Women at Home, in the Workplace
and Beyond ...
Cenetral European Alliance for Women’s Empowerment
International Conference in Honor of
the
Hungarian and Polish EU Presidency
Budapest, 29 September, 2011
„Europe cannot afford to leave talent
untapped –
empowering the role of women in busienss,
social and political life.”
Anna Jancewicz, CAWF
CAWF activities in the changing economic and political
environment:
Gender issues - not much mentioned issue
due to the labor market organization
though „Woman is the Negro of the World”
 household cires + full time job
Change together with the economy transition
CAWF’s activities:
First aid: unemployed women
Mid 2000 : the economic changes well rooted ; new ideas, observations,
phenomena
Background:
• Over thirty years of equality legislation in the European Union to promote gender
equality.
• Gender Equality widely accepted as socially important goal but also viewed as:
not necessarily in line with economic goals
 a constraint or a cost
 a societal choice or preference
• Need to recognize the costs of non-equality and the positive economic contribution of
gender equality
Gender equality - the Economic Case
• Gender equality can be viewed as …
 an investment and not a cost
 a productive factor not a constraint
• Investment in social infrastructure
 to reap rewards of investment in human capital
 akin to investment in physical infrastructure
• These benefits of equality expand when we move beyond GDP as a measure of
progress
 quality of life,
 well being,
 child poverty, etc.
Barriers towards gender equality on the labor market :
(1) structural
(2) invisible (mental)
For over 30 years the EU has been taking numerous steps taken towards gender
equality, corresponding to (set backs) :




:
the gender pay gap
unequal care burden
segregation in the labor market
low representation in decision‐making.
Steps to break down structural barriers holding women back:
•
•
Legislative measures
Last generation workplace innovations , specially by corporations:
 policies to support women with young children,
 measures to help women navigate their careers (mentoring)
 formal sponsorship programs to ensure professional development (trainings)
The next frontier is toppling invisible barriers:
 mind-sets widely held by managers, men and women alike, that are rarely
acknowledged but block the way:
 Role models (home/workplace)
 Intellectual presdispositions
An Economic Case
• Gender Equality can be viewed as an investment
 a productive factor (workforce)
 exploit full productive potential of the labor force ( another 50%)
 economic gains at a national or regional level
An economic case as a complement rather than replacement to the moral case.
Gender Equality and Growth
•
Productive use of women’s investment in education and human capital:
 Utilization of all human capital investments
 Access to full range of skills - address shortages
 Returns on personal investment in human capital
•
Gender equality as contributor to GDP
 higher productivity through avoidance of skill loss
 Lower taxes
 GDP growth
Gender Equality vs demographic challenges
• Sustainable populations
 positive relationship between female employment and fertility = sustainable
populations (advanced gender equality – higher birth rates)
 rising dependency ratios = ageing populations
• Integration of informal work & recognizing the value of unpaid and informal work:
 positive contribution of tax and social contributions
 modern fiscal systems that avoid perverse thresholds for job creation
 and/or household disincentives
Integration into employment
more than covers
investment in social infrastructure.
Gender equality - Economic Case
Participation
Growth
Fertility
Fiscal
Macro
Employment rates,
Utilization of
investment in
education system
Investing in a productive
Labor force
Reduced poverty/social
Exclusion
Sustainable
populations
Funding and
sustainability
Meso
Utilization of Human
resources
Access to full range of
skills
skill diversity
avoid skill loss
Work life balance
policies supporting
retention
Avoidance of
perverse tax
thresholds
Micro
Return on personal
investment in human
capital
domestic division of
labor
Individual rights,
individual
employment
preferences
Taxation without perverse
disincentives
Receive benefits on
work done
Rights for nonstandard
Workers
Reduce social risks
and personal costs
of inequality
The Economic Case for Gender Equality Mark Smith, Equality Pays Conference - Brussels, 8 March 2011
Gender equality Benefits
Factors Leveraging Equality
Benefits
Macro (policies)
policies to expand access to
employment
gender-based Targets
gender mainstreaming obligations
Meso (emplyers)
organizational
organisational innovations (WLB,
retention)
progress in organization
organisation hierarchies
Micro (individuals)
Improved education attainment
more continuous participation
shorter and fewer career breaks
Factors Limiting
Equality Benefits
Macro
lack of gender mainstreaming
economic policy
short-term crisis responses
public sector cuts
Meso
segregation occupations
women’s concentration in low-paid
work
Micro
unequal division of care and unpaid
work
limited support for careers
The Economic Case for Gender Equality Mark Smith, Equality Pays Conference - Brussels, 8 March 2011
Drawing on the potential contribution from the whole population - risks:
 Exit Strategies from the recession - a risk of reduced focus on gender equality
goals and thus economic benefits
 Risk of trying to turn back the clock on gender equality (labor market challenges)
 Long-term challenges remain for European societies
• Making the case for :
 Importance of gender mainstreaming policies
 Promoting coherent social and economic policy
Thank you for your attention !