In a High-Level Conference on a future oriented European Pillar of Social Rights on 15 April 2024 in Brussels, Director Carlien Scheele gave a key note address on access to the labour market from a gender equal and intersectional approach.
Dear colleagues,
It’s a pleasure to be with you today, and many thanks to the Belgian Presidency for including in today’s discussions a focus on gender-equal access to the labour market, from an intersectional perspective.
Today, the labour market is as gender-segregated as it was over ten years ago – when my Agency first launched the Gender Equality Index.
I often talk about gender equality in the EU moving at a snail’s pace, but in this specific case, the needle hasn’t moved an inch. In 10 years!
And we are talking about both vertical and horizontal segregation in the labour market, creating bottlenecks in every direction:
Women face barriers entering sectors like engineering for example, let alone moving upwards to decision-making positions. Men face barriers moving into roles that have traditionally been occupied by women like unpaid care or professional care jobs.
Today, the labour market is as gender-segregated as it was over ten years ago – when my Agency first launched the Gender Equality Index. I often talk about gender equality in the EU moving at a snail’s pace, but in this specific case, the needle hasn’t moved an inch. In 10 years!
Meanwhile, new jobs are continually created to support meaningful change in our societies and economies, such as Europe's transition towards a green and digital continent.
However, due to the existing labour market dynamics, women are at an unfair disadvantage for these emerging jobs.
The European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan, presented by the Commission in March 2021, sets an ambitious EU headline target to achieve at least a 78% employment rate of the population aged 20-64 by 2030, and to halve the gender employment gap compared to 2019.
We have a long way to go to reach these targets, given where we stand today
Last year EIGE’s Gender Equality Index focused on the European Green Deal, which has significant potential for economic growth and socio-economic cohesion.
But to bring this potential to life, we need to overcome preexisting gender inequalities, which stand in the way of development.
In almost all countries, the share of women with basic digital skills is lower than the share of men.
The gender gap in digital skills reflects gender imbalances in employment: in 2021 only 19% of those employed by companies in the IT sector were women.
The accelerated transition to clean energy planned in RePowerEU targets will require the creation of over 3.5 million jobs in renewable energy by 2030
Our research shows that over the past seven years, an estimated 34% of women occupy jobs that have been created in the energy transition.
Although these numbers hold promise, they still reflect the lack of parity for prospects between women and men.
The irony is, that women in the EU are increasingly well qualified and skilled: more women than men graduate from university, but the labour market participation does not reflect this! We are failing to fully tap into the entire talent pool.
So what are the barriers?
One key word here is: CARE.
Our agency’s 2022 EU-wide survey on unpaid care, and individual and social activities showed that about 56 % of women with children under 12 years old spend at least 5 hours per day on childcare, compared to 26 % of men.
This is a deep disparity – influenced in large part by gender norms and expectations. And it has a profound impact on how women and men use and manage their time differently.
Let me give you an example. Think of when your child is sick. What typically happens? Mothers step in. Who typically plans, manages and organises a child’s activities? It mostly falls on mothers.
The inequalities in care, which I just described, are a direct cause and consequence for the lack of gender-equal access to the labour market.
Women still invest more time and energy in the more emotionally and physically intensive childcare – , leaving them with fewer opportunities to enter the workforce. We need to see more men in care-related roles, supported by parental leave, giving both parents the same opportunities to engage in family life.
The inequalities in care, which I just described, are a direct cause and consequence for the lack of gender-equal access to the labour market.
With the promise of structural reform from the EU’s Work-Life Balance Directive and the European Care Strategy, there is hope for reversing hard-wired norms and expectations. Both are embedded in a gender equality framework.
Let me give you a second perspective: PENSIONS.
As long as one is young, pensions seem like a distant concern. But we need to realise that every decision made in a life cycle – or the decisions many women are not able to make, for example in relation to a career, has a direct impact on pensions.
My agency has commissioned research to support the Belgian Presidency looking at financial independence and gender equality. Some findings indicate that in the EU, across couples, 21% of women who are not employed rely on their partner as the single earner in the family. But only 6% of men are in an equivalent situation.
Not only are there major gender gaps in current incomes today, but also in future pension entitlements. And the fact that women statistically live longer than men puts them in a more precarious position – leaving them in more vulnerable situations.
And even when women have a fully developed career, they are the ones who tend to adjust their career paths for family life more than men.
Let’s focus on intersectionality now because it matters. We all have multiple, overlapping identities and roles – and depending on where they sit on the social axis it can significantly influence and shape our experience of the world.
If we want a fair and inclusive Europe, free of discrimination and full of opportunities for everyone, we need more dedicated efforts in resource allocation - into the institutions, the tools and frameworks that we already have to strengthen and further promote gender equality.
Our 2023 Index revealed that labour market participation is significantly lower among women and men with disabilities compared to those without. Low labour market participation, low work intensity, and discrimination are among the main underlying factors for the higher risk of poverty and social exclusion among people with disabilities.
Women with a migrant background face significant barriers in accessing employment, compared to the equivalent group of men.
So what can we do? Or rather, what could YOU do?
You have the keys in your hands to incorporate the hidden potential of women and men in all their diversity into the labour market.
HOW?
Put simply: be gender sensitive. Policies impact women and men differently.
Therefore, this needs to be considered in policy implementation by recognising and addressing women's and men’s specific needs and interests. And in the process, see that inequalities are eliminated, and equality is promoted.
A more gender-equal EU would have strong, positive GDP impacts growing over time. Higher levels of employment and productivity could respond to challenges related to the ageing population in the EU.
By 2050, improving gender equality in the EU would lead to an increase in GDP from €1.95 to €3.15 trillion.
Back in February, at the informal meeting of gender equality ministers, I outlined what a gender-equal Europe could look like in 2030 if priorities are turned into realities with haste.
Now to the Ministers of Social Policy and Labour amongst you:
Start a dialogue with your colleagues in Equality Ministries – get advice on how to improve women’s access to the labour market and combat segregation– give it priority focus and attention.
Talk to your colleagues in the Finance Ministry to see how to put resources into measures in your portfolio that improve equal opportunities between women and men
And at the European level, let’s ensure that there is a dedicated space for us to talk about our policy and legislative developments with an equality focus.
If we want a fair and inclusive Europe, free of discrimination and full of opportunities for everyone, we need more dedicated efforts in resource allocation - into the institutions, the tools and frameworks that we already have to strengthen and further promote gender equality.
That starts in my view with ensuring that Gender Equality is mainstreamed across all fields of life and that a possible future EU Gender Equality Strategy strongly embeds gender mainstreaming in its set-up.
Bringing it back to the labour market, we must ensure the equality of treatment and opportunities between women and men about terms and conditions of employment, career progression and the right to equal pay.
I want to conclude by saying that all these issues I have outlined today come as no surprise to anyone. Individual and collective experiences tell us a lot. Enough for robust policy responses, removing barriers and opening prospects.
Thank you.