International Women's Day

Today is International Women's Day (IWD).  IWD is a global day celebrating the economic, political and social achievements of women past, present and future with 2011 being the IWD global centenary year.

A new poll published today by Amnesty International shows that six in ten young women (aged 15-30) have personally experienced sexist remarks or sexist behaviour while nearly half of all women (47%) in the UK do not believe that they are treated equally to men.

A recent case assisted by the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland highlights the issues of equal pay and sex discrimination.  Dolores Creen, a female barrister was asked to act on behalf of the PSNI in a public inquiry.  She claimed she was paid less per hour than a male barrister working on the inquiry and that her "billing" hours were reduced and eventually withdrawn while male colleagues were kept on the inquiry.  Dolores Creen received a £70,000 settlement after taking a sex discrimination case against the PSNI.  The settlement was made without admission of liability.

Citizens Advice is opposed to all forms of discrimination and is committed to a socially just, tolerant and pluralist society.  We believe that by challenging discrimination effectively we can help empower some of the most disadvantaged in society to realise their rights.