Mens Rights Thread

iptba · 19-12-2022 3:21am

Many television writers of the last 20 years have seemed to pull their punches in making their female protagonists truly flawed, Prebble points out. “It was very important to me not to do that.”

from:

https://www.independent.ie/entertainment/television/succession-writer-lucy-prebble-on-friendship-breakups-and-why-she-wont-pull-any-punches-writing-female-characters-42225911.htm

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I remember the outrage following the last few episodes in Game of Thrones when people said it was unfair to women how Daenerys Targaryen/khaleesi was portrayed when there are plenty of male characters in fiction who are similarly flawed but there is no uproar.

iptba · 20-12-2022 4:47am

RTÉ pay gap: Men earn 13pc more than women at national broadcaster

https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/rte-pay-gap-men-earn-13pc-more-than-women-at-national-broadcaster-42230480.html

The gender pay gap is the difference in the average pay of all men and women across a workforce.

RTÉ’s median pay gap is 13.03pc or 6.79pc when overtime is not counted.

The report says there is a median gender pay gap of 18pc in favour of women among part time staff.

Its mean, or average, gender pay gap is 11.55pc, which falls to 10pc when overtime roles are left out.

If there was some sort of conspiracy to pay men more, it would seem odd that women in part-time roles would get paid more.

iptba · 21-12-2022 4:40pm

"The publishing group said it is committed to fulfilling its obligations and is convinced its policies and initiatives will help it move in the right direction."

Who says there is anything inherently wrong with the current situation

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Mediahuis Ireland reveals gender pay gap of 22pc

https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/news/mediahuis-ireland-reveals-gender-pay-gap-of-22pc-42232790.html

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Looks like women will be advantaged in the future i.e. men will be discriminated against because of their gender.

“Mediahuis Ireland has said it needs to address a “significant imbalance” between men and women at leadership level after revealing a gender pay gap of 22pc.

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“Mediahuis Ireland said it is committed to be an inclusive employer and is initiating programmes aimed at improving gender representation across the business.

The company commits to substantially increase and develop its female workforce across all functions and levels to improve the male to female ratio from its existing level of 61pc to 39pc.”

That’s not a huge gender imbalance given that more women than men are economically inactive. It is also not directly related to any gender pay gap.

“The report says a Gender Equality Action Group will be set up early next year to keep the gender balance gap at the top of the organisation’s agenda. It will launch three special female-focused development programmes to substantially reduce the gap, including Women in Leadership, Women in Publishing and Women in Tech.

“The company has committed to play its part in working towards the Mediahuis Group’s ambition for a 50/50 gender balanced leadership by 2030.”

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“Peter Vandermeersch, chief executive of Mediahuis Ireland, told Independent.ie: “We recognise that the numbers indicate an imbalance at leadership level that needs to be addressed and we have set out our proposed action plan to start to close the gap.”

iptba · 22-12-2022 9:26pm

"Equal Pay Day 2022: ‘We have to do something about the catastrophic cost of childcare if we want to stop losing brilliant women from the workplace’

Today is Equal Pay Day – the date on which women in Ireland effectively stop earning, relative to men, because of our gender pay gap"

https://www.independent.ie/life/family/parenting/equal-pay-day-2022-we-have-to-do-something-about-the-catastrophic-cost-of-childcare-if-we-want-to-stop-losing-brilliant-women-from-the-workplace-42160572.html

"And it will get awkward because money is emotional. It’s hard not to take it personally when you find out that the person sitting next to you is being paid on average 11.3pc more just because of their gender"

Except there is no good evidence that the case at all

iptba · 23-12-2022 4:21am

From last month

Employers warned of ‘significant’ reputation and brand damage if they fail to eliminate gender pay gaps

https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/news/employers-warned-of-significant-reputation-and-brand-damage-if-they-fail-to-eliminate-gender-pay-gaps-42146598.html

Seems to be setting up an environment where men may be discriminated against.

iptba · 02-01-2023 3:34am

Irish data shows that men are much more likely than women to work 40 or more hours and also 45+ hours.

This is likely a factor as to why they are more likely to be in better paid jobs.

Ireland: Employment by usual hours worked

Table 5.8 Ireland: Employment by usual hours worked, 2008 and 2018 '000s % 20082018 20082018Usual hours

See:

https://www.cso.ie/en/releasesandpublications/ep/p-wamii/womenandmeninireland2019/work/

Open in Excel: Women and Men in Ireland 2019 Table 5.8 (XLS 10KB)

Men worked more hours per week in paid employment in 2018 than in 2008, with the average hours worked per week rising slightly from 39.9 to 40.1 hours.
The number of hours worked by women in paid employment also increased between 2008 and 2018, rising from 31.4 to 32.3 hours.
Two out of every four men worked for 40 hours or more each week (52.8%), compared to just one in four women (24.7%).
The proportion of men working 35 to 39 hours each week dropped from 35.6% in 2008 to 27.1% in 2018, while the proportion of women also dropped from 37.2% to 30.9%.
Conversely, the proportion of men working for 40 hours or more each week rose from 40.7% to 52.8% while the percentage of women working a 40 hour week or longer rose from 16.3% to 24.7%.

iptba · 02-01-2023 3:40am

https://www.independent.ie/business/gender-pay-reports-show-women-lead-in-all-areas-of-law-apart-from-income-42253485.html

Gender pay reports show women lead in all areas of law apart from income

At lucrative partner and equity partner levels, men continue to dominate at biggest firms in the country

[..]

