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Report

Gender equality and economic independence:part-time work and self-employment

Review of the Implementation of the Beijing Platform forAction in the EU Member States

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More information on the European Union is available on the Internet ( http://europa.eu ).

Cataloguing data can be found at the end of this publication.

Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2014

ISBN 978-92-9218-480-3doi:10.2839/74174

European Institute for Gender Equality, 2014Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged.

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Gender equality andeconomic independence:part-time work andself-employmentReview of the Implementation

of the Beijing Platformfor Action in the EUMember States

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The report was developed by the research team of the European Institute forGender Equality (EIGE): Ilze Burkevica, Dr Anne Laure Humbert, Merle Paats,Dr Jolanta Reingard and Eva Ronnberg. A particular thank you goes to othercolleagues at EIGE for their intellectual contributions, editing and administra-tive support.

The report has greatly beneted from the expert advice received from theGender Equality Unit at DG Justice, the European Commissions High-LevelGroup on Gender Mainstreaming, the General Secretariat for Gender Equalityof the Greek government, the European Womens Lobby and the European Trade Union Confederation.

The data collection and initial analysis was part of a study commissioned by

EIGE and carried out by the Institute for Social Research (IRS) in collabora-tion with the Economic Research Centre on Labour and Industry (CRELI) atthe University of Milan. The research was coordinated by Jolanta Reingardand Maurizio Mosca (EIGE), together with Flavia Pesce (IRS), Manuela SamekLodovici (IRS) and Claudio Lucifora (CRELI).

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Gender Equality and Economic Independence: Part-time work and Self-employmentReview of the Implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action in the EU Member States 3

EIGE

ForewordEqual access to economic resources is not just a matter ofensuring equal economic independence between womenand men, but it has also been recognised as a prerequisite forthe achievement of economic growth, prosperity and com-petitiveness. The recent economic downturn has broughtunprecedented challenges for many Member States andfor the European Union as a whole, and has resulted in areduction in public funding and resources in some MemberStates, including in areas that are important for the pursuitof gender equality. Increasing womens participation in thelabour market and their economic empowerment is there-fore crucial in order to foster economic growth and, moreimportantly, to ensure that the EU makes full use of available

talent and human resources.

This publication is the sixth report in EIGEs review of theimplementation of the BPfA in the EU and was prepared tosupport the Greek Presidency of the Council of the Europe-an Union. Developed in close cooperation with the Greekgovernment and the European Commission, the report fo-cuses on the importance of gender equality in economicrights and independence, including access to employment,appropriate working conditions and control over economicresources. Through an analytical focus on part-time workand self-employment, the report demonstrates their effect

on the economic independence of women and men, aswell as on gender equality more broadly. On the basis ofthis analysis, EIGE proposed a set of indicators and sub-in-dicators in the area of women and the economy that wereendorsed by the Council in June 2014.

The report emphasises several important trends. It illus-trates that part-time work is an important way of facilitatinglabour-force participation, for both women and men, sinceit expands opportunities to meet a variety of life demands

and interests over the course of a life. However, one of thestrongest gender differences in todays participation in thelabour market is the prevailing over-representation of wom-en in part-time work, which has a signicant negative effecton womens economic independence. The quest for worklife balance in employment is therefore very detrimental towomen.

In contrast, self-employment provides an opportunity towork on a exible basis and enhance opportunities to ob-tain a worklife balance without reducing working hours.However, self-employment can also lead to much lowerearnings and income for women, and thus greater risk of

poverty over the course of life.

Overall, the report shows substantial gender gaps in thelabour market. More transformative measures are neededto tackle the structural obstacles that women face whenaccessing and/or participating in the labour market.

On behalf of the Institute, I would like to thank all the in-stitutions and experts who contributed to this publication,and especially the Greek Presidency of the Council of theEuropean Union, the European Commission Directorate-General for Justice and its High-Level Group on Gender

Mainstreaming, and EIGEs staff. We hope that the ndingsand recommendations of this study will give impetus forbroader debates on the importance of womens economicindependence and empowerment and will contribute torealising de facto gender equality in the European Union.

Virginija Langbakk Director

European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE)

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Gender equality and economic independence: part-time work and self-employmentReview of the Implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action in the EU Member States4

EIGE

Country abbreviationsBE Belgium

BG Bulgaria

CZ Czech Republic

DK Denmark

DE Germany

EE Estonia

IE Ireland

EL Greece

ES SpainFR France

HR Croatia

IT Italy

CY Cyprus

LV Latvia

LT Lithuania

LU Luxembourg

HU Hungary

MT MaltaNL Netherlands

AT Austria

PL Poland

PT Portugal

RO Romania

SI Slovenia

SK Slovakia

FI Finland

SE Sweden

UK United Kingdom

EU-28 The 28 EU Member States

EU-27 The 27 EU Member States

GlossaryALMP Active Labour Market Policy

BPfA Beijing Platform for Action

CoE Council of Europe

EC European Commission

EEO European Employment Observatory

EES European Employment Strategy

EGGE EU Expert Group on Gender and Employment

EGGSI Expert Group on Gender Equality and Social

Inclusion, Health and Long Term CareEHH Education, Health and Welfare, Humanitiesand the Arts

EIGE European Institute for Gender Equality

EP European Parliament

EU European Union

EU-LFS European Union Labour Force Survey

EU-SILC European Union Statistics on Income andLiving Conditions

EWCS European Working Conditions Survey

ESS European Statistical SystemFTE Full-time Equivalent

GPG Gender Pay Gap

GDP Gross Domestic Product

ILO International Labour Organization

IMF International Monetary Fund

ISCED International Standard Classication ofEducation

ISCO International Standard Classication ofOccupations

MS Member States

NACE

Nomenclature gnrale des activitsconomiques dans les Communautseuropennes (General industrial classicationof economic activities within the EuropeanCommunities)

NUTSNomenclature des units territorialesstatistiques (Classication of territorial units forstatistics)

OECD Organisation for Economic Cooperation andDevelopment

SES Structure of Earning Survey

WB World Bank WHO Working Health Organization

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Gender Equality and Economic Independence: Part-time work and Self-employmentReview of the Implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action in the EU Member States

5

EIGE

Contents

Foreword ................................................................. ............................................................................. .............3Introduction......................................................................................................................................................6

1 Economic independence: gendered labour force results in differencesin economic outcomes .................................................................................................................................. 10

1.1 Rationale for examining economic independence............................................................ ................................. ...........................11

1.2 Policy and legislative background .............................. ................................. ................................. ................................. ...........................12

1.3 Differences in economic independence between women and men................................................ ................................15

2 Examining economic independence in the perspective ofpart-time work and self-employment ......................................................................................................... 16

2.1 Participation in the labour force......................................................... ................................. ................................. ................................. .....172.1.1 Activity ......................................................................................................................................................................................................................2.1.2 Employment ..............................................................................................................................................................................................................2.1.3 Unemployment ...........................................................................................................................................................................................................2.1.4 Segregation ................................................................................................................................................................................................................

