The compatibility of family life and work or private life and professional life is an issue that is equally in the interest of workers, employers and policy-makers, and which if all the parties collaborate has the potential to develop sustainable problem-solving approaches and strategies and to influence each other in a goal-oriented way.
Some of the conclusions from the previous co-ordination on the subject of “Equal opportunities for men and women in the labour market” relevant to the project co-ordination 2011 were that women are still underprivileged with regard to employment rate, managerial positions and the wage gap, which has direct consequences for the compatibility arrangement between men and women and underlines the importance of the compatibility measures presented below. Furthermore, that an effective family policy can and must create the general conditions for compatibility, for instance to counter the trend of fathers of small children often working more than before because of social and family traditions. Finally, that training courses for compatibility in schools and companies are necessary to eliminate cultural hindrances that cement the separation in the labour market horizontally and vertically.
The project co-ordination 2011 concentrated on identifying different dimensions and measures from the viewpoint of workers’ organisations that are required to implement compatibility in a social, corporate and private respect.
The brochure has been published in English and Portuguese and can be requested from EZA.
Brochure for downloading: