Policy Discourses on ‘Reconciling Work and Life’ in the EU

2002 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 305-314 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon Duncan
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Family Life ◽  
Work And Family ◽  
Gender Mainstreaming ◽  
Paid Work ◽  
Economic Competition ◽  
Gender Policy ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The Eu ◽  
Work And Life

This paper outlines the development EU policy discourse on ‘the reconciliation of work and family life’. This imposes a policy disjuncture on New Labour, for, while the British government may be ideologically more attracted to the liberal US model of ‘flexible’ labour, it is bound by EU law to implement a more corporatist gender equality model. The paper notes how themes of economic competition, democratisation, and protecting gender contracts emerged at the foundation EU gender policy. It traces these themes into an ‘equal opportunities at work’ discourse during the 1970s and 1980s and, with the increasing importance of the ‘demographic time bomb’ discourse and of Scandinavian style gender equality, into discourses stressing the ‘reconciliation of paid work with family life’ and gender mainstreaming. The paper ends by addressing the ‘half-empty or half-full’ assessments of EU gender policy.

scholarly journals EU Social and Gender Policy beyond Brexit: Towards the European Pillar of Social Rights

2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 281-296 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ania Plomien
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Social Progress ◽  
Social Rights ◽  
Equal Pay ◽  
Current Form ◽  
Gender Policy ◽  
Equal Work ◽  
Market Driven ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The Eu

The analysis of EU level social and gender policies highlights uneven developments and concerns over the EU as not (always) beneficial to social progress and gender equality. The EU, although primarily market driven, has developed a range of social policies, with gender equality enjoying a long-standing status as EU's founding value, dating back to the 1957 principle of equal pay for equal work. Yet, sixty years later, social justice objectives and equality between women and men remain to be realised. Social and gender themes have been revived by the proposal to develop the European Pillar of Social Rights, the shaping and implementing of which post-Brexit UK will not take part in. This initiative entails some meaningful developments for social and gender progress. However, its current form and content represents an adjustment to, rather than a transformation of, the unequal European economy and society.

Gender equality and gender mainstreaming: the issue of equal opportunities in the European context

2019 ◽  
pp. 9-30
Author(s):  
Vera Lomazzi ◽  
Isabella Crespi
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Current Approach ◽  
Gender Mainstreaming ◽  
Equal Treatment ◽  
Equal Opportunities ◽  
Equal Rights ◽  
Positive Action ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Eu

This chapter deals with the definition, understanding and exploration of the issue of gender equality approaches that the EU has developed to promote equal opportunities between men and women. The chapter examines the different strategies used across time to implement gender equality in the EU and how this conceptualisation led to the current approach of gender mainstreaming. In particular, three phases are identified and discussedinthe chapter: equal treatment, positive action and gender mainstreaming. The last one is discussed deeply because itformed a substantial and important backbone in the context of the individual rights of citizens of the Union by creating a basis of equal rights guaranteed to all, regardless of gender. The goal pursued by gender mainstreaming approach consists of a deep change in the organizational culture of society, institutions and workplace, where gender equality should be implemented in a transformed cultural framework.

This Far, but No Further?

2011 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 362-379 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Spehar
Keyword(s):  
Political Culture ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Women And Gender ◽  
Gender Policy ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Gender Equality Policy ◽  
The Eu ◽  
Strong Contrast

The European Union (EU) is one of the world’s most important policy promoters for gender equality. This article examines the benefits and limitations of EU gender equality policy making in two Western Balkan countries, Croatia and FYR Macedonia. Besides analyzing specific gender policy developments that can be attributed to the EU, particular focus is put on the women’s movement activists’ perceptions of the impact that accession may have on women and gender equality. The study demonstrates that while the Croatian and Macedonian EU accession processes have been beneficial to the introduction of new gender legislation and institutional mechanisms for the advancement of gender equality, the EU gender strategy has also shown serious limitations. Among these—and perhaps the most fundamental—is the strong contrast between stated goals and their actual implementation. I argue that unless profound institutional changes as well as changes in political culture take place in Croatia and Macedonia, the poor compliance with EU gender equality norms and policies will be hard to overcome.