2.2 Part-time work .............................. ................................. ................................. ................................ ................................. ............................2.2.1 Main characteristics of part-time work ...........................................................................................................................................................212.2.2 Full-time equivalent employment..................................................................................................................................................................... 252.2.3 Involuntary part-time work .................................................................................................................................................................................... 282.2.4 Segregation patterns in part-time work ........................................................................................................................................................292.2.5 Consequences of part-time work ......................................................................................................................................................................31

2.3 Entrepreneurship and self-employment ............................. ................................ ................................. ................................. ............... 31

2.3.1 Gender and entrepreneurship .............................................................................................................................................................................322.3.2 Entrepreneurs and self-employed workers ................................................................................................................................................. 322.3.3 Participation in self-employment ......................................................................................................................................................................33

2.4 Quality of work............................. ................................. ................................ ................................. ................................. ............................2.4.1 Career and employment security ......................................................................................................................................................................382.4.2 Work-life balance .......................................................................................................................................................................................................2.4.3 Health and well-being .............................................................................................................................................................................................. 42.4.4 Skills development .....................................................................................................................................................................................................2.4.5 Consequences of working part-time on quality of work ....................................................................................................................412.4.6 Consequences of self-employment on quality of work ......................................................................................................................43

2.5 Income and earnings ............................... ................................. ................................. ................................. ................................. .................2.5.1 Earnings......................................................................................................................................................................................................................2.5.2 Income .......................................................................................................................................................................................................................2.5.3 Poverty .......................................................................................................................................................................................................................

2.6 Summary .............................. ................................ ................................. ................................. ................................. ................................. ...

3 Proposed indicators ................................................................... ..............................................................52

4 Conclusions and recommendations .................................................................. ....................................68

4.1 Conclusions .................................................................................................................................................................................................

4.2 New indicators for monitoring progress in promoting womens economic independence .............................. 73

4.3 Recommendations ........................................................................................................................................................................................

References ......................................................................................................................................................76

Annexes .................................................................... ............................................................................. ..........82

Endnotes .......................................................................................................................................................113

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Introduction

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IntroductionEIGE

IntroductionGender equality has increasingly been recognised asa prerequisite for the achievement of economic growth,prosperity and competitiveness. In 1957, the right to equalpay was enshrined in the Treaty of Rome and ever since,the EU has been reinforcing its commitment to promoteequality between women and men. It is now a funda-mental value of the EU underpinned by the Treaty ofAmsterdam: the incorporation of gender equality intoall policies is no longer an option but an obligation. TheEuropean Commissions Strategy for Equality betweenWomen and Men 2010-2015 highlights the contributionof gender equality to economic growth and sustainabledevelopment, and supports the implementation of the

gender equality dimension in the Europe 2020 Strategy.

At the level of the United Nations, the Fourth WorldConference on Women, held in Beijing in 1995, saw thelaunch of a ground-breaking worldwide strategy for gen-der equality, namely the Beijing Declaration and Platformfor Action for Equality, Development and Peace (BPfA). This agenda for womens empowerment affirms the fun-damental principle whereby the human rights of womenand girls are an inalienable, integral and indivisible part ofuniversal human rights. The BPfA established twelve crit-ical areas of concern that need to be addressed in order

to achieve political, social, economic, cultural, and en-vironmental security, sustainable development and social justice. These high priority areas are inter-related and re-quire collective action by national governments, regionalsocio-political structures and civil society.

In December 1995, the European Council acknowledgedthe European Unions commitment to the BPfA and to itsmonitoring on an annual basis. Starting in 1999, simplesets of quantitative and qualitative indicators have beendeveloped or improved for 11 out of 12 critical areas ofconcern under successive Presidencies of the Councilof the EU. Since 2011, the European Institute for GenderEquality has been supporting the Presidency countries inthe follow-up of the implementation of the BPfA in the EU.

The BPfA makes a clear commitment to promote womenseconomic independence, including employment, anderadicate the persistent and increasing burden of povertyon women by addressing the structural causes of povertythrough changes in economic structures, ensuring equalaccess for all women, including those in rural areas, as vitaldevelopment agents, to productive resources, oppor-tunities and public services (BPfA, 1995). One of its criticalareas of concern (Area F) specically addresses Womenand the Economy and covers six objectives.

Since 1995, Area F, Women and the Economy, has beenmonitored and reviewed at EU level ve times, in add-

ition to the Beijing +10 review carried out by the Luxem-bourg Presidency and the Beijing +15 by the SwedishPresidency. The reports of 2000, 2008 and 2011 focusedon the issues of work-life balance. In 2001 and 2010, thereviews addressed pay inequalities between women andmen. Greece, which holds the Presidency of the Councilof the EU in the rst semester of 2014, has decided to re-view the implementation of the rst strategic objective ofarea F to promote womens economic rights and inde-pendence, including access to employment, appropriateworking conditions and control over economic resources.

The question of economic independence concerns botheconomic development and the goal of gender equality.A key issue is the lack of recognition and valuing of unpaidwork. To understand the meaning and interplay of paidand unpaid work, from a gender equality perspective, it isimportant to analyse working hours and their distributionbetween women and men. In particular, part-time workshould be analysed as a possible way to transform genderrelations and allow people to fully realise their potential,but also as a phenomenon that can exacerbate genderdifferences or worsen working conditions.

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Introduction EIGE

The question of part-time work in the context of equaleconomic independence is also central to policy at the EUlevel, including the Europe 2020 headline target on em-ployment (75 % of the population aged 20-64 to be em-ployed by 2020). Reaching this target without consideringwomens and mens propensity to work on a part-timebasis would provide an incomplete picture. Access to em-ployment is indeed a prerequisite for ensuring sufficientnancial resources and decent living conditions. However,these can be at risk when patterns of employment involvehigh part-time rates, involuntary choices and limited pos-sibilities for transitions from part-time to full-time employ-ment. Indeed, when part-time work is taken into accountin some Member States, the participation of womenin employment drops signicantly; this demonstratesthe importance of measuring employment in full-timeequivalent terms. In the context of the economic crisis,

which has affected the lives of women and young people,the topic of gender-based poverty remains more relevantthan ever to strive for equal economic independence.

In reviewing the BPfAs area F, Women and the Economy,and its strategic objective F1, this report explores therelevance of part-time work and self-employment in re-lation to womens and mens economic independence.In addition, it also considers the challenges and oppor-tunities afforded by part-time work, and its potential ef-fects on economic independence as well as on genderequality. The report also proposes a set of new indicators

and sub-indicators on full-time equivalent employment,part-time employment and self-employment. The ana-lysis covers the period between 2008 and 2012.

The report is divided into four chapters. Chapter 1 setsout the conceptual framework of the study and pre-sents the academic debate and policy aspects related towomens economic independence. Chapter 2 presentsan overview of the main trends in various areas relatedto womens economic independence, providing evi-dence for the most important ndings on part-time em-ployment, full-time equivalent (FTE) employment andself-employment. Chapter 3 proposes three new indica-tors and sub-indicators for objective F1 of the BPfA. Chap-ter 4 provides some concluding remarks and recommen-dations. The report also contains Annexes which presentthe main data sources and a set of tables and graphs.

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1 Economic independence:

gendered labour force resultsin differences in economicoutcomes

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1 Economic independence: gendered labour force results in differences in economic outcomesEIGE

1 Economic independence: gendered labourforce results in differences in economicoutcomes

The purpose of this report is to examine the relevance ofpart-time work and self-employment in relation to womensand mens economic independence. In particular, the chal-lenges and opportunities that part-time work and self-em-ployment present for economic independence and the goal

of gender equality are central to the analysis. Economic in-dependence can generally be achieved through access to,and control over, critical economic resources and opportun-ities, and through equal access to employment.

1.1 Rationale for examining economic independenceMany studies identify a relationship between gender equal-ity and economic growth. The Gender Equality Index showsa clear positive relationship between gender equality andGDP in the EU Member States in 2010 (EIGE, 2013). This posi-tive relationship with economic growth also holds true of thedomains measuring gender equality in labour market par-ticipation (the domain of work ) and the domain examininggender equality in nancial resources and economic situation(the domain of money ). Nevertheless, correlation is not caus-

ation, and studies do not necessarily agree on the directionof this relationship. Some suggest that direction of causalitygoes mainly from economic growth to gender equality (Lof-strom, 2001; Duo, 2012), but others contend that greater gen-der equality leads to economic growth (Loko and Diouf, 2009;Dollar and Gatti, 1999).