99pc of personal assistants and administrative jobs are held by women.

[..]

Across the organisation the mean (average) pay gap is 4.94pc in favour of women and the median gender gap is 17.55pc weighted towards women.

“The initial findings suggest that the CSSO holds no barrier for the career progression of females and may be viewed as an employer of choice for females both at the clerical and professional levels,” the report notes.

https://www.independent.ie/business/gender-pay-reports-show-women-lead-in-all-areas-of-law-apart-from-income-42253485.html

CSSO = Chief State Solicitors Office

That's not how reports usually describe gender pay gaps when men earn more. I wonder will the report mention ways as to how the gender gap may be narrowed?

My guess is women prefer public sector jobs because the hours are more regular, and other benefits like that.

iptba · 03-01-2023 1:44am

Female employees much less likely to back themselves for new roles, survey finds

https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/female-employees-much-less-likely-to-back-themselves-for-new-roles-survey-finds-42257426.html

Ireland’s male employees are more likely to “back themselves” when it comes to applying for a job, even if they don’t have all the experience and qualifications required, a new workplace wellbeing survey found.

A quarter of female employees in Ireland believe they would need more than 90pc of the experience and qualifications outlined before applying for a new job, while just one in seven men felt the same way.

[..]

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Marian Ryan, Consumer Tax Manager at Taxback.com, said the results suggest that “women are less likely to take a leap of faith when applying to jobs compared to men”.

“Which gives rise to questions like – in the main, are women simply less confident in their abilities? Are they more prone to imposter syndrome?

“When applying to a new role, you need to bear in mind that the job spec is the employer’s wish list. As a manager, I know that I won’t find the person who ticks every single box.

“I am looking for the person with the most potential for the role – perhaps they won’t have certain skills or experience but there’s a good chance that they will be able to bring different attributes to the role and indeed to our business as a whole,” Ms Ryan said.

iptba · 05-01-2023 3:09am

Compulsory pay gap reports reveal the companies in Ireland where women earn more than men

https://www.independent.ie/business/irish/compulsory-pay-gap-reports-reveal-the-companies-in-ireland-where-women-earn-more-than-men-42261047.html

"A CIPD spokesperson said a negative gender pay gap, where women earn on average more than men, happens where women are mainly in well paid roles and there are more men in lower paid operational roles."

Similar to when a pay in favour of women was described as -17.4%.

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She said companies have made a lot of pledges to set targets for female representation at senior or board level, set up employee resource groups, review recent promotions, and examine the take- up of options such as parental leave or flexible work.

“Providing an action plan can reassure employees or prospective recruits that a gender pay gap is being tackled in a meaningful way. The key is to act on these plans and to make progress on the issue to improve workplaces.”

iptba · 05-01-2023 6:23pm

Women earn same as men or more in 12pc of Irish businesses

https://www.independent.ie/business/jobs/women-earn-same-as-men-or-more-in-12pc-of-irish-businesses-42247594.html

At the Irish arm of US-owned steel firm Galco, the latest firm to report under new gender pay legislation, women on average earn 8.5pc more per hour than men.

The figure is due to more women in senior administrative and management positions, Galco said in its 2022 gender pay gap report.

iptba · 11-01-2023 8:17pm

Just reading about Horizon funding from the EU. Applications (such as for research funding) are required to include a “gender equality plan”. I would guess few of these would be about helping men.

iptba · 12-01-2023 5:57am

Average pay for men higher than for women in all but one of 15 Government departments

https://www.irishtimes.com/ireland/social-affairs/2023/01/11/average-pay-for-men-higher-than-women-in-all-but-one-of-15-government-departments

Others, like the Departments of Agriculture and Foreign Affairs note the progress made since 2013 with Agriculture reporting its gap has narrowed from 20.5 per cent to 9.48 per cent and Foreign Affairs saying its gap has more than halved from just over 30 per cent to 13.87 per cent.

Notice the non-neutral language: narrowing the gender pay gap is seen as progress, when it could mean that it is being achieved by gender discrimination (against men)

Some other points I found of interest:

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On the first front, women form a majority of those among the lowest paid quarter of employees in 11 of the 15 departments while men are a majority among the best paid quarter in eight with another, the Department of Health, split 50/50 under this heading.

Women do, however, hold a majority of the very highest level jobs in a number of departments.

One possible interpretation of this set of data is that women are being advantaged/men are being discriminated against when applying for jobs at the highest level

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As in many private companies, several of the departments that provide commentary on their results highlight the greater presence of women among their ranks of part-time workers and their greater participation in “family friendly” initiatives as contributory factors to the results. Although no breakdown is generally provided for the latter, the figures for part-time working are striking with 252 of the 264 part-time workers in Education being women, for instance.

In Agriculture the corresponding figure is 427 of 493, in Enterprise 110 of 124 and in Social Protection 927 of 1,024.