scholarly journals Evaluating the Success of Gender Mainstreaming in New Zealand Official Development Assistance Since 2000

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Philippa Bennett
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
Women's Empowerment ◽  
Gender Issues ◽  
Official Development Assistance ◽  
Foreign Affairs ◽  
Gender Mainstreaming ◽  
Women’S Empowerment ◽  
Gender Policy ◽  
And Gender

<p>Gender mainstreaming is one of the most widespread methods employed by donor countries and their partners to address gender equality and women’s empowerment in development. New Zealand has had a varied history of engagement on gender issues within its aid programme. As reportedly one of the first countries within the OECD to have a specific gender policy, New Zealand’s commitment to women has waxed and waned. Case and point, in 2011, when asked where women came into New Zealand’s growing Pacific focus for aid, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade stated that he was not interested in prescribing a gender within the aid programme. This research evaluated how gender mainstreaming has been implemented into the policies of New Zealand’s Official Development Assistance (NZODA) since 2000.   Research methods used included reviewing past and present NZODA policies, carried out alongside interviews with development specialists who had worked in the New Zealand aid and gender environment. Using a feminist lens, the research revealed that New Zealand’s ODA has had limited investment in gender equality and women’s empowerment, despite gender being mainstreamed or mandated as a cross-cutting issue since 2002. The previous structure which administered NZODA, NZAID, released an in-depth gender policy late in its existence and struggled to retain staff in the gender advisor role. The refocus of NZODA, with the subsequent reintegration of aid into foreign affairs in 2009 meant the expiration of this policy. Two years later, the new body established to administer NZODA, the NZ Aid Programme, released its only policy, where gender equality and women’s empowerment featured little and appeared tokenistic. As well as this lack of investment in women, this research revealed that gender mainstreaming appears to be misunderstood, which can only contribute to its widely perceived ineffectiveness. Recommendations argue for a committed focus on gender best practice within NZODA, alongside greater investment in programmes and activities that specifically focus on women and gender issues.</p>

scholarly journals Evaluating the Success of Gender Mainstreaming in New Zealand Official Development Assistance Since 2000

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Philippa Bennett
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
Women's Empowerment ◽  
Gender Issues ◽  
Official Development Assistance ◽  
Foreign Affairs ◽  
Gender Mainstreaming ◽  
Women’S Empowerment ◽  
Gender Policy ◽  
And Gender

<p>Gender mainstreaming is one of the most widespread methods employed by donor countries and their partners to address gender equality and women’s empowerment in development. New Zealand has had a varied history of engagement on gender issues within its aid programme. As reportedly one of the first countries within the OECD to have a specific gender policy, New Zealand’s commitment to women has waxed and waned. Case and point, in 2011, when asked where women came into New Zealand’s growing Pacific focus for aid, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade stated that he was not interested in prescribing a gender within the aid programme. This research evaluated how gender mainstreaming has been implemented into the policies of New Zealand’s Official Development Assistance (NZODA) since 2000.   Research methods used included reviewing past and present NZODA policies, carried out alongside interviews with development specialists who had worked in the New Zealand aid and gender environment. Using a feminist lens, the research revealed that New Zealand’s ODA has had limited investment in gender equality and women’s empowerment, despite gender being mainstreamed or mandated as a cross-cutting issue since 2002. The previous structure which administered NZODA, NZAID, released an in-depth gender policy late in its existence and struggled to retain staff in the gender advisor role. The refocus of NZODA, with the subsequent reintegration of aid into foreign affairs in 2009 meant the expiration of this policy. Two years later, the new body established to administer NZODA, the NZ Aid Programme, released its only policy, where gender equality and women’s empowerment featured little and appeared tokenistic. As well as this lack of investment in women, this research revealed that gender mainstreaming appears to be misunderstood, which can only contribute to its widely perceived ineffectiveness. Recommendations argue for a committed focus on gender best practice within NZODA, alongside greater investment in programmes and activities that specifically focus on women and gender issues.</p>

scholarly journals Framing The Gender Equality in IAIN Ponorogo Indonesia

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-31
Author(s):  
Anis Hidayatul Imtihanah ◽  
Asep Syahrul Mubarok
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Data Gathering ◽  
Paid Work ◽  
Daily Work ◽  
Gender Policy ◽  
Academic Senate ◽  
Mixed Method Design ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Depth Interviews