There is ample evidence that when women are able to de-velop their full labour market potential, there can be signi-cant macroeconomic gains (IMF, 2013). The loss in GDP percapita attributable to gender gaps in the labour market hasbeen estimated to reach as much as 27 % in certain parts ofthe EU (Cuberes and Teignier, 2012). Increasing womens la-bour market participation to the same level as mens couldthus increases GDP tremendously (Aguirre, 2012). In addition,women make a substantial contribution to the economy byperforming large amounts of unpaid work, such as child-rear-ing and household tasks, which often remain unaccountedfor in the GDP (IMF, 2013).

In terms of gender equality and poverty, the greater participa-tion of women in the labour market has the potential to reducepoverty among women (European Parliament, 2011). In thelonger term, an increase in the number of women who havesecured their own right to a pension (rather than relying on

pension rights derived through their husband) will reduce oneof the main causes of poverty in old age. A greater number ofwomen in the labour force will widen the tax base, while the

tax take will increase further especially if the gender pay gapis also reduced. Moreover, improving gender equality is alsoa way of promoting convergence between Member Statesand regions; this is an area where there is scope for consider-able European value added (European Commission, 2013b).

Poor work conditions, such as lower pay, discontinuous earn-ings and occupational gender segregation as well as poor jobprospects and limited training opportunities can also lead to

increased risk of poverty. It also can deny people access tosocial security benets and result in reduced pension entitle-ments, thus further increasing the risk of poverty and socialexclusion in old age (European Parliament, 2011). The extentto which quality of work affects women and men in the la-bour force is therefore important.

In summary, addressing differences between women andmen in economic independence therefore not only repre-sents a major economic opportunity and stimulus for eco-nomic growth in the long term, but also an opportunity toachieve greater levels of gender equal society.

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1 Economic independence: gendered labour force results in differences in economic outcomes EIGE

1.2 Policy and legislative backgroundProviding a brief overview of the policy and regulatory back-ground pertinent to the area of women and the economy isa difficult task given that it covers a wide range of differentissues that have been the focus of much attention.

The European Employment Strategy (1997) was a signicantpolicy development, promoting participation of womenand men in the labour market and recognising women as anunder-used source of labour in the context of EUs economicand demographic challenges. It contributed to moving thepolicy focus away from managing the unemployed popula-tion towards mobilising both women and men for the labourmarket. In doing so, the Strategy relied on a greater aware-

ness of womens potential economic contribution and the ex-tent to which gender inequality could be detrimental to jobsand growth (Villa and Smith, 2009). It also marks the momentwhen policy at the EU level began to focus on the quality aswell as the quantity of employment. Prior to this, the qualityof work was largely considered in terms of wage levels alone.

The year 2010 was a further important turning point in theevolution of the European Employment Strategy as the Euro-pean Council launched the Europe 2020 Strategy which aimsto achieve smarter, more sustainable and more inclusive eco-nomic growth and which sets a number of EU headline tar-

gets, including an employment target. It aims to create moreand better jobs and achieve a higher employment rate forwomen as part of the overall employment target of 75 % for all20-64 year-olds by 2020. The Europe 2020 Strategy targets arebuilt upon the earlier Lisbon Strategy (2000-2010) ((EC) (2010)114) targets which aims for 70 % of the population of workingage to be in employment and specically to reach 60 %of employment for women. The specic reference to genderwas lost in the Europe 2020 targets, although the linked Em-ployment Guidelines for Member States economic policiesstate that gender equality should be integrated into all relevantpolicy areas and national policies should improve the situationof women in the labour market and combat discrimination inorder to increase womens labour force participation.

The European Commissions Strategy for Equality betweenWomen and Men 2010-2015 (COM(2010a) 491) acknowledgedequal economic independence as a prerequisite for enablingboth women and men to exercise control over their lives andto make genuine choices ( 1) and placed it among the key pri-ority areas. The Strategy identies specic measures to sup-port the economic independence of women, which include:

promoting equality as part of the Europe 2020 Strategyand through EU funding;

promoting womens entrepreneurship and self-employ-ment;

assessing workers rights with regard to taking time offfor family reasons;

assessing Member States performance with regard tochildcare facilities;

supporting gender equality in matters of immigrationand the integration of migrants.

In addition, the European Pact for Gender Equality (2011-2020) reaffirms the EUs commitments to closing gender gapsin employment, education and social protection, promotingbetter worklife balance for women and men and combating

all forms of violence against women.

Given that women are generally disadvantaged nanciallyand exposed to greater risks of social exclusion, the elimin-ation of the gender pay gap has long been a priority for theEU in a number of policy areas. The principle of equal payfor equal work or work of equal value has been enshrined inthe Treaties since 1957 and is incorporated in the Directive2006/54/EC (Recast Directive). A legal basis for EU actionexists under the Treaty of Lisbon, together with the commit-ment to gender equality found in the Charter of Fundamen-tal Rights. The Report from the Commission to the European

Parliament and the Council on the application of Directive2006/54/EC, however, pointed out that its most problematicarea was the practical application of equal pay provisions inMember States. Indeed, pay discrimination and the lack ofchallenges by individuals in national courts remain amongthe main causes of the persistent gender pay gap (EC, 2013c). The European Commissions Communication of 2007 on thegender pay gap ( 2) proposed a series of actions to tackle thisproblem. These included a better application of existing le-gislation, ghting the gender pay gap in employment policies,promoting equal pay among employers and through socialpartnership, and supporting the exchange of good practicesacross the EU. A new measurement methodology (based onthe SES Structure of Earnings Survey) has been implement-ed in order to obtain a harmonised and comparable data onthe unadjusted gender pay gap across Member States. More-over, a major communication campaign ( 3) was launched onInternational Womens Day 2009 including exchanges of goodpractice between Member States on counselling services foremployers and employees and on awareness-raising.

Another key priority of the EU, related to the current eco-nomic situation, is the promotion of social inclusion in par-ticular through the reduction of poverty (European Pact forGender Equality 2011-2020). Europe 2020 has a strong focus

on poverty, the aim being to reduce the number of individ-uals living below the national poverty line by 25 %, therebydecreasing the number of individuals at risk of poverty and
http://europa.eu/legislation_summaries/employment_and_social_policy/equality_between_men_and_women/em0031_en.htmhttp://europa.eu/legislation_summaries/employment_and_social_policy/equality_between_men_and_women/em0031_en.htmhttp://europa.eu/legislation_summaries/employment_and_social_policy/equality_between_men_and_women/em0031_en.htmhttp://europa.eu/legislation_summaries/employment_and_social_policy/equality_between_men_and_women/em0031_en.htm

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social exclusion by 20 million. Ample evidence exists toshow that women nd themselves in more precarious situ-ations throughout the EU in terms of access to nancial re-sources and economic situation, mostly stemming from thediscrimination experienced by women in the labour market.Ultimately, gender inequalities translate over the lifecourseinto a higher risk of poverty for women. The economic crisisbrought new challenges, reducing economic opportunities,with a particularly negative effect on the lives of women andyoung people. Tackling gender-based poverty is an import-ant prerequisite to strive for equal economic independence.

