B e r n a d e t t e B r e r e t o n , D a v i d G e t t y , V e r a v a n d e r V e l d e n L y o n s
School of Business and Humanities, Dundalk Institute of Technology, Ireland
SOME ISSUES SURROUNDING EDUCATION AND
TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES FOR LONE MOTHERS
INNORTHERN IRELAND AND THE REPUBLIC OF IRELAND
ABSTRACT
Gender, in particular as it relates to the Irish constitution and Irish Law, is contested and com-plex, encompassing issues of national identity, religious values and sovereignty. Th ese issues have a strong impact on education and training opportunities for lone mothers. Signifi cant policy changes have taken place in the last decade with a view to creating a more equal soci-ety. Yet, this paper argues that gendered assumptions surrounding lone mothers’ position with regard to employment, training and education remain. Society’s traditional assumption of “suitable employment for women” is not a thing of the past. Th erefore, while education is one means of empowering lone mothers and freeing them from the poverty trap, it does not ad-dress the deep-rooted structural inequalities women face. Th is is mainly due to paid employ-ment remaining a vulnerable area in relation to gender equality. Th is is particularly visible in the current economic climate. In March 2009, the ILO warned that the gender impact of the global recession is felt harder by females than males in terms of unemployment rates. Th is confi rms the view that women are still more vulnerable than men in the labour market, which highlights the pressing need for action rather than words in relation to the existing gender equality policies. Furthermore, this paper argues that lone mothers who remain at home caring for their children should be valued and not face automatic poverty. Th is can only be done through some form of fi nancial security, not by being pushed into paid employment.
Key words:
gender, poverty, lone mothers, education, training
1. Introduction
Before examining lone mothers’ education and training opportunities in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, it is important to examine the relationship between lone mothers and the welfare state. Th e diff erences between the types of welfare regimes identifi ed by Danish sociologist Gosta Esping-Andersen are sig-nifi cant and his notion of welfare regimes is helpful in promoting comparative study because it opens up the possibility of identifying a range of diff erent features and processes that come together to form particular national regimes. However, the work of feminist academics in highlighting weaknesses in Esping-Andersen’s typology1 is also important as they examine the ways that welfare states act as powerful ideological forces with the ability to shift normative frameworks through privatising what are in fact social problems, such as poverty.
Governments argue that a shift has taken place in political circles from patho-logical explanations of poverty to acknowledging the structural causes of poverty. UK and Irish policy makers, infl uenced by EU forces, have assured the public that measures have been put in place to tackle poverty. However, now both states fi nd themselves in a recession and the pressure for short-term fi nancial support is in-tense. Yet, the need for a long-term strategy must not lose its focus when dealing with the complexity of the issues surrounding poverty.
2. Poverty and Gender
When researching education and training needs of lone mothers in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, one aspect is striking; namely the high levels of poverty among lone mothers, compared to married or co-habiting mothers. Th e connection between lone motherhood and poverty can only be understood by reviewing our understanding of the issue of poverty.
1 P. Taylor-Gooby, Welfare State Regimes and Welfare Citizenship, “Journal of European Social Policy” 1991, Vol. 1, No. 2, p. 93, 101, 105; R. Lister, Citizenship Feminist Perspective, Basingstoke 2003, p. 6, 23, 152, 192, 194.
Women have experienced signifi cant social and political changes since the 1960s in the Republic of Ireland. Th e increased secularisation of Irish society, the industrialising economy and gender equality reforms have increased women’s par-ticipation in the labour force. In 1961 women accounted for just twenty six per-cent of the total workforce; in 2008 this fi gure was 60%.
However, many challenges remain. Th is is because, despite national and inter-national gender equality commitments through legislation, policies and laws, the traditional assumption of female dependence on men is still the underlying factor, which translates into women’s structurally unequal position in society today.
