leave ends.
“The choice to take time out, that I believe many young parents and indeed other carers would like to make, is not an option for many and has little legal protection for those who do. Promoting and delivering on such a scheme would make more room in the workforce, reduce unemployment and provide flexibility to families and carers when they need it.”