Recently a strong stand has been taken at the European levelto improve working conditions. The increasing relevance ofatypical or non-standard forms of employment (includingpart-time , casual, xed-term and temporary agency work ,self-employment, independent work, work at home and tele-

working) prompted the EU institutions and Member States tomodernise labour regulations and to support the develop-ment of a exicurity approach, the exchange of good practicesand nancial support through the European Structural Funds.In response to the need for a fairer balance between quantity(more jobs) and quality (i.e. stable and better paid jobs), theEuropean Commission launched common principles of exi-curity (4). They are meant to serve as a common framework forthe implementation of integrated exicurity strategies in theMember States and are also intended to improve the employ-ment and professional opportunities for women. The Com-missions Communication on Flexicurity (2007) also proposed

a list of indicators, which should serve as a basis to observedevelopments on the four components of exicurity as well asmore general labour market outcomes ( 5). The exicurity ap-proach needs to work in synergy with improvements in qualityof work, such as skills, training and human capital formation,together with effective organisation of work, which are keyelements for improving both workers adaptability and labourproductivity. However, not all is positive about the exicurityapproach, not least in terms of gender equality. Interruptionsin career-paths, labour market segregation, compounded byinequalities between the time spent in caring activities, largelyfall outside of exicurity provisions. As a result, the exicurityagenda fails to tackle gender equality by its narrower focus onpaid work and the labour market only (Jepsen, 2014).

The Europe 2020 Strategy complements exicurity approach,as it includes a commitment to fostering high levels of em-ployment and productivity. This implies a renewed em-phasis on the earlier Lisbon Strategy goals of more and better jobs more jobs to remedy the sharp increase in unem-ployment in times of nancial crisis; better-quality work (interms of training, knowledge content and employment con-ditions) to improve productivity levels and to maintain andimprove living conditions (Eurofound, 2011).

As for the regulation of atypical work in the EU, the principleof non-discrimination between atypical (including basedon working hours, duration of employment, place of work

or the nature of the employment relationship) and standardworkers was enforced. Equal treatment is at the centre of thedirectives on part-time work ( Directive 1997/81/EC) (6) andxed-term work (Directive 1999/70/EC) (7). The Directive onpart-time work establishes a framework to eliminate discrim-ination against part-time workers and to promote the qualityof part-time work. It also aims to facilitate the development ofpart-time work on a voluntary basis and to contribute to theexible organisation of working time in a manner which takesinto account the needs of both employers and workers (EIGE,2012). Both directives are based on Framework Agreementsbetween EU social partners.

Another area of legislative action was the adoption of the dir-ective on temporary agency work (Directive 2008/104/EC)dening a general framework applicable to the working con-ditions of temporary workers in the EU. It aims to guarantee

a minimum level of effective protection to temporary work-ers and to contribute to the development of the temporarywork sector as a exible option for employers and workers. The Directive lays down the principle of non-discrimination,as regards the essential conditions of work and of employ-ment, between temporary workers and workers who are re-cruited by the user company.

The gender equality directives that complement this em-ployment legislation include Directive 2006/54/EC on theimplementation of the principle of equal opportunities andequal treatment of women and men in matters of employ-

ment and occupation (recruitment, access to employmentand self-employment; dismissals; vocational training andpromotion; membership in workers or employers organisa-tions); Directive 79/7/EEC for equal treatment of women andmen in matters of social security and Directive 2004/113/EC which covers equal treatment in the access to and supply ofgoods and services. In relation to parenthood, two directiveswhere introduced. Directive 1992/85/EC focused on the intro-duction of measures to encourage improvements and es-tablish minimum standards in the safety and health at workof pregnant workers and workers who have recently givenbirth or are breastfeeding. The other, Directive 2010/18/EU,implementing the revised Framework Agreement on par-ental leave concluded by EU Social Partners and repealingDirective 96/34/EC aims at improving the reconciliation ofwork, private and family life for working parents and equalitybetween men and women with regard to labour market op-portunities and treatment at work across the EU.

The principle of equal treatment between women andmen has also been extended to self-employment (Direc-tive 2010/41/EU). This Directive considerably improves theprotection of self-employed women workers and assistingspouses or life partners of self-employed workers, includingin the case of maternity: they are granted a maternity allow-

ance and a leave of at least 14 weeks. At the EU level, this is therst time a maternity allowance has been granted to self-em-ployed workers. Improving the social protection available to
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1 Economic independence: gendered labour force results in differences in economic outcomes EIGE

women in the labour market is expected to increase the shareof women entrepreneurs, which would justify the additionalregulatory burden placed on micro-businesses.

The principle of equal treatment with respect to employeesand self-employed persons applies to several discriminationgrounds, not just gender. Council Directive 2000/43 /EC im-plements the principle of equal treatment between personsirrespective of racial or ethnic origin in relation to conditions for access to employment, self-employment and occupation, including selection criteria and recruitment conditions, what-ever the branch of activity and at all levels of the professional hierarchy, including promotion. Council Directive 2000/78 /ECestablishes a general framework for equal treatment in em-ployment and occupation.

Atypical work represents one of those areas in which regula-

tory competences between the European Institutions and theMember States are intertwined. Furthermore, it has been theobject of both soft law regulatory interventions in the sphereof the so-called open method of coordination, and hard har-monising legislative interventions via the classic EU method.In these directives, while hard law rights for non-standardworkers are established, ample margins of choice and deroga-tion are left to the Member States to decide on how the normis to be applied in other words, a reasoned and proportion-ate perspective of diversication of the national norms is rec-ognised. In this context, the role played by the Court of Justiceof the European Union has been fundamental in safeguarding

and strengthening social rights of EU origin when conictshave arisen between the supra-national norms, which guaran-tee them, and the legislation of the Member States. For ex-ample, in applying the principle of non-discriminationbetween women and men in pay and working conditions(relying in particular on the notion of indirect discrimination),the Court was able to guarantee equal treatment to part-timeworkers, even before the adoption of the two directives.

In relation to womens entrepreneurship, three lines of actionhave been developed: better access to nance for women,development of entrepreneurial networks for women andtargeted support measures envisaged in the Small BusinessAct (8). In particular, the Commission has recently adopteda Regulation which extends the granting of state aid to newenterprises created by women ( 9) and has supported thecreation of a network of women entrepreneurs. In 2009 theCommission inaugurated the European Network of FemaleEntrepreneurship Ambassadors to serve as inspirational rolemodels for potential women entrepreneurs. The Networkis made up of around 270 entrepreneurs coming from 22European countries. This was followed in 2011 by the Euro-pean Network of Mentors for Women Entrepreneurs, whovoluntarily provide counselling services to women startingand running new businesses. The Mentors Network enforces

and complements the actions to promote, support and en-courage womens entrepreneurship. The Commission hasalso opened a Womens Entrepreneurship Portal with links

to contacts, events and networking opportunities within andbetween Member States. The European Network to Promote Womens Entrepreneurship (WES) brings together govern-ment representatives from 30 European countries to provideadvice, support and information for women entrepreneurs,helping them to raise their prole and expand their business-es. Furthermore, in 2013 the Entrepreneurship 2020 ActionPlan Reigniting the entrepreneurial spirit in Europe wasadopted ( 10). It suggests further promotion of womens entre-preneurship, as women are considered the most underusedsource of entrepreneurial potential in Europe. The Action Planinvites Member States to design and implement nationalstrategies for womens entrepreneurship in order to:

increase the share of women-led companies;

collect sex-disaggregated data and produce annual

updates on the state of women entrepreneurs nationally;

continue and expand the existing networks of FemaleEntrepreneurship Ambassadors and Mentors for WomenEntrepreneurs;

implement policies enabling women to achieve anadequate work-life balance, by establishing appropriateand affordable care for children and elderly dependents,notably by taking full advantage of support optionsunder the EAFRD, ERDF and ESF.

