Documentation Centre and Archives on Feminism, Equal Opportunities and Women's Studies
Documentation Centre and Archives Equal Opportunities in the European Union
Equality between women and men
Quite regularly information that matters to women is published on the websites of the European Union and the Council of Europe. Only, this relevant information is a little hard to find. That is why RoSa helps you with its selection of must-read messages, reports, decisions and regulations concerning gender equality. RoSa browses, you get informed at just one mouse click.
Right from the start, the European Union has been an important institute for promoting gender equality. At the foundation of the European Economical Community on 25 March 1957, equal treatment of women and men has been laid down as a basic human right. But that was only one first little step. It was going to take decennia of work to arrive at where we stand now. We call it “community acquis” .
In the past 30 years, the European Parliament voted several laws on gender equality in labour market participation, education, promotion, labour conditions, equal pay, social security, parental leave, access to goods and services.
EU-legislation on gender equality in the field of employment and social policy.
Obstacles to actual equality, however, remain. Women are often forced to chose between children and carreer, due to
a lack of flexible terms of employment and crèches. Gender stereotypes persist. Women’s progress made in the field of education does not
reflect from their position on the labour market.
The Women’s Charter
In 2010, in the run-up for the 15th anniversary of the Beijing UN World Conference on Women, The European Commission strengthened her commitment to making equality between women and men a reality with
the Women’s Charter. This is a political declaration whereby the Commission commits itself to implement a gender dimension in all of its lines of policy.
The Women's Charter defines five gender equality issues
:
1 Equal economic independence
2 Equal pay for equal work and work of equal value
3 Equality in decision-making
4 Dignity, integrity and putting an end to gender-based violence
5 Gender equality in external actions and beyond the EU borders
Read more:
Women's Charter - pdf
Press file on women's charter and the pay gap
Policy plan for gender equality
After the Road
map for equality between women and men (2006 - 2010) ran out, the European Commission drew up a new new five years' action plan called
“Strategy for Equality between Women and Men
2010-2015”, in which they incorporated the five priorities from the Women's Charter :
1 Deal with labour market segregation, poverty, precarious employment, involuntary part-time work and the unbalanced sharing of care responsibilities with men; aim at a 75%
employment rate for both women and men in 2020
2 Collaborate with the member states in order to substantially reduce the gender pay gap,
which is nowf 18% in average, in the coming five years; organize a yearly Equal Pay Day
3 Reduce gender unbalance in decision-making positions in the political and economic area and in science; remove the glass ceiling
4 Put an end to gender-based violence, including harmful traditional practices such as genital mutilation within and beyond the borders of the
EU
5 Promote gender equality in third countries by raising the matter with international organisations, in foreign affairs and in development policy.