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More than two thirds of staff in the Department of Defence are women but the department’s report indicates that 93 per cent of Defence Forces members and 82 per cent of its support staff are men. It is, is says, implementing policies to recruit more women into the Defence Forces with a current target of 35 per cent woman participation.

Another target for increasing the percentage women workers; we see few if any of these for increasing the percentage of male workers (there are quite a number of sectors where there are more female workers).

Also a target of 35% for the defence forces seems quite high for the type of work involved and working conditions (e.g. long tours abroad in many cases). Indeed many countries only require military service and/or conscription for men because women are considered less suitable (which many feminists consider fair). And in general I think there are few countries where over 35% of the defence forces would be female.

The J Stands for Jay · 12-01-2023 9:18am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120016755#Comment_120016755

That part time stat would imply well paid women go part time, and I'm guessing there's some low paying roles that are part time held by men.

iptba · 12-01-2023 8:11pm

https://www.independent.ie/sport/soccer/roy-barretts-shock-exit-will-open-door-for-gender-balance-but-also-weaken-stephen-kenny-42280419.html

Roy Barrett's shock exit will open door for gender balance but also weaken Stephen Kenny

Aidan Fitzmaurice

Roy Barrett is stepping down as FAI chair. Photo by Harry Murphy / Sportsfile

January 12 2023 02:30 AM

There was shock on the other end of the phone when Roy Barrett began contacting FAI board members late yesterday morning to inform them that he would no longer be the independent chairperson of the association.

Changes at board level were expected this year, with a deadline of December for the FAI – and other sporting bodies – to meet a quota of 40pc of female membership at board level, or else state funding will be cut. Currently, just two members of the 12-person FAI board are female and the Government-mandated target is five.

The exit of Barrett, and fellow director Gary Twohig, just two weeks before a reconvened AGM, is being seen as a bold attempt by the FAI to meet one of their main challenges for the year – that 40pc quota.

iptba · 14-01-2023 3:36am

Two children brought to Ireland by mother against father’s wishes must be returned to home country, judge orders

Children were ‘wrongfully abducted’, despite ongoing childcare proceedings in home country, judge rules

https://www.irishtimes.com/crime-law/courts/2023/01/13/judge-orders-return-of-two-children-brought-to-ireland-by-mother-against-fathers-wishes/

iptba · 16-01-2023 3:41am

Another field looking for more women

‘We want women on the stage’: How TradFest is tackling inequality in Irish music

Diversity is at the heart of this year’s TradFest, which is aiming to right the wrongs of the past

https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/music/2023/01/14/we-want-women-on-the-stage-how-tradfest-is-tackling-inequality-in-irish-music

iptba · 19-01-2023 9:01pm

This is a largely sympathetic article to men and boys.

https://www.independent.ie/opinion/comment/we-should-drop-the-phrase-toxic-masculinity-and-find-positive-ways-to-let-boys-be-boys-42294653.html

We should drop the phrase ‘toxic masculinity’ and find positive ways to let boys be boys

by

Mary Kenny

[..]

Is there an answer to this problem? Yes, says Reeves. Education should give boys an extra year in school. There should be more “hands-on” vocational education and practical apprenticeships. There should be more male teachers. Men have been stigmatised by the paedophile issue – Reeves’s own son met with suspicion as a children’s carer.

Feminists have encouraged Reeves in his quest to help boys – because they are worried about their sons. It’s not about reversing the gains of feminism, but of addressing the problems of young males growing up, and of helping them find a role in the contemporary world.

Arguably, the problem has always existed. Going back to the Renaissance period, Florentine courtiers were teaching chivalry as part of a programme to civilise the more uncouth tendencies of young males.

Reeves says we should also drop this phrase “toxic masculinity”, which appeared around 2015. There’s nothing wrong with being masculine. It’s a matter of shaping the masculine characteristics in a positive way and of understanding the development of boys’ brains, which are slower to mature than those of girls.

Violent men – 95pc of homicides, globally, are carried out by men – should be penalised, deterred and restrained. But maybe we need to find ways of letting boys be boys, too, in the best sense of the word.

iptba · 20-01-2023 1:50am

https://www.independent.ie/business/jobs/revealed-the-firms-that-failed-to-file-gender-pay-gap-reports-42297522.html

Revealed: the firms that failed to file gender pay-gap reports

National Women’s Council calls for sanctions against companies that do not comply

iptba · 21-01-2023 1:55am

Crisis level of violence against women leads to urgent demands for review of homicides

Human rights watchdog tells Government ‘zero tolerance’ required to deal with emergency

The IHREC has called for decisive Government action to bring down the alarming level of violence against women and girls

https://www.independent.ie/news/crisis-level-of-violence-against-women-leads-to-urgent-demands-for-review-of-homicides-42300982.html

“Violence against women has reached crisis levels in Ireland,” said Sinéad Gibney, the chief commissioner with the IHREC. “The State is obliged to do everything in its power to keep women and girls safe inour communities and in our homes.

“This means a zero-tolerance culture towards all forms of men’s violence against women, ranging from verbal abuse to domestic homicide.”