In several countries self-employment and entrepreneurshipare promoted as an alternative route into the labour market,even if the effects of the economic crisis on self-employedworkers have been particularly hard. The main measures areaimed at facilitating access to nance, providing subsidiesor reduced contribution rates, alleviating the administrativeburden, and providing training and coaching to new entre-preneurs. Some measures are specically targeted to women,encouraging them to run small rms (through micro-creditprovisions). Pilot projects addressing soft factors and trainingor networking form a great majority of measures, tackling thelack of information. Measures to facilitate access to nancialsupport are less available. Most of these initiatives supportthe creation of networks among women entrepreneurs andgovernment agencies and other support organisations; pro-vide training and business services; and promote informationand awareness- rising initiatives. An example is the Swedishnational programme to promote womens entrepreneurship(2007-2010) which promotes support services and mentoringto start-ups run by women. A national network of womenambassadors was set up and inspired the creation of theEuropean Network of Female Entrepreneurship Ambassadors.

Regardless of their different starting positions, all MemberStates have adopted legislation guaranteeing equal treat-

ment for part-time and full-time, temporary and permanentworkers, in full accordance with the principle of non-discrim-ination and the relevant EU Directives. Furthermore, in many
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countries, xed-term contracts constitute an exception onlyallowed for explicitly prescribed reasons in line with Directive1999/70/EC (xed-term work) intended to eradicate abusearising from successive xed-term employment contracts.However, notwithstanding the above-mentioned principle,the creative use of self-employment and temporary con-tracts has, in many cases, been increasing to the disadvan-tage of women and young workers.

Since the early 1990s, most EU Member States have intro-duced laws aimed at encouraging high-quality part-timework opportunities and reducing involuntary part-time workby: i) requiring that part-time workers receive comparablewages and working conditions as full-time workers; ii) allow-ing full-time workers to reduce their hours in certain circum-stances; and iii) giving existing part-timers preferential treat-ment when hiring full-time.

Besides legislation, all countries have also put in place pol-icies that support work-life balance, such as the provision ofcare services, awareness raising measures to enhance genderequality at the work place and reduce stereotyping and dis-crimination (11), targeted employment incentives and busi-ness support, and strengthening active labour market pol-icies (ALMPs) and social security buffers for vulnerable groups,including women and young people.

In more recent years, to mitigate the negative employmenteffects of the crisis, many Member States have strength-ened unemployment insurance systems and active labourmarket policies (ALMPs), including start-up incentives, train-ing and work experience programmes, publicly sponsoredshort-time working arrangements. However, the extension ofunemployment insurance and the recent large investmentsin ALMPs risk being phased out, at least in part, in a context of

generalised budget retrenchment.

1.3 Differences in economic independencebetween women and men

Differences in labour force participation between womenand men have been attributed to various causes rangingfrom individual choices to the effect of structural constraints.

Research on the participation of women and men in thelabour force, including in employment, entrepreneurshipand self-employment, has tended to reproduce patterns ofgender bias reecting the predominant norms, attitudesand stereotypes in society. However, there are also morecritical and reective studies of how knowledge of genderhas been constructed in the elds of economics, the labourforce or entrepreneurship. This means questioning the gen-der processes at play behind sex differences, together withrecognising the built-in androcentricity in the concepts. Italso stresses the importance of not systematically looking fordifferences between women and men, who are in fact oftenmore similar than different (Gustafsson, 2000, Ahl, 2006).

Human capital

Early studies on gender aspects of the labour force ex-plained differences in human capital linked to womensreproductive role leading to a weaker attachment to thelabour force (Polachek, 1981). Womens human capital isconsidered lower than that of mens because of their initialeducational and occupational choices and the unbalanced

division of housework and care activities in the household. Therefore, gender differences in human capital tend to in-crease with age, as women experience more and longer

out-of-work periods than men, especially in householdswith children (Goldin, 2006).

Discrimination at work

Other studies suggest that gender inequalities in the labourforce result from gender discrimination on the part of indi-vidual employers (Becker, 1971), possibly based on adoptinggroup characteristics, such as group averages in education,to make judgements about the suitability of all members ofthat group for particular jobs (Arrow, 1973). These approach-es successfully addressed the extent of differences but notthe potential causes behind gender differences.

Social norms and gender identity

More recent studies have attempted to explain how socialidentity and norms play a role in dictating what is appropriatefor women and men to do, and how these factors may inu-ence behaviours in labour force participation or the allocationof work within the household (Akerlof and Kranton 2000, 2002,2005). Social norms, combined with gender identity, are usedto explain gender differences in educational choices and thedifferences in the number of women and men working in dif-

ferent occupations, as well as the different decisions aboutparticipating in the labour force, and the gender pay gap.

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2 Examining economic

independence in theperspective of part-time workand self-employment

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2 Examining economic independence in the perspective of part-time work and self-employmentEIGE

2 Examining economic independencein the perspective of part-time workand self-employment

Making gender equality a reality relies largely on beingable to achieve equal economic independence betweenwomen and men. This entails access to, and control over,economic resources and opportunities, and through equalaccess to employment. Thus far, this report has shown thatdespite strong commitments at the policy and regulatorylevel, some outstanding gender differences remain in thisarea. Despite an increase in womens employment, data

show that part-time work remains a strong feature of labour

market participation for women. From a gender equalityperspective, it is important to monitor and address thesedifferences. Another area of difference between womenand men is the extent to which they engage in self-em-ployment, with women much less likely to do so thanmen. This section presents main trends on gender and thelabour force in relation to womens and mens economicindependence.

2.1 Participation in the labour force The labour force consists of all active people engaged inemployment, unemployment or self-employment and isexperienced very differently by women and men. The lastfew decades have witnessed an increase in womens em-ployment opportunities and greater economic independ-

ence in most EU Member States. These trends are the resultof the interplay of a number of factors, particularly the in-crease in womens educational attainment, the expansionof the service sector, and the increase in part-time jobs.A crucial role has also been played by equal opportunitiespolicies and work-life balance policies, particularly the pro-vision of childcare services (OECD, 2013). However, althoughwomen in employment represent a critical mass, stern dif-ferences in terms of working time and segregation pat-terns remain. The progress of women in employment is notmirrored in entrepreneurship or self-employment wherewomen remain a large minority, particularly when it comesto running large scale businesses. This section provides anoverview of the main patterns of labour force participationfor women and men.

2.1.1 Activity

In 2012, gures for the EU-28 show that 46 % of the EUseconomically active population are women. However, ithas been observed that the recent economic downturn hasinterrupted the general trend of increase in womens labour

market participation (EP, 2011). Activity rates have slightly in-creased for women between 2008 and 2012 from 64 % to66 %. Mens activity rate has remained stable over the sametime period at the level of 78 %.

However, the EU-28 average activity rates hide high hetero-geneity across different countries. A comparison of activityrates in each of the EU-28 Member States reveals that in themajority of Member States there were few changes. How-ever, the activity rate for men between 2008 and 2012 de-creased by as much as 3 percentage points in Denmark and4 percentage points in Croatia and Ireland. Activity rates forwomen at the Member State level show much more vari-ation. Although changes remain small or inexistent in themajority of Member States, activity rates for women haveincreased between 2008 and 2012 by 3 percentage pointsin four Member States (CZ, EL, HU, PL); 4 percentage pointsin Luxembourg; 5 in Lithuania and Spain; and as much as8 percentage points in Malta (Figure 5.1 in Annex III).

