(22 April 2010) On 15 April, the EPSU’s Women and Gender Equality Committee (WGEC) elected for the positions of chair, Gloria Mills, UNISON Equalities Secretary, UK, and of vice-chair, Cristina Iftimescu, SANITAS Vice-President and President of the union’s women’s organization, Romania.
Gloria Mills is a vice-chair of the ETUC women’s Committee and former chair of the PSI European Women’s Committee. Cristina Iftimescu is a member of the EPSU executive Committee.
Both are members of the PSI’s World Women’s Committee.
The new chairing team has the breadth and depth of experience to promote a clear vision for public services and gender equality and support the committee in achieving the goals set out by EPSU Congress.
“Through Europe, we must strive for the inclusion of an equality clause in public contracts in accordance with EU legislation. A revision of the equal pay directive would also help make progress.” says Gloria Mills.
“We must work through our unions and in cooperation with the public authorities to eradicate the pay gap and undervaluation of women’s work, especially in women-dominated sectors”, adds Cristina Iftimescu.
In cooperation with the Executive Committee and sectoral committees, the WGEC will work in the following areas: mainstreaming further equal pay in the work of EPSU, as part of the collective bargaining network, improving women’s representation in EPSU and its affiliates, monitoring the impact of the crisis on public services and developing policy on multiple discriminations. The implications for gender equality of the Internal Market Test that is increasingly being used by the Commission in all areas including healthcare deserve close scrutiny.
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