At the international conference of the IPEO platform, organised by AFB – Bildungs- und Energieforum in cooperation with the European Centre for Workers’ Questions (EZA) and funded by the European Union, around 57 representatives of workers’ organisations from South Tyrol/Italy, Germany, Belgium, Albania and Lithuania came together to discuss the topic of “Care work in the social focus”. The conference was held at the Cusanus Academy in Brixen (Italy) on 7 and 8 September 2026.
When it comes to care work, EU countries need to take a new direction in social policy to meet the growing challenges of caring for and supporting family members. Key issues include social security and protection for care work, as well as new models that promote a fairer sharing of responsibilities between women and men. In line with the European Care Strategy adopted in 2022, it is important to move away from the widespread view that care work within the family can be taken for granted and provided free of charge, and that it is primarily a responsibility assigned to women because of traditional gender roles. The gender care gap is placing an increasing burden on women, especially when they have to care for both children and elderly relatives in need of support.
At the conference, experts presented statistical data showing that, across Europe, women continue to take on most of the care work within families and spend considerably more time on care tasks each day than their partners. Fairer models for sharing care responsibilities therefore need to be promoted, based on a 50/50 principle. One possible approach is to reduce working hours for both parents during periods of life when care responsibilities arise. The way care work is shared within couples also needs to be discussed and clearly agreed upon. There are also initiatives aimed at establishing a constitutional ban on discrimination against family care work. In the future, men should not only be more involved in childcare but should also take on their share of responsibility for caring for family members, particularly elderly relatives who need support. Home care provided by family members will continue to be the most common form of care, largely because of the shortage of qualified professional carers and the high cost of residential care facilities. Relying on care workers from abroad merely postpones the foreseeable shortage of carers and creates a care deficit in their countries of origin. Employment arrangements that are often informal also have a negative impact on the quality of care. It is therefore all the more important to provide strong support for family care work and to ensure that families can rely on qualified professional carers.
The European Care Strategy adopted in 2022 has given new impetus to improving the social-policy framework for care work and making it fit for the future. Under the European Pillar of Social Rights, Member States are called upon to continue expanding early childhood care services and to ensure access to affordable, high-quality care services. However, progress on reforms in this area remains slow. Experts at the conference described the current situation, pointing out that women, in response to social expectations and pressure, are often prepared to give up career opportunities and interrupt their working lives in order to care for their children and family members. From a certain age onwards, women increasingly find themselves in a difficult “sandwich position”: on the one hand, they help care for their grandchildren, while on the other, they look after their own parents, who have limited independence or need care themselves. Men still take on too little responsibility for family care work. However, attitudes appear to be changing, at least when it comes to childcare.
Governments need to recognise that it is not possible to maintain a care model based largely on the family while at the same time achieving a significant increase in women’s participation in the labour market. What is needed is an integrated care system that both recognises family care work within the social security system and ensures support from professional carers. The IPEO representatives are calling on policymakers to stop overlooking the signs of overload and exhaustion among family members who provide care and to create the conditions for a fairer sharing of care responsibilities. This requires new approaches in labour-market, social and family policy. Trade unions and workers’ organisations in particular have an important role to play in promoting such initiatives. Family-policy and parents’ organisations can provide valuable support. At company level, there should be more room for flexible working hours to reduce the stress associated with parental responsibilities. At the same time, schools and childcare facilities should offer opening hours that are better suited to parents’ needs. Home-based and community care services also need to be expanded. Flexible service hours in this area can provide valuable relief for family members who provide care. The work of family carers must be recognised as such and included in the social security system, with corresponding pension entitlements. Targeted training and respite measures are also needed to prevent burnout among people providing care. What is needed is an integrated care model involving families, public and professional private care services, as well as local voluntary organisations. Governments should be encouraged to introduce new and effective measures that strengthen the recognition of women’s role in labour and social legislation and promote greater participation by men in family care work. At the same time, efforts should be made to make care professions more attractive to men, so that they too can see them as meaningful and fulfilling work.