Furthermore, lone mothers are more likely than any other social group to be living in fi nancial poverty as well as time poverty, yet offi cial ungendered language ignores these gender inequalities. Women have diff erent lived experiences to men. Consequently, social policies, which are written in gender-neutral language, have diff erent eff ects for men and women. Policy makers need to evaluate gender dif-ferences within social policies.
We must also examine the eff ects of British and Irish welfare regimes on the public world of employment. Gender discrepancies in the labour market continue to refl ect the value that is placed on a woman’s work. Furthermore, unpaid work is an area greatly overlooked and undervalued. Women take up most unpaid respon-sibilities such as caring for their children or elderly parents. Th ese responsibilities, which are vital to any healthy society, do not enable greater legal, economic, or decision-making powers. In fact, because of the large time burden involved in undertaking these domestic duties, women have less time available to them com-pared to their male counterparts with this ‘time poverty’ limiting women’s oppor-tunities.
Save the Children2 stresses the need for the provision of more training oppor-tunities for parents who need to increase their skills, concluding that the central goal of government policy should include a strategy that “supports a wider range of education, training and employment options for lone parents aimed at meeting their career aspirations and improving their fi nancial returns from employment”.
However, improving educational opportunities for lone parents is not enough. One has to address ‘deep-rooted’ problems experienced by disadvantaged sections of society by changing social policies further. “Public policy has yet to adopt and implement a consistent anti-poverty approach as a core policy concern”3.
2 Save the Children, Policy Briefi ng, Measuring Severe Child Poverty in the UK, London 2010, p. 4. 3 M. Cousins, Welfare Policy and Poverty, Dublin 2007, p. 321.
We suggest that promoting gender equality is about more than focusing on gender inequality based on poverty and income or access to resources. When ana-lysing gender, policies should also be refl ective of social relations. “Focusing on the gender dimension of poverty is far more than simply producing statistics on the situation of men and, especially, on women. Th e structural causes of female and male poverty and social exclusion are to be found in the complex interaction be-tween social change, changing gender identities and gendered processes in the labour market, welfare systems and households”4. Th e promotion of life-long learn-ing to enable women to participate in trainlearn-ing and education can make a consider-able contribution to social and economic empowerment. However, educating and training women does not result in securing a gender equal society. UK and Irish welfare models continue to be based on the male-breadwinner model, which result in grave negative consequences for women. Th erefore, endorsing gender equality awareness is vital in the quest to securing a gender equal society. Gender stereo-types can be challenged and gender awareness increased through education at school, media coverage as well as government organisations’ involvement.
3. Education and training
Welfare-to-work policies and initiatives assume that people are ready to return to work. Education and training courses are part of these welfare-to-work policies, yet this study concludes that this approach ignores deep-seated problems. Th e majority of training courses taken up by lone mothers are gender biased. It is ar-gued that participants will be able to take a job with reasonably fl exible hours. However, in the main, these jobs are lowly-paid. Childcare is another problem that remains an issue for lone mothers wishing to return to education and subsequent employment. Furthermore, the term ‘working age’ carries numerous competing assumptions and generalisations which feed into the gender debate. We see there-fore that a satisfactory ‘work-family’ balance is not a given when returning to work and neither is the promise of fi nancial rewards.
In the UK and the Republic of Ireland, the complexity of the benefi ts system in both states has resulted in many lone mothers being unsure as to what their entitle-ments are and whether or not taking up education or training opportunities will actually prove to be fi nancially worthwhile.
Economic fl uctuations aff ecting a country’s wealth and stability are closely re-lated to policy decision making. Escalating costs and unemployment have resulted in continuing economic reform taking priority over social reform. Despite govern-ment reassurances that minority groups will get extra help to protect them from the current economic downturn, it is unsure whether social policy initiatives and decision making processes will continue to fall victim to government cut-backs. An example of this can already be found in the Republic of Ireland where the Early Childcare Supplement was abolished at the end of 2009. Th e age criteria for the children’s allowance have also been tightened. Th is has a direct aff ect on many lone mothers who rely on supplements to take care of childcare arrangements when in education, training or employment. In relation to Northern Ireland, we are also concerned that the current economic downturn pushes low-income fam-ilies further into poverty.