The two main reasons for women and men in the EU notseeking employment are being in education and for family/ personal reasons or care. In 2012, just above a quarter (27 %)of women did not seek employment because of their in-volvement in education compared with 41 % of men.Strikingly, a further 26 % of women opted out for family/ personal reasons or care, although very few men did (3 %)reecting the gendered patterns of time use and tasks al-locations in society more generally.

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2 Examining economic independence in the perspective of part-time work and self-employment EIGE

2.1.2 Employment

Even though there has been a slight increase in womensactivity rates, this does not translate into greater employ-ment rates, which have remained relatively stable between2008 and 2012. In parallel, there has been a gradual con-

vergence in womens and mens employment rates largely driven by a relative decrease of the employment rates formen of 3 percentage points over the same time period.

Although employment rates on average in the EU have notchanged dramatically between 2008 and 2012, the situ-ation of some Member States is very different (Figure 5.2 inAnnex III). The employment rates of women decreased in17 Member States (less than 2 percentage points in EE, FR,IT, NL, SK, FI, UK; 3 percentage points in BG, 4 percentagepoints in DK, ES, CY, LV, PT, SI; 5 percentage points in IE, HR;and 7 percentage points in EL). Mens employment rateswere affected to an even greater degree dropping in 23Member States (less than 2 percentage points in BE, CZ, FR,HU, AT, SE; 2 percentage points in UK; 3 percentage pointsin SK, FI; 4 in EE, IT, NL, 5 in LT, SI; 6 in DK; 7 in BG, 8 in LV; 9in CY, PT, 10 in HR; 12 in IE; 13 in ES; 14 in EL). Despite the cri-sis, positive developments were observed in the remainingMember States, where employment rates for women haveincreased by 4 percentage points in Germany and Luxem-bourg, and by 7 in Malta.

The extent to which women are under-represented in em-ployment also varies greatly among groups with differenteducational attainment. In 2012, the EU average employ-

ment gender gap was greater than 15 percentage pointfor those with lower educational level (ISCED levels 0-2),

decreasing to 12 percentage points for people with second-ary education (ISCED 3 and 4); to just above 7 percentagepoints for people with tertiary education (ISCED 5 and 6).However, there has been a more pronounced convergencein employment rates between women and men amongpeople with a lower education level, since the economiccrisis has affected lower educated men more severely than

women. This is a possible consequence of loss of employ-ment in some men-dominated industries such as construc-tion and manufacturing. Between 2008 and 2012 in theEU-28, the employment rates among those with lower edu-cation declined from 58 % in 2008, to 52 % in 2012 for mencompared with a decline from 39 % in 2008 to 37 % in 2012for women. In contrast, for tertiary education employmentrates for men over the same time period slightly decreasedfrom 87 % to 86 % and for women from 80 % to 78 % (Fig-ure 2.2). The differences among Member States between2008 and 2012 in employment rates are presented in Figure5.3 in Annex III.

The economic crisis has disproportionately affected youngpeople in the EU, regardless of sex (EC, 2013). The employ-ment rates of young women and men have both declined,however, young men experienced it to a higher degree(Figure 5.4 in Annex). Despite a smaller gender gap, it never-theless remained relatively high, particularly among youngpeople aged 25-29 with a difference of 10 percentagepoints compared to 4 percentage points among peopleaged 15 to 24.

Despite important and encouraging advances towardsequality between women and men across European labour

markets in the last several decades, signicant gender gapsstill persist throughout the EU.

Figure 2.1: Main reason for not seeking employment in the EU-28 (15-64), 2012

Source: Eurostat, EU-LFS (lfsa_igar), extrac ted on 3 December 2013.

12 %

26 % 27 %

6 %

18 %12 %

18 %

3 %

41 %

5 %

24 %

8 %

0

20

40

60

80

100

Own illnessor disability

Family, personalor care reasons

In education Think no work is available

Retired Other

P e r c e n

t a g e

Women Men

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2.1.3 Unemployment

Changes in the labour force affected the situation of un-employment. Increasing activity rates among women, com-bined with declining employment rates disproportionately af-fecting men, have translated into higher unemployment ratesfor both women and men. Between 2008 and 2012, the EUunemployment rate increased by 3 percentage points forwomen and 4 for men, eliminating the unemployment gendergap in the process. Among people aged 15-24, unemploymentrates have increased dramatically between 2008 and 2012. Thisincrease has been higher for men, with an additional 8 percent-age points compared to 7 percentage points for women(Figure 5.5 in Annex III).

The relatively small increase of unemployment at EU levelmasks the extent to which some Member States have beenafflicted by large increases in unemployment rates. In Spain,womens unemployment rates have increased by 12 percent-age points and that of mens by 15. In Greece these guresreach 17 percentage points for both women and men. Therates of mens unemployment have been particularly affected,compared to that of women in Bulgaria, Croatia, Ireland andLithuania (Figure 5.5 in Annex III).

Increasing unemployment rates may be less of an issue ifthey are characterised by simultaneous inows and outows

of the labour force, resulting in relatively short average un-employment duration. The main problem during an economicdownturn is that increased inows into unemployment are

associated with decreased outows into employment, whichmay lead to a consequent increase in the average duration ofunemployment. Increasing long-term unemployment may be

very harmful in terms of both individual employability and po-tential economic growth in the medium to long-term perspec-tive. For both women and men, the proportion of unemployedpeople who are long term unemployed increased from some37 % in 2008 to more than 44 % in 2012.

However, in some Member States, there have been very strongincreases in long-term unemployment. Increases exceeded20 percentage points, for both women and men, in Estonia,Latvia, Lithuania and Spain. In Ireland, an increase of 30 per-centage points among women and 37 among men that are inlong-term unemployment as a percentage of unemploymentwas recorded. Gender differences in the evolution of long-termunemployment between 2008 and 2012 were signicant. InRomania, the increase in long-term unemployment was higherfor women by 5 percentage points and in Estonia by 8 percent-age points.

Other Member States saw a larger increase among men inlong-term employment, including Greece, Latvia and Spain (6percentage points difference compared to women); Bulgariaand Lithuania (7 percentage points); Ireland (8 percentagepoints); and nally Malta (10 percentage points) (Figure 5.6 inAnnex III).

In summary, between 2008 and 2012 in the EU-28, morewomen have become active in the labour force. How-ever, this has not translated into higher employment rates,

Figure 2.2: Employment rate for women and men in the EU-28 (15-64) by level of education, 2008 and 2012

Source: Eurostat, EU-LFS (lfsa_ergaed), extracted on 3 December 2013.Note: Lower education includes pre-primary, primary and lower secondary education: ISCED levels 0-2; secondary education includes upper secondary andpost-secondary non-tertiary education: ISCED levels 3 and 4; Tertiary education includes rst and second stage of tertiary education: ISCED levels 5 and 6. The employment rate represents employed persons as a percentage of the same group in the total population. The difference is calculated in percentagepoints of the employment rate in 2012 minus the employment rate in 2008.

39 %

58 %

64 %

77 % 80 %87 %

37 %

52 %62 %

74 %78 %

86 %

0 %

20 %

40 %

60 %

80 %

100 %

Women Men Women Men Women Men

Lower education(Levels 0-2)

Secondary education(levels 3 and 4)

Tertiary education(levels 5 and 6)

Employment rate

2008 2012

223

2

6

2

10

8

6

4

2

0MenWomenMenWomenMenWomen

Tertiaryeducation

(levels 5 and 6)

Secondaryeducation

(levels 3 and 4)

Lowereducation

(Levels 0-2)

Difference: 2012 compared with 2008(percentage points)

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predominantly because the percentage of unemploymenthas also increased in the same time period. As for men, ac-tivity rates have remained the same, however, due to higher

unemployment rates, there has been a decline in employmentrates (Figure 2.3).

