THE Employment Equality Bill been welcomed with reservations by the National Women's Council and the Irish Traveller Movement.
But the Southern Equality Campaign was critical of the Bill introduced in the Dail yesterday, while Fianna Fail and the Progressive Democrats described it as fundamentally flawed.
The women's council, in welcoming the Bill, said a number of aspects were "unsatisfactory". It is pressing for amendments. The council chairwoman, Ms Noreen Byrne, said the inadequacies were disturbing and "in some areas actually roll back hard-won progress through case law in Ireland and in the European courts".
The Irish Traveller Movement said the naming and inclusion of travellers in the Bill was an important development. The inclusion of affirmative-action measures to tackle discrimination was also significant.
The Southern Equality Campaign said it was concerned at the over-legalistic and imprecise nature of the Bill, "not to mention its many technical faults.
"We are especially taken aback by the number and scale of the exemptions and qualifications for religious bodies, medical institutions, the navy and other groupings."
It warned that, if section 37 of the Bill stood, a two-tier employment system would be created.
Fianna Fail expressed concern that junior doctors were exempted from the Bill. Mr Batt O'Keeffe TD said this was inexplicable when many of these doctors worked up to 65 rostered hours and could be asked to work a further 20 unrostered hours".
The Progressive Democrat TD, Ms Helen Keogh, said the Bill was particularly flawed in the area of disability, which was archaic and unacceptable.