The Impact of Welfare Regimes on Gender Equality (original) (raw)
Related papers
Making welfare regime analysis sensitive to gender relations
Sociološki pregled, 2008
This paper is a discussion of the most representative contributions to the study of gender and welfare states from the comparative perspective. In the first section of the paper we follow the development of the gender and welfare state analyses that brought these two separate theoretical and empirical interests together; in the second section we follow the internal development of the comparative welfare regime analysis with respect to gender relations, which was brought about by this convergence. Building on these contributions, we describe our own framework for the analysis of the implications of the socioeconomic transformation in post-socialist countries on gender inequality in economic wellbeing. We introduce a three dimensional classification of women on which rather abstractly defined gender content of welfare regimes could be actually empirically measured.
2015
Gender Mainstreaming is a political strategy that is widely used and acknowledged in the EU Member States since the Beijing Declaration in 1995. Both the Member States and the EU use the strategy to achieve greater gender equality. Although the aim is similar, if not the same, the practical implementation and its scope and depth vary in each Member State. Sweden is regarded as one of the most gender-egalitarian countries worldwide as gender equalities are high on the political agenda since the 1970s. Also with regard to Gender Mainstreaming the Scandinavian country is depicted as a forerunner: Already since 1994, so one year earlier than the UN Declaration, the strategy serves as the Government's main principle to achieve gender equality within the society. One reason for Sweden's exceptional position is its extensive social welfare system that is based on the belief of an egalitarian society with universal social rights and high benefits. The so-called "dual earner/dual carer" policy model serves as the base for those welfare policies as it includes long and high parental allowance, high insurance benefits for the individual and well-developed leave and child care facilities. All measures actively support the (re)integration of women into the labour market. In Germany, on the contrary, the "male breadwinner" model is predominant: The society is shaped by the traditional patriarchal structures of a male-female hierarchy which is also reflected in the social welfare policies such as the child allowance that provides financial incentives for mothers to stay at home to care for the child instead of participating in the labour market. Also the German tax/benefit system is gender biased as benefits are provided to a household and not to an individual so that many women are financially dependent on their husbands or partners. Although gender equality is an own policy field since the 1970s, the gender bias is still reflected in the measures taken: Since 2000, Gender Mainstreaming serves as the main strategy to achieve greater equality among men and women, but the practical implementation is less advanced and less deeply incorporated into politics and political decision-making processes. Therefore, Germany can learn from Sweden with regard to gender equality policies in general and Gender Mainstreaming in particular so that the existing gap between the two countries in terms of equality can be narrowed.
Gender and European Welfare States
2008
How can we understand the varied ways in which gender assumptions underpin welfare states across Europe and how they are changing? Do the Three Worlds of Welfare Capitalism encapsulate differences between gender regimes, or do we need a more targeted gender analysis, differentiating male breadwinner from dual earner models? And how do these models relate to those post-state socialist countries which have joined the EU since 2004? In academic debate and political reality, 'Europe' has tended to mean 'Western Europe'; but 10 of the 27 member states are now former state socialist countries, with profoundly different social, political and gender histories from those in Western countries. One argument is of a shift in Western Europe towards women's increasing labour market participation, away from a male breadwinner model, albeit in most countries more a one-and-a-half model and far from gender equality, and at most a one-and-three quarter. Another sees post-state socialist countries 're-traditionalising' towards a male breadwinner model, as supports for mothers in the labour market have been reduced under social and economic transformation since 1989. Does this mean that there are contrasting trajectories East and West? Or should they be better seen as converging, in the context of economic and social change and European Union policy? This chapter will argue that both theoretical approaches shed light on gender regimes in Europe, and on changes to them. Unpacking the male breadwinner model into component parts (paid work, care work, income, time, power) allows us to understand the way that gender has been at the heart of gender inequality in male breadwinner systems in Western Europe, and how-to different degrees-regimes have supported a move from the male breadwinner system towards gender equality in paid and unpaid work, income, time and power. In practice, the social democratic regimes have supported gender equality and the move away from the male breadwinner model much more positively than other regimes, albeit all 27 members have signed up to the European Union's gender policy. A more collective approach, including social support for children and for childcare, has underpinned policies for gender equality. Some countries of Central and Eastern Europe have retained social welfare systems which support gender equality, particularly through supports to motherhood, despite the move from state socialism, and through periods of social and economic turbulence. Systems of state support for gender equality, in particular through supporting the social costs of children and care, are at the heart of the success of the Scandinavian social democratic states as the most gender equal welfare states in the European Union, and-to a lesser extent-in some parts of Central and Eastern Europe which were formerly under state socialist domination. Websites European Commission Database on Women and Men in Decision-making
Ekonomski anali, 2015
This paper explores the differences between gender regimes in Europe, with an emphasis on EU policies, the Nordic women-friendly welfare states, and the former socialist policies of South Eastern European (SEE) countries. The main premise is that culture and differing institutionalization of gender equality contribute to different perceptions of women?s role in society and to a different perception of gender equality in general. The paper examines the theoretical standpoints and historical background of different gender regimes in Europe. Gender equality indices are analyzed in order to investigate if any patterns exist among European countries with distinct cultural, political, and social backgrounds. Nordic countries are overachievers in gender equality in Europe, mainly due to the prevailing egalitarianism and institutionalization of women-friendly welfare policies, which can serve as a good benchmark for wider Europe, especially for countries from South East Europe. However, cul...
Annual Review of Sociology, 1996
I would like to thank Renee Monson for helpful comments and discussions about gendered interests, the nature of the relationship between gender relations and welfare states, and the feminization of poverty. Thanks to Kathrina Zippel for general research assistance on this project, and for providing a summary of the literature on gender and the welfare state in Germany, including many works written in German.
Estudios Working Papers, 1996
I would like to thank Renee Monson for helpful comments and discussions about gendered interests, the nature of the relationship between gender relations and welfare states, and the feminization of poverty. Thanks to Kathrina Zippel for general research assistance on this project, and for providing a summary of the literature on gender and the welfare state in Germany, including many works written in German.
Social Politics: International Studies in Gender, State & Society, 2021
A common assumption in comparative family policy studies is that employers statistically discriminate against women in countries with dual-earner family policy models. The empirical evidence cited in support of this assumption has exclusively been observational data, which should not be relied on to identify employer discrimination. In contrast, we investigate whether employers discriminate against women in Sweden—frequently viewed as epitomizing the dual-earner family policy model—using field experiment data. We find no evidence supporting the notion that Swedish employers statistically discriminate against women.