Gender in Irish tourism employment.

Abstract

This chapter is concerned with some of the gender dimensions of the Irish tourism industry. A brief outline of the industry and its recent development is presented initially. In the absence of data on the gender characteristics of tourists themselves, the chapter focuses on those working in the turism industry in Ireland, set in the context of the position of women in the Irish workforce in general. A number of aspects of employment in tourism, including skill levels, part-time and seasonal work, segmentation, flexibility and trade union membership are examined from a gender perspective. There follows a case study of the nature of employment in the bed and breakfast business. The chapter concludes with some observations on the implications for economic development in Ireland of the strong emphasis currently being placed on tourism by the Irish government.