scholarly journals Irish Female Members of the European Parliament: Critical Actors for Women's Interests?

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 483-511 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pauline Cullen
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
Child Poverty ◽  
European Parliament ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Main Site ◽  
Power Base ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Contemporary Context ◽  
The Eu

The European Parliament (EP) is credited as an important actor in improving the rights of women in Ireland. Lacking a power base in national political parties, Irish feminists and European Union (EU) officials, including members of the EP (MEPs), have worked to secure progress on gender equality. This research explores whether, in the contemporary context, Irish female MEPs remain critical actors for women's interests at the EU level. Findings show that although Irish female MEPs have a limited record of involvement with the EP's main site for gender equality, the Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality, they do act in a variety of ways on women's interests. These include mobilization on gendered occupational roles and traditionally gendered areas such as care work, child poverty, and issues constructed as affecting women outside the EU. Irish female MEPs also facilitate forms of supranational lobbying in their support of EU-level advocacy for domestic gendered civil society and campaign groups. However, ideology and party political discipline, the pull toward local and national interests, and an absence of strong feminist agency work to diminish opportunities for female MEPs to act as critical actors and deliver critical acts on women's interests.

19. Labour and equality law

2020 ◽  
pp. 612-642
Author(s):  
Mia Rönnmar
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Economic Crisis ◽  
Working Conditions ◽  
Flexible Work ◽  
Labour Law ◽  
Worker Participation ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The Eu

This chapter discusses a number of key EU labour and equality law issues. These include restructuring of enterprises; information, consultation, and worker participation; how national collective labour law is affected by the four freedoms; flexible work and working conditions; the EU and national labour law in times of economic crisis; and gender equality, comprehensive equality, and protection against discrimination on other grounds.

The European Dimension of Minority Political Representation

2012 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 75-92 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Spirova ◽  
Boyka Stefanova
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Political Representation ◽  
Political Process ◽  
European Parliament ◽  
The Political ◽  
East European ◽  
European Dimension ◽  
Challenging Tasks ◽  
The Eu

The political integration of ethnic minorities is one of the most challenging tasks facing the countries of post-communist Europe. The roads to their political representation in the mainstream political process are numerous and diverse. The EU accession of the Central and East European countries has expanded the scope of the political participation of minorities by adding an electoral process at the regional level: the elections for members of the European Parliament. This article presents a comparative study of the ways in which EU-level electoral processes affect the scope and quality of minority representation on the example of the participation of ethnic political parties in Bulgaria and Romania in the 2007 and 2009 electoral cycles of the European Parliament.

scholarly journals Political parties and gender equality

2016 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. 21-30
Author(s):  
Nadezda A. Shvedova
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
And Gender

scholarly journals Representation and the European Union

2020 ◽  
pp. 620-636
Author(s):  
Sara B. Hobolt
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
European Parliament ◽  
The European Union ◽  
National Interests ◽  
National Elections ◽  
Policy Representation ◽  
Indirect Path ◽  
Citizens Attitudes ◽  
The Eu

This chapter considers the nature and quality of representation in the European Union by examining the dual paths of representation available to European citizens: the direct path of electing representatives to the European Parliament and the indirect path of electing national parliamentarians, and in turn governments, who represent national interests in the Council. Both paths matter if we want to understand representation in the European Union. The chapter examines the extent to which each of these channels facilitates substantive policy representation in the EU. It explores the quality of the selection and sanctioning processes in European Parliament and national elections, and examines citizens’ attitudes towards democracy at both levels of government. It concludes that, while representation in the EU is imperfect, it reflects the hybrid nature of the EU’s political system and is still undergoing significant change as the EU evolves and its policymaking is becoming more politicized domestically.

scholarly journals Change of system in Hungary

2009 ◽  
pp. 33-52
Author(s):  
Imre Paska
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Social System ◽  
Western Europe ◽  
Social Systems ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Neoliberal Capitalism ◽  
New Capitalism ◽  
The Eu

The sociologists in Hungary have been treating the emerging social system as the new capitalism. This system is different in relation to the classical social systems of Western Europe. The transformation of the system was directed from above, in accordance with this we could speak on the reform-dictature of elites. There was no transition but drastic transformation led by political parties and their clients. This kind of transformation did not allow the deep articulation of the national interests and has made an illusion concerning the capitalism. Namely, the citizens of Hungary are convinced that there is only one type of capitalism, neoliberal capitalism. We are witnesses of dissatisfaction and protests in Hungary, and the EU and its interest-based coordination could be described as the hindrance concerning the irresponsible movements.

Affirmative gender equality policies in Central and Eastern Europe: Moving beyond the EU requirements

2020 ◽  
pp. 135406882090678
Author(s):  
Vera Beloshitzkaya
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
Original Data ◽  
New Democracies ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Party Positions ◽  
Feminist Movements ◽  
Theory Of Democracy ◽  
The Eu

What affects the adoption of affirmative gender equality measures across Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries, given that the European Union directives do not require them? Drawing on mandate theory of democracy and using original data on party positions on gender equality in eight postcommunist countries observed over 25 years, I argue that CEE political parties and their position on the issue are the answer to this empirical puzzle. Contrary to the earlier scholarship on new democracies that finds only limited mandate fulfillment (Roberts 2010; Stokes, 2001), the study shows that parties in government act responsively when it comes to gender equality promotion. My findings also demonstrate that it is parties, not feminist movements that drive the adoption of affirmative action policies in the region

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.

20. Labour and equality law

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mia Rönnmar
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Economic Crisis ◽  
Working Conditions ◽  
Flexible Work ◽  
Labour Law ◽  
Worker Participation ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The Eu

This chapter discusses a number of key labour and equality law issues. These include restructuring of enterprises; information, consultation, and worker participation; fundamental Treaty freedoms and national collective labour law; flexible work and working conditions; the EU and national labour law in times of economic crisis; and gender equality, comprehensive equality, and protection against discrimination on other grounds.

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