I have a concern that when things are claimed to be at crisis levels ill thought out or disproportionate measures can be brought in

iptba · 21-01-2023 4:26am

I've seen headlines recently like

"Talks taking place on enhanced support after mounting intimidation, particularly towards women TDs"

There are similarly in the UK was talk that women politicians were at the receiving end of more abusive messages. But the research didn't necessarily back that up

e.g.

https://demos.co.uk/press-release/demos-male-celebrities-receive-more-abuse-on-twitter-than-women-2/

– Analysis of 2 million tweets exposes gender breakdown of online abuse as Demos publish report into how social media research can reveal public attitudes

– 1 in every 20 tweets sent to male celebrities includes abuse, with the majority of attacks posted by men

– Female journalists and male politicians more likely to feel brunt of Twitter attacks

An analysis of 2 million tweets by the think tank Demos reveals that male public figures are several times more likely than women to receive abuse on Twitter.

The think-tank analysed 2,006,616 tweets over a two-week period that were sent to a selection of the most prominent and widely-followed public figures on Twitter.

The study included celebrities, politicians, journalists and musicians

– specifically chosen to ensure an equal number – roughly one million

– were aimed at each gender.

It found:

– 2.54% of the tweets containing the @ username of male public figures contained abuse, compared to only 0.95% of the tweets received by prominent women.

– Over 1 in 20 (5.19%) of the tweets sent to male celebrities included abuse, compared with 1 in 70 (1.37%) aimed at female celebrities.

– Journalism is the only category where women received more abuse than men, with female journalists and TV news presenters receiving roughly three times as much abuse as their male counterparts.

iptba · 22-01-2023 2:24am

The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission have an advertorial in the Irish Times today (I came across it via a Facebook ad).

The true value of care

“Minimal” shift in our culture of care despite the fact that women are on the whole educated and employed in higher numbers than ever before

blob:https://www.boards.ie/d9555ca5-d2b6-4546-b3d2-11f79fe8a090

The true value of care

irishtimes.com

As usual with this sort of body, this gender equality campaign is focused on highlighting issues from a woman’s perspective/helping women.

It includes:

“Meanwhile maintenance is based on the material needs of the child, with no recognition of that lost income that is a result of caring for your child. Women need to be compensated for the hours they spend caring and cannot work.”

22-01-2023 3:30am

As a woman (born with uterus) I never allow uncalled-for slights against men who unanswered on social media. In my experience men & women are far more alike than disparate in nature, with exceptions. Those exceptions are the narcissists, male & female.

iptba · 26-01-2023 3:04am

Boys seduced by Andrew Tate’s bombastic shtick would do well to listen instead to Blindboy

https://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/2023/01/24/why-influencers-like-andrew-tate-want-your-sons-attention

Author is Dr Debbie Ging is associate professor of digital media and gender at Dublin City University

—

A comment on Facebook gives this extra info:

Dr Debbie Gina's special interests are Gender, sexuality and gender politics online. Digital feminism, toxic masculinity, incel 'communities', online radicalisation, online misogyny and hate speech.

I know very little about Andrew Tate, not someone I have been impressed with but I don’t know much to say much with certainty.

But the article goes on to mention lots of other elements of the manosphere that seem quite different e.g. pick-up artists are very different from general men’s rights activists or Jordan Peterson (also mentioned).

From what I can make out, the only men she recommends men should listen to are feminists.

iptba · 28-01-2023 1:40am

https://www.irishtimes.com/politics/2023/01/27/warning-of-funding-cuts-for-sports-organisations-that-fail-to-increase-number-of-women-on-boards/

Which sports bodies have the best – and worst – representation of women on boards?

Sport organisations urged to ‘redouble’ efforts to meet minimum 40% target for female representation by end of 2023

[..]

The Government has previously mooted cuts in State funding of up to 50 per cent, with lower penalties for organisations that are close to the 40 per cent target.

[..]

Other organisations will struggle to meet the target. Snooker & Billiards Ireland (SBI) currently has no women on its board. The women’s game is under the remit of the Republic of Ireland Ladies Snooker Association (RILSA).

[..]

She told The Irish Times that diverse boards in the corporate and sports worlds are “better performing” because it “brings diversity of thought and it prevents group-thinking”.

—-

Group-thinking doesn’t seem like a good thing and diversity of thought seems a worthy aim but I wonder does gender balance bring this about. Also often feminists don’t seem to want diverse opinions, indeed they can be actively opposed to people who don’t tow the feminist line. And can be quick to shut down men.

iptba · 28-01-2023 2:11am

https://www.irishtimes.com/your-money/2023/01/26/the-real-reasons-why-women-get-paid-less-than-men

The real reasons why women get paid less than menSmart Money: Male and female graduates get roughly the same pay when they enter the workforce, but not for long

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Delving further into the data, the study finds that weekly earnings for women fall by almost 27 per cent in the years immediately following the birth of their first child and remain low even eight years later. There is no evidence of a similar drop for men who become fathers. So comparing mothers to fathers, the researchers estimate a motherhood pay penalty of 27 per cent overall – with roughly similar results for graduates of the different disciplines studied. (The gap was 25 per cent in business and law, 23.2 per cent in Stem subjects and 28.8 per cent for other graduates.)

—-

The results show that in general around half the fall-off in pay is due to reduced hours worked by mothers in the year after childbirth, with many opting to work part-time.

