In an attempt to redress the gender imbalance of Irish farmers, Macra na Feirme is calling on the Government to provide female agricultural farm owners with aid to cover the cost of a replacement farmer to cover maternity leave.
Female farmers have just as much to offer as their male counterparts. As a result, every effort should be made to increase the number of Irish female farmers, Macra na Feirme said in its pre-budget submission. According to the 2010 agricultural survey carried out by the CSO, 27.2% of the regular agricultural workforce was represented by females, but Department figures show that just 12% of agricultural holdings are owned by females.
“Adding a maternity leave incentive for Irish farmers has the potential to attract more young females into farming, who may have been discouraged from entering agriculture due to concerns over maternity leave, therefore helping to bring Ireland in line with other European member states,” Macra’s submission states.
Holiday leave for farmers
The young farmer organisation is also proposing that the Exchequer provide farm owners with aid to cover the cost of a replacement farmer to cover 14 days’ holiday leave each year. The organisation argues that every possible avenue in reducing farm accidents must be explored and this could reduce those associated with fatigue.
The same principle applies to road accidents and the Road Safety Authority (RSA) reported last year that one in five road accidents are associated with fatigue.
“Research has shown the performance of a person drops as fatigue increases, therefore leading to human-related errors,” Macra states. “Farmer restoration cover has the potential to decrease on-farm accidents, boost morale among Irish farmers and, in particular, allow young farmers time with their family when their children are young.”
Both proposals would not involve direct payments to the farmer, but rather to the provider of the farm replacement. They are also exempt from state aid rules under Article 23 of the Block Exemption Regulation, meaning that they do not need approval from the EU.
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In an attempt to redress the gender imbalance of Irish farmers, Macra na Feirme is calling on the Government to provide female agricultural farm owners with aid to cover the cost of a replacement farmer to cover maternity leave.
Female farmers have just as much to offer as their male counterparts. As a result, every effort should be made to increase the number of Irish female farmers, Macra na Feirme said in its pre-budget submission. According to the 2010 agricultural survey carried out by the CSO, 27.2% of the regular agricultural workforce was represented by females, but Department figures show that just 12% of agricultural holdings are owned by females.
“Adding a maternity leave incentive for Irish farmers has the potential to attract more young females into farming, who may have been discouraged from entering agriculture due to concerns over maternity leave, therefore helping to bring Ireland in line with other European member states,” Macra’s submission states.
Holiday leave for farmers
The young farmer organisation is also proposing that the Exchequer provide farm owners with aid to cover the cost of a replacement farmer to cover 14 days’ holiday leave each year. The organisation argues that every possible avenue in reducing farm accidents must be explored and this could reduce those associated with fatigue.
The same principle applies to road accidents and the Road Safety Authority (RSA) reported last year that one in five road accidents are associated with fatigue.
“Research has shown the performance of a person drops as fatigue increases, therefore leading to human-related errors,” Macra states. “Farmer restoration cover has the potential to decrease on-farm accidents, boost morale among Irish farmers and, in particular, allow young farmers time with their family when their children are young.”
Both proposals would not involve direct payments to the farmer, but rather to the provider of the farm replacement. They are also exempt from state aid rules under Article 23 of the Block Exemption Regulation, meaning that they do not need approval from the EU.
Read more
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