Britain's four million women part-time workers stand to benefit

Part-time Workers to Gain Equal Rights

The proposals will benefit over six million part-time workers in Britain. Brenden Barber of the Trade Union Congress called the agreement a "major breakthrough" that will end part-time workers status as "second class citizens".

The draft agreement has been drawn up by the executive committee of the European TUC and UNICE, the European employers' group.

The agreement will be formally signed at a Social Dialogue summit on Friday, in the presence of the Dutch Prime Minister Wim Kok and the President of the European Commission Jacques Santer. The directive will then become British law within two years.

"Part-time workers are a valuable part of the workforce," said John Monks, the General Secretary of the Trade Union Congress. "This groundbreaking agreement between Europe's trade unions and employers means that at long-last, part-time workers will be able to enjoy the flexibility of working part-time without fear of discrimination."

The new regulations will see part-time workers gain the same statutory rights over paid holidays and sick leave, company pensions, staff discounts and share options.

Peter Agar of the Confederation of British Industry said the new proposals were a "sensible agreement" and contained "some features British employers will be comfortable with."

Eighty percent of Britain's part-timers are women. At present, they can only claim unfair treatment on the grounds of sex discrimination. But Mr Monks said that many of Britain's biggest companies already grant part-time staff equal rights. "They clearly find this helps their business not hinders it," he said.