—-

iptba · 29-01-2023 1:36am

€5,000 gender discrimination award for architect over ‘toxic male-only culture’ complaint is overturned

Court questions why ‘eminently practical advice’ about what to wear on site visit would be ‘indicative of a male-oriented culture’

https://www.irishtimes.com/business/work/2023/01/27/labour-court-overturns-5000-award-for-architect-after-male-culture-discrimination-case

iptba · 02-02-2023 1:25am

https://www.irishtimes.com/media/2023/01/31/nuj-condemns-social-media-abuse-towards-irish-times-journalists

He added: “The sharp increase in social media attacks on female journalists is especially worrying and gives rise to grave concern.”

Éanna Ó Caollaí and Conn O Midheach, on behalf of The Irish Times chapel, or office branch, expressed solidarity with their colleagues.

They said: “We join in condemning these attacks. Irish Times journalists will not tolerate intimidation from any quarter. It is not acceptable to abuse workers for doing their job. Attacks on women journalists are all too prevalent and this behaviour cannot be

tolerated.”

I wonder if rigorous was done whether there actually are more attacks on female journalists. I’ve highlighted before some data showing male public figures get more abuse.

iptba · 02-02-2023 3:36am

I see that the Garda fitness test has less stringent thresholds for women

https://www.irishtimes.com/health/your-fitness/2023/02/01/how-hard-is-the-garda-fitness-test-two-irish-times-reporters-take-up-the-challenge/

iptba · 05-02-2023 12:01am

Irish director’s all-male Beckett play cancelled as only men could audition

He considered casting people of other genders, but did not do so because of rules set down by the playwright

https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/stage/2023/02/04/irish-directors-all-male-beckett-play-cancelled-as-only-men-could-audition

This was in the Netherlands. I saw someone on Facebook wonder whether men would be allowed apply for a women’s sports team in the same university.

iptba · 05-02-2023 3:46am

Sympathetic:

In the debate on masculinity, we should not overlook men’s role in society

Minnie Mooney

https://www.independent.ie/opinion/comment/in-the-debate-on-masculinity-we-should-not-overlook-mens-role-in-society-42327331.html

In his book, The Boy Crisis, Warren Farrell asks: “Why are we so blind to the boy crisis?” He describes a “gender empathy gap”, stating that, to survive, society has learned to see boys as more disposable than girls. The gender empathy gap enables us to overlook when men and boys are struggling.

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You need only scroll through Twitter for five minutes to see why young men are feeling disaffected. Those who posted the hashtag “not all men” in response to the feminist movement in 2021 are labelled as idiots and misogynists.

---

It ends:

You are either sexist or you aren’t, regardless of your victim. It’s too easy to assume male privilege alleviates men of hardship, but that’s not the reality. Many are struggling.

Society has been making recent (and long overdue) efforts to uplift minority voices, such as those in the LGBTQ+ and black communities. We should celebrate this, but we must be wary of Farrell’s gender empathy gap and make every effort to ensure we do not overlook men.

To do so would be detrimental not only to them, but to us all.

BrianD3 · 05-02-2023 12:15pm

Wasn't sure where to put this but did anyone see the interview Beth Rigby (sky news) did with Mike Pompeo, former US Secretary of State under Trump. Interview was more or less as you'd expect. Rigby was quite formal and repeatedly addressed him as Sir.

Then at the end, she complimented him on his appearance and having lost weight! Maybe it was agreed in advance but it seemed odd. Not a mention of it on Twitter or anywhere online. Now, if a male journalist commented on say, Kamala Harris' weight, even to compliment her, I think we all know what would happen.

iptba · 06-02-2023 1:46am

https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/defence-forces-to-undergo-training-in-gender-and-diversity-bias-after-report-raised-concerns-about-masculine-culture-42327433.html

Defence Forces to undergo training in gender and diversity bias after report raised concerns about ‘masculine culture’

I’m left wondering whether if not done well whether focusing on such issues too much could affect a military’s effectiveness.

iptba · 07-02-2023 1:27am

https://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/2023/02/04/jennifer-oconnell-why-is-the-government-perpetuating-tropes-about-single-male-asylum-seekers

Jennifer O’Connell: Why is the Government perpetuating tropes about single male asylum seekers?

The ‘military-age men’ idea is a well-worn trope of right-wing rhetoric, and our politicians have fallen into the dangerous trap of reinforcing it

It’s an interesting topic. But this article isn’t really particularly sympathetic to men. Quite a number of women’s groups have been sharing it on Twitter and its talk that men known to women make up most of the people who harm them. And so many of these are Irish rather than migrants. No mention of any crimes or misdeeds committed by women.

iptba · 07-02-2023 2:25am

‘A sweet victory for all mná’: Why we should celebrate St Brigid's Day

"The first question, however, is not so much how we will celebrate, but whom? Revered saint or pagan goddess? Or both?"

https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/people/arid-41062703.html

I haven't consumed much media content on St Brigid's Day but based on this article it looks like it could be another day like International Women's Day with a focus on celebrating women. This is nothing like how St Patrick's Day has been celebrated.