Women play many roles in today's world in their societies' economic development. Women have many contributions to a country's welfare in various sectors, such as politics, health, agriculture, and public education. This research used a mixed-method design to analyze Islamic higher education, focusing on implementing gender policy and gender values—moreover, the activities of female lecturers in their daily work. The research also combines qualitative and quantitative data-gathering methods, particularly participant observation, in-depth interviews, numbers data, and figures to analyze how gender equality values for women should be implemented. This research reveals that IAIN Ponorogo is responsive gender. It can be seen from women's involvement in multiple fields like the academic senate member and the journal manager. The research also argues that women should be given equal opportunities as men, including paid work and the decision-making position sectors, to contribute to the institution.

scholarly journals Polityka genderowa Unii Europejskiej - geneza i ewolucja

2014 ◽  
pp. 201-222
Author(s):  
Ewa Jastrzębska
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Gender Mainstreaming ◽  
Gender Policy ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
The Common ◽  
The Eu

The purpose of this article is to assess the phenomenon of discrimination against women and ways to combat it in the EU. The starting point of consideration is an attempt to define contemporary feminism and to identify the common mani‑ festations of discrimination against women. Set against this background are the institutionalised actions taken in favour of women on a global scale as well as EUs gender policy. It was found that the gap that occurs between gender equality de jure and de facto contributed to the implementation in the EU of the principle of gender mainstreaming (active and visible to the mainstreaming of gender in all strategies, policies and programmes).

Gleichstellung in der Krise – Eine vergleichende Analyse der Auswirkungen der Corona-Pandemie auf die Gleichstellung der Geschlechter in Deutschland und Schweden

2021 ◽  
Vol 70 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 267-291
Author(s):  
Marlene Haupt ◽  
Viola Lind
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Crisis Response ◽  
Work And Family ◽  
Gender Mainstreaming ◽  
Work Arrangements ◽  
Alternative Approach ◽  
Market Women ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Gender Budgeting

In Deutschland sind Frauen pandemiebedingt stärker von Kurzarbeit und Arbeitslosigkeit sowie von Problemen der Vereinbarkeit von Familie und Beruf betroffen als Männer. Gleichzeitig arbeiten sie aufgrund der geschlechtersegregierten Arbeitswelt häufiger in schlechter bezahlten systemrelevanten Berufen. Staatliche Hilfs- und Unterstützungsangebote zur Krisenbewältigung umfassen primär finanzielle Leistungen und Beratungsmöglichkeiten. In entscheidenden wissenschaftlichen und politischen Beratergremien sind Frauen unterrepräsentiert. Der Vergleich mit Schweden verdeutlicht, dass dort die Geschlechtergleichstellung in Normalzeiten stark institutionell verankert wurde. Gender Mainstreaming, Gender Budgeting und Gender Monitoring sind daher auch in Krisenzeiten fester Bestandteil der Strategien. Das schwedische Beispiel zeigt wichtige alternative Herangehensweisen und Denkanstöße für die Debatte um eine geschlechtergerechte Krisenpolitik in Deutschland. Abstract: Gender Equality in Times of Crisis – A Comparative Analysis of the Impact of COVID-19 on Gender Equality in Germany and Sweden Women suffer more from short-term work arrangements, unemployment and the challenge of balancing work and family life in Germany as a consequence of the COVID-19-pandemic. Moreover, in a gender-segregated labour market women are overrepresented in essential but low paid positions. State support to overcome the crisis is mainly given in forms of financial assistance and counselling. Furthermore, women are underrepresented in the most influential scientific and political advisory bodies. In comparison to Germany, Sweden has institutional integration of gender equality. Gender mainstreaming, gender budgeting and gender monitoring are an integral part of the Swedish strategy in normal times, and remain so, even in times of crisis. The Swedish example provides an alternative approach crucial for the debate on how to achieve a more gender equal crisis response in Germany.

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