Reconciliation of work and family life

Anu Laas

Unit of Gender Studies, Faculty of Social Sciences

EQUAL Exchange Event: Holding a job – Having a life

Tallinn, April 3-4, 2006

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Introduction

• EGGSIE experts and reports• Four dimensions of reconciliation policy

– Childcare services– Leave facilities– Flexible working-time arrangements – Financial allowances for working parents

• Discussion

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EGGSIE experts• 2005-ongoing, Expert Group on Gender, Social Inclusion and

Employment (EGGSIE)• In 1998 – 2004, Expert Group on Gender and Employment

(EGGE)• European Work and Employment Research Centre (EWERC) • Manchester Business School

The University of Manchester • director Dr Damian Grimshaw (MBS)• co-directors Professor Colette Fagan (SoSS) and

Professor Jill Rubery (MBS)

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EGGSIE experts as a network

• annual programme of policy-oriented research and reports to the unit "Equality between men and women"

• national and cross-national comparative 'synthesis' reports

• DG for Employment, Social Affairs and Equal opportunities

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Reconciliation of work and private life: a comparative review of thirty European countries. September 2005

Janneke Plantenga & Chantal RemeryUtrecht School of Economicswith the assistance of Petra HelmingEU 25 + 5 (Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein,

Bulgaria, Rumania)

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Problem

Challenges• The increasing labour

market participation of women (Lisbon targets)

• Changing family forms• Ageing population• Low birth rates

Policy approach by countries different

• Flexible working (time) arrangements

• Provision of services by public and private sector

• A more equal distribution of paid and unpaid work.

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Definition and focus

• Reconciliation policies can be defined as policies that directly support the combination of professional, family and private life.

• Childcare services, leave facilities, flexible working arrangements and other reconciliation policies such as financial allowances for working parents

• An innovative element of the study - besides the focus is on national, public strategies attention to the sector or company level

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Missing• Beside childcare other services • Beside parents other family/household members

as caregivers • Analysis of services that meet the care needs of

the elderly and of people with disabilities• A quality of services. Trust in services• Reputation of profession (babysitters, social

workers etc)

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Four dimensions of reconciliation policy

• Childcare services

• Leave facilities

• Flexible working-time arrangements

• Financial allowances for working parents

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Childcare services

Barcelona targets (2002):

The provision of childcare by 2010 to …• at least 90 % of children between 3 years old and the

mandatory school age and (reached in10 states)• at least 33 % of children under 3 years of age (reached in

6 states)

Reached in Belgium, Denmark, Iceland, France, Sweden, Netherlands

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Childcare influenced by the…

• participation rate of parents (mothers)

• levels of unemployment

• the length of parental leave (work protected)

• the opening hours of school

• the availability of alternatives (grandparents and/or other informal arrangements)

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Childcare as a social right

• In three EU Member States (Finland, Denmark and Sweden)

• In Iceland

• In other countries, the supply of (high quality and affordable) childcare facilities may be insufficient

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Childcare services

Full responsibility or combined responsibility

In Netherlands (only!)

Financing is on a tripartite basis:

• central government

• the employer

• and/or employee

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Different aspects were studied

• Availability – supply and demand/needs, public or private enterprise

• Affordability – what is a price and who will pay

• Acceptability - cultural norms (a ‘proper mother’ etc)

• Flexibility – opening hours etc

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Expectations to be brave and keep a

balance

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State expects from women and men…

children taxes

employees

employers

politicians and civil servants

economic growth sustainable development

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Modern babysitter - no pay, no taxes, but what will be the cost?

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Grandparents in ‘wrong’ age

…or missing, or need a care themselves…

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Informal care – only trust…

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Involvement of fathers and grandfathers

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Take-up leave rates

• Low rates reported in Ireland, Italy and the UK• Medium levels are reported in Spain, France and

the Netherlands• Almost universal take-up in Czech Republic,

Germany and Estonia.• Male take-up rates only exceed 10% in

Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Sweden, Iceland and Norway, often less than 2%

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Firm involvementTypes of work-family arrangements provided by firms

– Flexible working arrangements– Leaves (incl leave for family reasons (also elderly)– Childcare arrangements (provision of services)– Supportive arrangements (mostly provision of training

and information)

Den Dulk, L. den (2001).Work-family arrangements in organisations. A cross-national study in the Netherlands, Italy, the United Kingdom and Sweden. Rozenberg Publishers.

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Childcare and employers

• Limited company involvement• Exceptions: large companies, banks and hospitals,

large industrial undertakings (services in Greece, France, Luxembourg, Slovenia, and the UK)

• In Spain, the private and public sector enterprises that employ at least 300 workers should provide childcare

• Public sector enterprises in Ireland, the UK and Liechtenstein

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Innovative working-time arrangements

• In Belgium a career-break scheme has been introduced (the basic principle of the scheme is that every employee can stop working or can reduce his or her working time for a certain period of time)

• In Luxembourg ‘saving hours’ (allow employees more individualised working schemes, for example longer leaves.

• In Netherlands a life course scheme: a system of saving hours designed to help people combine various activities (such as work, education or care)

• In France, ‘city times’ policies (to harmonise different time schedules within a geographical area on the basis of so-called ‘time offices’)

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Conclusion based on report• Policies differ• Need for professional services (children under 2-3, elderly, disabled)• Parental leave does not always favour gender equality• Need to improve employers’ involvement• Arrangements’ costs should be paid collectively• Need to raise participation in the labour market and to

stimulate population growth an important issue the streamlining of work and family policies into one integrated system of care, education and leisure services.

Discussion

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Discussion: Flexible workingarrangements

Positive side• Boosted productivity• Higher employee

satisfaction• Higher employer's

reputation

Negative impact• on (women's) position

in the workplace• on economic

independence

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Problems

• Care services – not only for children

• Only women are seen as ‘reconcilers’

• Tax incentives or taxation (‘punishment’)

• Fringe benefit (erisoodustus) in Estonia (Income Tax Act, Article 48), direct cost + taxes about 75%

• Social construction of poor, needy, disadvantaged…

• Unequal treatment of different groups

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Example from Estonian fiscal policy: Fringe benefits

• Fringe benefits are any goods, services, and remuneration in kind or monetarily appraisable benefits which are given to a person in connection with an employment or service relationship, membership in the management or controlling body of a legal person, or a long-term contractual relationship, regardless of the time at which the fringe benefit is granted.

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Professionalisation of services

• Care in home• Daycares, playrooms, health

centres etc • Training of people in health and

social services• Assistants• Low skilled• The quality of these services• Research on health and social

sectors professions and work

• Price for professional service• Affordability • Responsibility - partnership• Legal form of service provider

(entrepreneur, Ltd Co, employee)

• Professional training + Business training (as Estonian family doctors)

• Recruitment of professional and assisting staff

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Conclusion• One integrated system of care, education, leisure

services• Assisted living solutions• Professionalisation and economy• Who could provide assisted living services in the home at a lower

cost?• Cooperation of individual, state, municipality, third sector and

companies• Decisions by competent people. Research• Core values in every country contribute to the European values

and EU has impact to member state

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Thank you!

Anu Laas

www.ut.ee/gender

laas@ut.ee