Extract:

It was interesting that Brigit 2022, the excellent festival inaugurated last year by Alison Gilliland, then Lord Mayor of Dublin, opted to focus on the goddess Brigit — note the ‘t’ — who is associated with creativity and wisdom, and Imbolc, the beginning of spring. Her aim was to provide the space and opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate the contributions and achievements of women — all women. It was a city-wide initiative. It was free and it was a roaring success.

The festival, which is running again this year, also gives us some idea of the shape of St Brigid’s Day celebrations to come.

There are talks, walks, readings, tours and the now-familiar lighting up of buildings with images of Brigid — saint and goddess — and other inspirational women.

The theme of ‘inspiring women’ is a thread that runs through many of the events that have marked St Brigid’s Day up to now, and that fits with several of those planned for next week.

But there is so much more. A cursory glance at the programme for Brigid 1500, which will mark the 1,500th anniversary of the saint’s death in 2024, shows that this is a public holiday with dizzying potential.

There will be a Herstory light show, a GAA blitz, a celebration of women artists, another celebrating women in business, cross-making workshops, singing, music, poetry. And that is just a partial list. It goes to show that there is widespread interest in our new public holiday and the woman/women who inspired it.

iptba · 11-02-2023 3:37am

Sounds like 2 male gardai were afraid to make her leave presumably because she was a woman.

https://www.rte.ie/news/2023/0210/1355888-enoch-burke

Secondary school teacher, Enoch Burke and his sister, Ammi were removed from a courtroom by gardai, after a High Court judge said he would not allow the business of the court to be disrupted by them.

[..]

When proceedings resumed around an hour later. Mr Burke attempted to continue addressing the court. The judge said he would not allow the business of the court to be disrupted and asked gardai to remove Mr Burke.

Two gardai then took Mr Burke by the arms and escorted him from the courtroom, telling him he could take a seat outside but could not come back in.

Mr Burke said it was a "disgrace" and he had a right to be heard. He stood looking in through the glass door of court number three, accompanied by a garda.

Ammi Burke remained in court and refused to leave despite being asked multiple times by the two members of An Garda Síochána.

She told the gardaí as well as lawyers in court that guards should not be directing her to leave, that the judge was fleeing the courtroom and it was a disgrace.

She asked "Where is Judge Brian O’Moore" and asked why he was hiding and what he was afraid of.

Ms Burke was then removed from the courtroom with the assistance of another, female garda.

iptba · 11-02-2023 3:42am

A 61-year-old sales director who was pressured to leave his job because his boss didn’t want “a team of bald-headed 50-year-old men,” has won £71,000 (€80,000) in discrimination related damages.

Mark Jones was victorious in a tribunal after Leeds-based Tango Network, the mobile phone firm he worked for, “chipped away” to encourage him to leave his £60,000-a-year role.

The Leeds court heard manager Philip Hesketh, himself a bald middle-aged man, had complained about workplace diversity saying he didn’t want “mirror images” of himself.

https://www.independent.ie/world-news/payout-for-man-61-targeted-in-office-cull-of-bald-men-despite-full-head-of-hair-42336851.html

Deregos. · 11-02-2023 3:55am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120227371#Comment_120227371

https://youtu.be/IVe4_SPLFJA

. . .

iptba · 15-02-2023 1:33am

There may be pros to this but a con is that a plaintiff (often a man) couldn’t represent themselves and legal representation is very expensive.

I don’t know much about the legal system: would this apply to family courts?

https://www.irishtimes.com/politics/2023/02/14/cabinet-to-discuss-plans-to-protect-vulnerable-witnesses-in-coercive-control-and-stalking-cases

Cabinet to discuss plans to protect vulnerable witnesses in coercive control and stalking cases

Expanded trial protections would prohibit those accused of coercive control from personally cross-examining victim or child

iptba · 18-02-2023 10:29pm

Richard Hogan: Masculinity is not what Andrew Tate says it is

https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/people/arid-41072261.html

“He tells young boys that women are naturally hypergamous, only interested in alpha males who exude traditional masculine attributes such as competitiveness and aggression”

The empirical data seems to suggest that women still have a tendency to be financially hypergamous.

iptba · 20-02-2023 1:07am

Not a big point but caught a little bit of “The week in politics” on RTE. A female politician said “we need more women in politics”. The female presenter (Aine Lawlor I believe) said “yes”. Presenters in political programmes are supposed to be neutral but this is the first time I’ve heard a presenter agree or support a claim like this.

iptba · 21-02-2023 1:34am

I was impressed by this article in the Irish Times:

Amongst women: Why are there so few men in caring roles?

What’s it like to work in a women-dominated profession? A nurse, SNA, drama teacher, childcare worker and occupational therapist share their experiences

https://www.irishtimes.com/health/2023/02/11/amongst-women-why-are-there-so-few-men-in-caring-roles

In the age of equality, anything men can do, women can do too. It’s a message we rightly sing loud and clear to our daughters and young women, as we encourage them to consider the endless job opportunities open to them, rather than following traditional gendered career paths.

But does the situation apply in reverse? Are we providing a similar, clear message to our sons and young men that they too can be anything they want to be? Caring roles, in particular, continue to be women-dominated; only about one in 10 nursing students are male, for example. If there’s noise being made to encourage more men into these professions, it’s barely audible.