Figure 2.3: Activity rate and employment rate for women and men in EU-28 (15-64), 2008 and 2012

Source: Eurostat, EU-LFS (lfsa_ipga, lfsa_argan, lfsa_ergan, lfsa_urgan), extrac ted on 3 December 2013.Note: The economically active population (labour force) comprises employed and unemployed persons and the activity rate represents active personsas a percentage of the same age total population; the employment rate represents employed persons as a percentage of the same age total population;the unemployment rate represents unemployed persons as a percentage of the active population.

8 % 11 % 7 % 11 %

59 % 59 %

73 %70 %

64 % 66 %78 %

78 %

36 % 34 %22 %

Inactive population

Active population

Unemployed persons(% from active

population)

22 %

0

20

40

60

80

100

2008 2012 2008 2012 2008 2012 2008 2012

Women Men

Women Men Employment rate

P e r c e n

t f r o m

t o

t a l p o p u

l a t i o n

( 1 6

- 6 4 )

} }2.1.4 SegregationGender-based segregation in employment is a still perva-sive phenomenon, with women and men over/under-rep-resented in various sectors and occupations. In 2012, al-though women represented 46 % of the labour force, theyonly accounted for 9 % of workers in the constructionsector, 29 % in industry, and 32 % in information or com-munication. In contrast, women represented over 66 % ofthose in the arts, entertainment and recreation and 67 %of those in public administration, education, human healthand social work. As for occupations, in 2012 in the EU-28on average, there were only 11 % of women as craft andrelated trades workers, 17 % as plant and machine operatorsor assemblers, and 33 % as managers. Feminine-dominatedoccupations include service and sales workers (64 % arewomen) and clerical support workers (67 % are women).Information of segregation, both sectoral and occupational,could be further improved by revising classications thatare based on rather masculine ways of conceptualisingwork in the rst place.

Gender-based occupational segregation is linked toa number a number of factors. These include: differences

in human capital stemming from education and training;differences in the elds of tertiary education; differences

in household roles and in the distribution of unpaid workwithin the household; entry barriers and organisationalculture and practices; gender identity; norms, attitudesand stereotypes. Occupational and educational segrega-tion in the EU was partly reduced by the evolution andenforcement of equal opportunities legislation; increasingwomens educational attainment; technological progressand the subsequent changes in available work, includingthe decline of physically-demanding jobs; and changes infamily roles (EC 2009a).

Descriptive indices can be used to show the extent to whichwomen and men are over-represented or under-represent-ed in occupations (occupational segregation) or the extentto which women and men are concentrated in a limitednumber of economic sectors (sectoral segregation). Oneof the most commonly used indices of segregation is theIndex of Dissimilarity (ID) which takes values between 0 (nosegregation) and 100 (full segregation, meaning that somesectors consists fully of women or men). Among employed15-64 year old women and men in 2012, the ID for sectoralsegregation stood at 27.8 showing no real change com-pared with 2008 where this value was 27.2. Occupationalsegregation appears to be higher than sectoral segregationwith an ID score of 30.9 in 2012. However, this has declined

since 2008 when the ID score for occupational segregationstood at 34.3 (Table 5.1 in Annex III).

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Sectoral segregation has meant that women and menmay have experienced the crisis differently and at differenttimes. Larger concentration of women in the public sectorand in the non-tradable service sector might have sparedwomen from a rise in unemployment in the initial stages

of the crisis. However, recent and more restrictive govern-ment scal policies and the delayed effects of cuts in publicbudgets have also led to employment losses in thewomen-dominated sectors, such as the service sector andpublic administration (EP 2011).

2.2 Part-time work Although women have entered labour force in greatnumbers, their working hours constitute a fundamentaldifference in their participation in the labour market com-pared to that of mens. Women are more likely to work ona part-time basis across all Member States. With the eco-nomic crisis unfolding in the EU, distinguishing betweenvoluntary and involuntary part-time work is important.Many part-time employees are trapped in part-time jobsbecause full-time employment options are insufficient(OECD, 2010) making it more necessary than ever to ana-lyse this aspect from a gender equality perspective. It is tothese aspects that this section turns to.

2.2.1 Main characteristics ofpart-time work

Womens propensity to work on a part-time basis formsone of the strong structural characteristics of gender inthe labour force in many Member States. The distribution

of part-time work between women and men is a usefulmeasure from a gender equality perspective since it isboth derived from, and reinforces, norms attached to theroles of women and men and how these relate to theirparticipation in the labour force. Indeed in the EU-28 onaverage in 2012, although women represented 46 % ofthose in employment, they accounted for 76 % of thoseworking on a part-time basis and conversely only 38 % ofthose working full-time (Figure 2.5). This distribution hasbarely changed since 2008, when women represented78 % of part-time workers and 38 % of full-time workers.At Member State level, women represent less than 60 %of part-time workers in Bulgaria, Croatia and Romania, butmore than 80 % in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany andLuxembourg (Figure 5.8 in Annex III).

Figure 2.4: Sectoral and occupational segregation in the EU-28, 15-64, 2012

Source: Eurostat, EU-LFS (lfsa_epgn62; lfsa_epgais), extracted on 8 January 2014.Note: For sectoral segregation, the NACE Rev. 2 (A10) classication was used; for occupational segregation, the ISCO-08 1 digit classication was usedwith Armed forces excluded

Sectoral segregation Occupational segregation0 20 40 60 80 100

Construction

Industry

Information and communication

Agriculture, forestry and shing

Wholesale and retail trade

Professional, scientic, technical,administrative activities

Real estate activities

Financial and insurance activities

Arts, entertainment and recreation, other

Public administration,education, health, social work

Women Men

0 20 40 60 80 100

Craft and related trades workers

Machine operators, assemblers

Managers

Skilled agricultural workers

Technicians andassociate professionals

Professionals

Elementary occupations

Service and sales workers

Clerical support workers

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In the EU-28, 32 % of employed women were part-timeworkers in 2012, compared to only 8 % of employed men.At the national level, a substantially higher proportion ofwomen in the labour market were working in part-time jobsin the Netherlands (77 %), Germany (45 %), Austria (44 %),

and Belgium (44 %). For the same year, the proportion ofmen in the labour market on part-time basis was highest inthe Netherlands (25 %), Denmark (15 %) and Ireland (13 %)

(Figure 2.6). Such large differences between Member Statescan be explained by a combination of factors including dif-ferences in the structure of the economy, in educationalattainments, in the functioning of labour markets, in theprovision of childcare, and also in the tax and social security

systems (OReilly and Fagan, 1998).

Figure 2.5: Share of women and men by type of employment in the EU-28, 15-64, 2012

Source: Eurostat, LFS (lfsa_epgaed), extracted on 9 January 2014.Note: The full-time/part-time distinction in the main job is made on the basis of a spontaneous answer given by the respondent in all countries (exceptfor the NL).

Figure 2.6: Part-time employment as a percentage of the total employment in the EU-28 by sex and MS,15-64, 2012

Source: Eurostat, LFS (lfsa_eppgacob), extracted on 9 December 2013.Note: The full-time/part-time distinction in the main job is made on the basis of a spontaneous answer given by the respondent in all countries (exceptfor the NL).

