Description of the contract
The European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) envisages awarding a middle-value contract for a study on gender equality for a future ready workforce supported by relevant skills and gender-inclusive and resilient workplace in the EU. This study aims at monitoring the EU commitment to the Beijing Platform for Action (BPfA) in areas B ’Education and training of women’ and F ‘Women and the Economy’. The study is shaped by EU priorities and will guide the Council in making EU policies more effective in achieving gender equality objectives.
Description of the requested services
The BPfA seeks to eliminate occupational segregation and all forms of employment discrimination. It promotes women’s economic rights and independence, including access to employment, and harmonization of work and family responsibilities for women and men.
The EU is navigating profound global and internal challenges that require coordinated, forward-thinking solutions. Climate change, the far-reaching impact of digitalisation and technological change are further exacerbated by a shrinking workforce and the increasing challenges of an aging population. This underscores the need to re-align skills and labour market demands, but also strengthen care and healthcare systems to better meet the evolving needs of societies and economies. Disaggregating gendered labour is key to addressing labour demands and workforce gaps. Ensuring that populations are equipped with the necessary skills and (institutional) support for work-life balance is essential to meeting both economic and societal demands. Underrepresentation of women in fast growing technological, green and digital sectors impede the economic progress of women and overall economic growth of the EU.
Thriving in a gender equal economy is a strategic priority of the EU gender equality strategy 2020-2025. It underlines that women and men in all their diversity should have equal opportunities to thrive and be economically independent.
The study will aim to provide a gender analysis of the challenges and opportunities in ensuring relevant skills and working conditions, especially work-life balance supportive workplace opportunities, for a future-ready workforce (competitive, resilient and inclusive) in the EU. The study will focus on the two most gender segregated and resilience-critical areas of the economies:
- the skills and jobs critical for the technological, digital and green transitions, and
- the skills and jobs essential for ensuring societal and economic resilience – strong education, health and welfare (EHW).
Firstly, the study will elaborate on the concepts of resilient workforce and workplace and set the focus by defining which sectors, occupations and skills pertinent to the technological, green and digital transitions will be analysed. Green and digital transitions typically focus on STEM skills and jobs. However, strong EHW jobs and skills is an important precondition of resilient and future ready workforce in the tech/digital/green transition.
Secondly, the study will analyse projected trends in skills demand and supply across selected sectors and occupations in the EU (e.g. based on Cedefop's Skills Forecast methodology). Specifically, it will examine how the tech, digital and green transitions will impact gender balance or disparities within selected sectors/occupations. The study will test at least two skills projection scenarios for gender equality, e.g. if no major change happens (inducing the same historic trajectory) and if some conditions change (e.g. more women entering certain fields of study, etc.).
Thirdly, based on available literature and research the study will look broader at working conditions in selected sectors/occupations that are needed to ensure resilient workforce and sustainable workplace, with stronger focus on work-life balance supportive workplace (e.g. workplace culture, managerial and peer support, informal care, access to care services, mental well-being, working time arrangements, intensity and flexibility, opportunities for life-long learning). With ‘Future in focus’, the study will run the impact estimation of selected gender-responsive advancements, i.e. on how certain conditions (e.g. having more women in managerial roles, work flexibility or access to quality care services) would attract or retain more women in sectors and occupations affected by green, digital and technological transitions.
The study is expected to draw on desk research, both quantitative and qualitative, as well as available quantitative and qualitative data originating from academia, civil society, social partners and governmental institutions, including EU-wide high quality comparative survey data where relevant. Access to and analysis of relevant microdata is expected.
Description of the procedure
This ex-ante publicity is the first stage of the negotiated procurement procedure through which EIGE may award the above-mentioned contract.
All parties interested in providing the services described above should express their interest through the Funding and Tenders portal, until 03/11/2025.
Economic operators who do not express their interest before the deadline via the indicated portal will not be invited to submit an offer. The latter restriction will not apply to the minimum of five economic operators directly invited by EIGE.
This publication constitutes no obligation for EIGE to launch the mentioned procurement procedure.