Men bring a “different perspective to nursing”, McBrien believes. “Sometimes I think men can be even more caring than a woman can be.”

He admits that working in a women-dominated environment can be challenging at times. “Men don’t tend to hold grudges… The bitchiness type of thing. Talking in small groups. Not allowing men into the group. Talking about female subjects and not involving the man… In the earlier part of my career I found that very difficult.”

Carrying out intimate procedures on women, such as catheterisations, can make him “uncomfortable”, he says. He also feels there can be a power struggle occasionally, due to the gender-heavy nature of the profession. “Because there’s an awful a lot of women in the managerial area within hospitals and hospital groups, they can be a little resistant to men getting into those roles.”

According to the National College of Ireland, just one per cent of early childhood educators in Ireland are male. The average across Europe is 3 per cent.

“Many of the children who come to the creche may have no interactions with men in their lives, apart from the men who work in the creche. It is important for children to get both male and female interaction during their development.”

OT:

While he says he has never received any negative comments in relation to his career choice because of his gender, Turner did experience different treatment as a student. “While on placement, it was suggested to me that I should get my hair cut as it was too long and needed a tidy up. I’m not sure if a female student would have been asked to do this.”

Turner believes there are huge benefits to having men work in occupational therapy. “Relationship problems, self-esteem issues and views on health can often be gender-specific,” he says.

“Men are often reluctant to talk about their problems... It can be easier for them to do so with a male practitioner. Also, occupational therapists often help men and women to re-engage with meaningful activities, and this can require an element of “doing” with clients. As a male occupational therapist I have assisted people re-engage in many activities including some that would be commonly engaged in by men such as football, wood crafts and DIY. While a female occupational therapist could have also carried out this work, I believe some male clients responded well to doing it with a male occupational therapist.”

“I can’t remember how many times other staff members have said to me it’s great to have a male SNA in the school, as it can give balance to the classroom. It is really important that children have positive male role models around them in a school setting. While the number of male SNAs is growing, you can never have enough

Cullen believes that seeing men involved in drama encourages boys to continue with it for longer. “I have noticed that a lot more of my male students keep up their drama classes into their teens, and I think it’s because they see a role model who has been able to continue a career in drama.”

iptba · 24-02-2023 1:28am

The term ‘fridget’ was around back when I was in school, but kids are still using it as an insult today

Bill Linnane

https://www.independent.ie/life/family/parenting/the-term-fridget-was-around-back-when-i-was-in-school-but-kids-are-still-using-it-as-an-insult-today-42353510.html

But this is masculinity; so much of the uglier side of it is generated by our need to fit in with other men. I’m not saying men can’t be toxic weirdos when on our own, but in packs we engage in behaviour towards the opposite sex that is largely motivated by our need to demonstrate to other men just how manly we are; it doesn’t matter if it’s cat calls from the scaffolds or bants from a gaggle of lads down the pub, we are often far worse in groups than alone.

This may be true to an extent. But yet again it is concentrating on the negative aspects of masculinity (towards the opposite sex).

iptba · 24-02-2023 3:07am

Not new, not from Ireland (unlike most of my recent posts) but I thought it was worth a mention:

Brauer College in Warrnambool makes boys apologise on behalf of their gender to female peers at school assembly

A mother has spoken about her horror after boys as young as 12 were forced to apologise for their gender at a school assembly.

https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/parenting/school-life/brauer-college-in-warrnambool-makes-boys-apologise-on-behalf-of-their-gender-to-female-peers-at-school-assembly/news-story/8ce7f85594ef3cbca4e9072d4126dec9

“He’s upset by it – he now has this misconception that everybody looks at him and males as predators or somebody wishing to do harm to someone in a sexualised manner – seriously, he’s 12.”

—-

One Snapchat post, understood to be by a male student at the school, also took aim at the assembly saying: “Today at Brauer they made every guy stand up and apologise to every girl for rape, sexual assault. so on.”

“Guys go through as much **** as girls do,” the post said.

iptba · 25-02-2023 2:37am

For what it is worth:

Female trolls — usually happily married mums — can be the worst offenders for misogynistic abuse

Tanya Sweeney

—-

“Later, [Andrea] Gilligan revealed that 95pc of the negative comments come from women — 95pc! “The bitching messages I receive, the majority of them are from women,” she has said. “In my view, people are more used to giving their opinion now publicly, and then they reckon everything’s a free-for-all. They reckon they can say whatever they want, to whomever they want.”

—-

In 2016, British think-tank Demos looked at 10,000 tweets over a three-week period from 6,500 unique users, and found that half of the misogynistic tweets were posted by women.

iptba · 28-02-2023 10:52pm

Jobs website Indeed will give 26 weeks’ paid leave to dads for first time

The benefit will replace maternity leave and will be given to all staff, regardless of gender

https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/news/jobs-website-indeed-will-give-26-weeks-paid-leave-to-dads-for-first-time-42362214.html

iptba · 01-03-2023 1:52am

Gender pay gap widest in finance and construction sectors, report finds

Analysis revealed a mean gender pay gap of 12.6% across the organisations that published reports in December

https://www.irishtimes.com/business/2023/02/28/gender-pay-gap-widest-in-finance-and-construction-sectors-report-finds

The PwC report examined the actions Irish companies are taking to improve their gender pay gap, and considered what companies should do to prepare for the future.

