During my research into our local history I have always admired the way the women coped with their lives. Because of their biological disadvantages they bore multiple children, worked in the mill and the home and often survived into their 70s. This despite a general view that housework was a woman's job and any husbands who did their share were often derided by their workmates for being 'Mary Anns'.
I've written on this subject before and I think most of you know what my views are so I shan't repeat myself. However, what has raised this matter in my mind again is the way women are being treated in the latest round of rearrangements to pension rights brought in by the present administration. These are horribly complicated and I don't fully understand them, some women are even unclear as to when they will get the pension but one thing is clear, women are going to have to work longer and in some cases will have their entitlement reduced or even removed where the woman has no employment history. It was suggested recently in Parliament that those who were to be disadvantaged should be informed in writing but as far as I can see the response was the usual 'we are looking into this'.
I have always held the view that allowing women to take the pension earlier than men was a simple recognition of the fact that they have more complicated lives than men. On the whole they are weaker and have the additional burden of child-bearing. I know that in these days of 'equality' this is seen as an old fashioned concept but you can't argue against the facts. How many men would carry on working if they were carrying a child? Recognising this in terms of pension entitlement would seem to be reasonable and fair but where is the evidence of fairness where women are concerned? You don't need me to detail the imbalance that still exists in society and it's high time that the rhetoric about equality was matched on the ground in real life.
There are plenty of things to worry about in this modern world. You would think that well into the 21st century some of the most glaring inequalities in society would have been addressed if not eliminated but in the case of Women's Rights it would appear that nothing has changed, at least in the minds of those responsible for the present legislation. I know that the question of pensions has been ignored for far too long and something has to be done to ensure continuity into the future but the measures as they stand at the moment look to me to be grossly unfair to women. We are told we are one of the richest economies in the world, perhaps we should be asking where all the money is going..... At the moment we appear to be regressing to the bad old days of 19th century laissez faire.
Are these workers less entitled than their male counterparts?