0

20

40

60

80

100

Totalemployment Part-timeemployment Full-timeemployment

P e r c e n

t a g e

46 %

54 %

76 %

24 %

38 %

62 %

WomenMen

0

20

40

60

80

100

P e r c e n t a g e

Women Men

BG SK HR CZ H U RO PL LT LV EL SI CY EE PT FI ES MT F R IT EU-28 IE DK L U SE UK BE AT DE NL

8 %

32 %

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Part-time work has increased slightly for both women andmen from 2008 to 2012 (for women from 31 % in 2008 to32 % in 2012 and for men from 7 % in 2008 to 8 % in 2012),possibly due to shorter hours of work adopted to minimiseemployment cuts during the economic crisis (ILO, 2013). Forwomen the most notable increases recorded in Estonia andLatvia (4 percentage points, from 9 % to 13 % in EE, from7 % to 11 % in LV). For men, rates have nearly doubled ina number of Member States over the time period (IE, EL, CY,LU, PT, SK) (Figure 5.7 in Annex III).

The prevalence of a part-time culture can be measuredas the difference between womens participation in thelabour force on a full-time and on a part-time basis. In2012, on average in the EU-28, this stood at 38 percentagepoints, lowest in Romania (3 percentage points), Bulgaria(6 percentage points) and Croatia (10 percentage points).

However, in Luxembourg and the Netherlands, differencesreached 51 and 52 percentage points respectively (Fig-ure 5.8 in Annex III).

What is commonly dened as part-time can vary substan-tially in terms of working hours. Working hours vary consider-ably, from very few to nearly full-time job, with an average of20 hours in the EU. A distinction in the category of part-time

work, between marginal part-time work (up to 19 hoursper week) and substantial part-time work (20 to 34 hoursper week) was suggested (OReilly and Fagan, 1998). Amongmarginal part-time work, a further distinction can be madewith micro jobs, that is, fewer than 10 hours per week.

Marginal jobs account for 38 % of women in part-time em-ployment and 43 % of men in part-time employment. Thisincludes 12 % of women and 17 % of men in micro jobs.Although the proportion of women in marginal and microemployment is lower than men, their overall number ismuch greater since women are much more likely to workon a part-time basis. To put these gures in context, womenactually represented more than two-third (68 %) of micro jobs workers in the EU-28 in 2012.

In 2012 part-time work of less than 10 hours per week was

widespread among women in Denmark (22 %) and Portu-gal (23 %); but also among men in Austria (20 %), Germany(23 %), Portugal (24 %), the Netherlands (29 %), and Den-mark (33 %). In Portugal, more than half of women part-timeworkers (54 %) were in marginal part-time employment. This also concerned more than half of men in part-timeemployment in the United Kingdom (51 %), Portugal andGermany (56 %) and Denmark (66 %).

Figure 2.7: Part-time workers who work less than 10 hours, by sex, 2012

Source: Eurostat, LFS, data were calculated by Eurostat upon EIGEs request on 15 January 2014.Note: The full-time/part-time distinction in the main job is made on the basis of a spontaneous answer given by the respondent in all countries (exceptfor the NL).

0

10

20

30

40

50

P e r c e n t a g e

Women Men

12 %

17 %

RO BG HU LT BE LV PL GR EE IT LU SK HR CZ FR MT SI IE CY SE AT EU-28 UK ES DE FI NL D K P T

Part-time work is unevenly distributed over the life courseof individuals. It tends to be more concentrated at the be-ginning and at the end of peoples working lives, especially

in the case of men, while it is more evenly distributed andremains relatively high for women. Young adults make up

a signicant proportion of part-time workers, with 40 % ofwomen and 24 % of men working on a part-time basis inthe age bracket 15-24, 30 % of women and 6 % of men in

the age bracket 25-49, and 34 % of women and 9 % of menin the age bracket 50-64 (Figure 2.8).

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An examination in 2012 of the main reasons given for workingon a part-time basis, broken down by age and sex, in the EU-28 provides some interesting results. It seems that part-timework among those aged 15-24 mostly coincides with a periodof education with a few differences between women (50 %)

and men (57 %). It is not until the next cohort, when peopletypically become parents that stronger gender differencesappear. In the age group 25-49, women are much more likely

to cite working on a part-time basis for care or other familyreasons (55 % of women compared with 12 % of men), reect-ing the effects of reproduction on womens labour force par-ticipation. However, for men in the age group 25-49, workingpart-time is most likely to be attributed to not being able to

nd a full-time job (25 % of women compared with 51 % ofmen). Finally, for workers in the age group 50-64, similar butmore subtle patterns as the previous mentioned cohort can

Figure 2.8: Part-time employment as a percentage of total employment in the EU-28, by sex and age groups, 2012

Source: Eurostat, EU-LFS (lfsa_eppga), extrac ted on 8 January 2014.Note: The full-time/part-time distinction in the main job is made on the basis of a spontaneous answer given by the respondent in all countries (exceptfor the NL).

Figure 2.9: Main reason for part-time work by age and sex, 2012

Source: Eurostat, EU-LFS (lfsa_epgar), extrac ted on 8 January 2014.Note: The full-time/part-time distinction in the main job is made on the basis of a spontaneous answer given by the respondent in all countries (exceptfor the NL); Care and other family reasons includes Looking after children or incapacitated adults and Other family or personal responsibilities; Careand other family reasons for men aged 15-24 includes only Other family or personal responsibilities.

0

20

40

60

15-24 25-49 50-64

P e r c e n

t a g e

Women Men

40 %

30 %

34 %

24 %

6 %

9 %

0

20

40

60Women Men

29 %25 %

21 %

1 % 2 %6 % 8 %

55 %

37 %

50 %

3 %0.3 %

12 %15 %

36 %

29 %

51 %

27 %

6 %

13 %

1 %

12 %

19 %

57 %

11 % 12 %

21 %

40 %

15-24 25-49 50-64 15-24 25-49 50-64 15-24 25-49 50-64 15-24 25-49 50-64 15-24 25-49 50-64

Could not nda full-time job Own illness or disability

Care or otherfamily reasons In education Other

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be observed. Women are more likely to claim that the mainreason for working part-time is care or other family reasons(37 % of women compared with 20 % of men), however, notbeing able to nd full-time work for men diminishes signi-cantly (21 % for women and 27 % for men). Instead, for bothwomen and men in this age group, there is a consequent in-crease in invoking own illness or disability (6 % for womenand 13 % for men) as well as other reasons (36 % of womenand 40 % of men) for working part-time.

Labour transitions from part-time to full-time jobs and viceversa are also very different between women and men.On average in the EU-28 Member States, men working ona part-time basis have a much higher probability to move tofull-time jobs than women. In 2011, 29 % of men part-time

employees moved to a full-time job, compared with only13 % of women working part-time. This is in line with thedata above showing that although some young men (15-24)were working on a part-time basis, this proportion droppedsignicantly at a later stage. Comparatively, womens alreadyhigher part-time rate does not transition to a lower rate inlater life as much as that of mens. Transition rates during thecrisis have coincided with a decline in transition rates frompart-time to full-time jobs both for women and men: in 2008transition rates were respectively 14 % for women and 31 %for men (EU-27 average). There are large differences acrossMember States: the transition rate for men working part-timein 2011 goes from 15 % in Denmark to 50 % in Latvia, whilefor women it ranges from 4 % in the Netherlands to 50 % inLatvia (Figure 5.9 in Annex III).

Figure 2.10: Labour transition between full-time and part-time work by sex at EU level, 2008 and 2011

Source: Eurostat, EU-SILC (ilc_lvhl30), extracted on 13 January 2014.Note: EU average: for year 2011 EU-28, for year 2008, EU-27.

0

20

10

30

40

P e r c e n t a g e

Women Men

14 %

4 %13 %

7 %

31 %

1 %

29 %

2 %

Moved frompart-time to full-time

Moved fromfull-time to part-time

Moved frompart-t

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