Using the EU to Promote Gender Equality Policy in a Traditional Context: Reconciliation of Work and Family Life in Italy

Abstract

Policies aiming to reconcile paid employment with family responsibilities have become highly relevant in all European countries since the beginning of the new millennium (Lewis et al., 2008; Abrahamson, 2007). This is more evident in the case of the EU member states, as during the 1990s the European Commission promoted significant policy initiatives in a context where ‘women with children (under 12 years age) work less (–11.5 per cent in the employment rate) than women without children, while men with children work more than men without children (+6.8 points)’ (European Commission, 2009, p. 5). Today, reconciliation policies for parents are a cornerstone of the welfare state’s reform. These policies pursue a dual objective: the growth of female employment and an increase in fertility rates. Both are to remedy situations experienced by the majority of the industrially advanced European societies, and to battle the negative repercussions on the sustainability of the traditional welfare state (Bonoli, 2005). In 2000, the issue of reconciliation also received attention in Italy, leading to the introduction of a specific law. Yet, up to now the outcomes of the law are not very significant, given that the Italian rate of female employment (46.4 per cent in 2009) remains amongst the lowest in Europe, together with Malta (Eurostat, 2009). What can explain the Italian difficulties in promoting female employment by helping parents reconcile work and family life?