This is where the equality angle kicks in: companies are being pressured to discriminate against men from now on.

iptba · 02-03-2023 3:52pm

Here's the latest batch of gender-related hashtags/items I have noticed trending for anyone interested (I know some are not)

(Aside: I'm not on Twitter 24/7 of course and don't look back at lists for when I wasn't on)

I also threw in some other posts as I didn't want to post too frequently.

Nicola Sturgeon warned over plans for ‘feminist foreign policy’The first minister is determined to bolster Scotland’s profile and activities around the world, despite foreign policy being reserved to Westminster

#SaveWomensSports

Didn't trend but I thought I would mention:

Irish Independent e-mail bulletin:

Tribe ransom

Seventy tourists including women and children are being held hostage by a tribe furious at constant oil spills in their section of the Amazon Rainforest. The detained tourists include disabled people, women and children, believed to be from the US, Spain, France, the UK and Switzerland.

#AskHerToStand

#WomanFace

#VAWG

[=violence against women and girls]

women's hour

#WomenWontWheesht

#genderequality

#LetWomenSpeak

#WomenWontSubmit

#LabourLosingWomen

Didn’t trend but I thought I would mention

International Day Of #WomenInScience?

#MaternalImprisonment

Irish Penal Reform Trust @IPRT

Today IPRT is hosting an event launching our new report - Maternal Imprisonment in Ireland: A Scoping Study. The report examines the experiences of mothers imprisoned in Ireland & of their children, and makes recommendations to reduce the harm caused. #MaternalImprisonment

Twitter ad

We're seeking women from all professional backgrounds to join our rapidly growing association. Apply now to join the International Society of Female Professionals

https://twitter.com/isfpofficial/status/1601728454604505095?s=46&t=9B1pvftgYudxBZrla6Kd-w

Without greater equality in terms of unpaid work, greater gender equality in the labour market is unlikely to be achieved.

https://twitter.com/_ihrec/status/1611327241828421636?s=43&t=LUySo74MBYjHsOBG0l7XLQ

VSO Ireland

In Kenya, people are facing severe hunger due to extreme weather. Without urgent help, mothers cannot grow enough food to feed their children or earn a living. VSO volunteers teach women how to grow new drought-resistant crops. Donate €25 to help mothers feed their families.

https://twitter.com/VSOIreland/status/1618919952580231168?s=20&t=YHiVT4Dr46cIJgovgkTx_w

iptba · 04-03-2023 2:49am

https://www.independent.ie/opinion/comment/eight-of-our-13-university-presidents-are-women-why-did-it-take-us-so-long-to-reverse-our-gender-bias-42367610.html

Eight of our 13 university presidents are women – why did it take us so long to reverse our gender bias?

—-

A recent HEA review reported significant progress on several levels since 2016, but said experience had not been uniform in relation to all indicators or across the higher education landscape.

It wants each institution to publish a gender equality action plan. It also wants a national strategy to address the precarious nature of academic employment.

They basically want discrimination plans.

It ends:

Maynooth president Professor Eeva Leinonen will discuss the changed landscape with her female colleagues at a conference in the university on Monday, March 6. She said the universities of the future need a diversity of perspectives, missions and leaders.

An all-woman meeting. If it was deliberately all-male, there would likely be a furore.

iptba · 04-03-2023 3:07am

https://www.independent.ie/opinion/comment/were-all-at-the-mercy-of-aggressive-male-drivers-but-my-n-plates-seem-to-bring-out-the-worst-in-them-42364825.html

We’re all at the mercy of aggressive male drivers, but my N-plates seem to bring out the worst in them

We don’t tend to see women talked about like this in national newspapers.

While there are doubtless careless and incompetent female drivers out there, it hasn’t escaped my attention that the aggressive, in-a-hurry-somewhere drivers I have encountered have been men. That’s just my own personal experience. I’ll leave you the statistic gathered last October by the British road safety charity Brake, that revealed male drivers are three times more likely to be in road collisions with pedestrians than women. The 2012 figures gathered by the Road Safety Authority in Ireland showed 5,575 male drivers were involved in fatal/injury collisions, compared to 2,816 female drivers that same year.)

People shouldn’t injure themselves and others on the roads. But those figures don’t show women are safer drivers: you need to control for distance travelled. Men tend to (i) drive more as a career (ii) commute longer distances with work and (iii) drive more when a male and female couple go out.

iptba · 06-03-2023 3:49am

I've seen but not read quite a lot of articles on women including lists of prominent Irish women past and present in advance of International Women's Day.

Here's one example:

The changemakers: Meet the women working to make Ireland a better place

https://www.independent.ie/life/the-changemakers-meet-the-women-working-to-make-ireland-a-better-place-42368384.html

We don't tend to see similar lists of "men working to make Ireland a better place"

Mens Rights Thread

Comments

Ireland: Employment by usual hours worked

“Minimal” shift in our culture of care despite the fact that women are on the whole educated and employed in higher numbers than ever before

Analysis revealed a mean gender pay gap of 12.6% across the organisations that published reports in December