We believe that instead of making cutbacks to the existing budget and consid-ering radical departures from established policies, education as well as personal development and skills enhancement training for lone mothers should be top of both governments’ agenda. Th is would be a positive step towards ensuring true empowerment, respect and equality for lone mothers. Both governments should address structural inequalities by starting to improve or introduce services to make education and training more accessible and attainable and less gender-biased. Th ese services range from improved transport services to greater investment in childcare. Of vital importance too is a ‘one-stop-shop’, which is accessible and ap-proachable and has the capability to supply lone parents with a variety of non-prejudicial services and advice. Policy makers need to focus on two areas in par-ticular, namely accessibility and incentives, in order to make training, education and employment an attractive option for lone mothers.
4. Empirical Work
Th e purpose of our study was to obtain an account of real-life experiences of lone mothers, in particular in relation to education and training needs. Choosing meth-ods that best supported this aim was an intricate task, requiring extensive prepara-tion and study. Th ree areas were detailed. Th ese included the importance of net-working, practical preparation as well as profound subject knowledge.
In order to examine these three areas, the research methodology applied to this study included fi rstly, an analysis of secondary sources of data i.e. relevant pub-lished research material, government publications, journals, academic
disserta-tions, newspaper articles, conference events and websites, fact fi les and annual reports published by lone parent and poverty organisations in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Secondly, to obtain a personal account of experiences of lone mothers in relation to training and education, primary data was obtained through in-depth, semi-structured interviews, focus groups and discussions.
We were keen to stress the importance of individualism in relation to lone motherhood and education and training needs. Lone mothers are not a homoge-nous group as they are so oft en portrayed5. Th erefore, the importance of qualitative research over quantitative research was imperative to examine the reality of lone mothers’ lives.
Despite carrying out research in two diff erent states, we found the underlying assumptions of both governments in relation to lone motherhood to be similar. All lone mothers who took part in the study in both states showed enthusiasm and willingness to take part in education and training. However, misgivings were raised by lone mothers regarding the limited opportunities current training courses off er which were mainly focused on the areas of computer skills, fl ower arranging, sec-retarial skills and hairdressing.
Lack of fi nances is a challenge which the vast majority of lone mothers have to deal with on a day-to-day basis. For many, it has become a way of life, despite their involvement in education and training schemes. However, we found that the core of the problem associated with lone motherhood is structural. Political ideological assumptions still discriminate against lone mothers. As accurately pointed out by one lone mother: “It feels like the ills of society [are] projected on to you because you are not the norm” (Participant, Navan).
Th is perspective was acutely felt by another participant who brought up the point that, despite being highly qualifi ed, she was overlooked when promotions came along. Concentrating on education and training opportunities for lone moth-er is essential. In ordmoth-er to improve education and training opportunities for lone mothers, complex organisational and structural disparities need to be addressed so that lone mothers can reap the true benefi ts of education and training oppor-tunities.
5 J. Millar, K. Rowlingson, Lone Parents, Employment and Social Policy: Cross-national
5. Conclusions
In order to improve education and training opportunities for lone mothers, com-plex organisational and structural disparities need to be addressed so that lone mothers can reap the true benefi ts of education and training opportunities. Today’s policies and initiatives aimed at lift ing lone mothers out of poverty are heavily focused on paid employment. However, Lister stresses that employment in itself is not automatically a route out of poverty for lone mothers and that education is an important “focus for the exercise of women’s citizenship”6. Th is suggests that gov-ernments should focus their attention on improving policies in relation to educa-tion and training. However, as these are so closely intertwined with employment, focusing on education and training alone is not enough7. A range of complex struc-tural issues need to be addressed.
Firstly, the issue of incentives to take part in education and training courses needs to be adequately addressed in order to encourage lone mothers to enter education or training. Despite a popular preconception which links lone mother-hood to laziness8, research carried out by Gray points out that many lone mothers are motivated to enter training courses: “Many [lone parents] were motivated by the increased likelihood of securing well-paid employment through up-skilling”9. Th is concurs with results from this study. Yet, the drop-out rate of lone mothers in education and training is signifi cant and must be examined and, if possible, re-dressed10.
Secondly, Murphy suggests the need for policy to address the issue of access to “appropriate training and education programmes”11 which again concurs with our results.
Th irdly, many lone mothers suff er from low self-esteem12. Th erefore, self-help initiatives which provide confi dence-building measures are of major importance.
6 R. Lister, Citizenship Feminist Perspective…, op.cit., p. 152.
7 J. Lewis, Work-Family, Balance, Gender and Policy, Cheltenham 2009, p. 3, 176.
8 V. Gillies, Marginalised Mothers: Exploring Working-Class Experiences of Parenting, Oxon 2007. 9 A.M. Gray, L. Carragher, Possibilities: Th e Views of Lone Parents on Training and Employment
in Northern Ireland, Paper No. 3, Belfast 2007, p. 18.
10 M. Bowl, Non-Traditional Entrants to Higher Education: “Th ey Talk about People like Me”, Staff ordshire 2003.
11 C. Murphy, P. Keilthy, L. Caff rey, Lone Parents and Employment: What Are the Real Issues?, Dublin 2008, p. 40.
12 J. Millar, K. Rowlingson, Lone Parents…, op.cit.; A.M. Gray, L. Carragher, Lone Parents
Fourthly, the narrow supply of training courses which are gender-biased ulti-mately limits lone mothers’ job prospects. As Millar and Ridge13 explain, the ‘pop-ularity’ of gender-biased training courses may be due to the fact that they open the way to more fl exible jobs. However, these kinds of jobs are generally low-paid, which adversely aff ects the ability of lone mothers to escape the poverty trap. Th is concurs with our results.
Fift hly, Daly and Rake14 call for a more individual approach to policy develop-ment in relation to assessing skill levels and long-term career developdevelop-ment. Hark-er too stresses that improving the skill-sets of lone parents should be a main gov-ernment objective as “the premium placed on high skills in the labour market increases”15. We suggest that a ‘one-stop-shop’ which takes a holistic view of the social, economic and educational needs of lone mothers would aid in this regard.
Lastly, Klett-Davies takes a more individualistic approach to personal develop-ment by arguing that education in itself, regardless of job enhancedevelop-ment, is a vital tool for personal development16. This point is also taken up by Cooper and Strange17 who argue that true social inclusion relates to a wider context and is achieved through giving people autonomy to shape their own life experiences. Th is perspective puts the emphasis on policies which promote education and training as a right. McCashin18 and Klett-Davies19 both point out that the key to success lies in true empowerment through training and education, not through forcing lone parents into any paid employment. We agree that, while governments should aim to make training and education more accessible to lone mothers, this is only one part of the solution. For lone mothers to be able to improve their standard of living, employment opportunities too should be made more accessible and fl exible.
13 J. Millar, T. Ridge, Relationships of Care…, op.cit.
14 M. Daly, K. Rake, Gender and the Welfare State: Care, Work and Welfare in Europe and the USA, Cambridge 2003, p. 173.
15 L. Harker, Delivering on Child Poverty: What Would It Take?, A report for the Department for Work and Pensions, London, November 2006, p. 36.
16 M. Klett-Davies, Going It Alone?…, op.cit., p. 137.
17 C. Cooper, G. Strange, Reversing New Labours Welfare Discourse; Strategies for Social Inclusive
Society, Paper for ISPA Conference, Dublin July 2001.
18 A. McCashin, Lone Mothers in Ireland, a Local Study, Dublin 1996, p. 188, 206. 19 M. Klett-Davies, Going I Alone?…, op.cit.
R E F E R E N C E S :
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