European Union: Commission consults on work-life balance
In October 2006, the European Commission launched consultations with European-level trade union and employers' organisations, seeking their views on the possible direction of future EU action on improving the reconciliation of work, private and family life.
The consultations were announced on 12 October as part of a wider initiative on tackling demographic problems, set out in a communication (COM(2006) 571 final) entitled The demographic future of Europe - from challenge to opportunity. The European Commission states that Europe's ageing population and shrinking workforce represent "an unprecedented challenge for the whole of society" but that this challenge can be met by a range of actions: "The keys to success are the promotion of demographic renewal, more jobs and longer working lives, higher productivity, integrating migrants and sustainable public finances." The communication outlines five areas for concrete action to help member states "defuse the demographic time bomb" in their own national context. One of these is "helping people to balance work, family and private life so that potential parents can have the number of children they desire" and the communication includes a commitment to consult the EU-level social partners on this issue.
The consultation represents the first stage of the process laid down in art. 138 of the Treaty establishing the European Community. Before submitting proposals in the social policy field, the commission consults the social partners on the possible direction of Community action. Then, if the commission considers Community action advisable, it consults a second time, on the content of the envisaged proposal. At that stage, the social partners may seek to negotiate a European-level agreement on the issue in question, which may be a substitute for EU legislation.
The case for action
Action has already been taken at EU and national levels to provide entitlements to maternity and parental leave (see box), and the commission states that this represents an important step forward in the reconciliation of work, private and family life (referred to as "reconciliation" below). However, it believes that: "A number of factors suggest that further action may be required in this area."
Enabling people to have as many children as they wish
The EU fertility rate is insufficient to replace the population. The low fertility rate may be explained, in part, by the obstacles to "private choices", including a lack of work-private life balance, the commission argues. There is evidence that some member states (such as Denmark, Finland, France and Sweden) with effective reconciliation policies for both men and women have not only higher fertility rates but also higher female labour force participation and employment rates.
One of the reasons for delaying the decision to have a child is the fact that young people acquire autonomy later than in the past, states the commission. It argues that, while the desire to have a child is a private matter, public policies have to develop "action lines" to offer a better environment for young parents and to facilitate reconciliation. Reconciliation policies should also include young people who are still in higher education.
The availability, quality and affordability of childcare are seen as extremely important issues. The availability of childcare facilities does not indicate whether demand is fully met; the actual demand for childcare is influenced by the participation rate in employment of parents (especially mothers), the level of unemployment, the length of parental leave, the opening hours of schools and the availability of alternatives such as grandparents or other informal arrangements. The cost of childcare is a significant barrier to the uptake of further education or work for low-income families, particularly lone parents, and also at higher income levels, particularly for families with more than one child requiring childcare. Access to childcare is regarded as necessary in order to meet the double objective of having women participating in the labour market to a higher degree and also having more children. The commission therefore perceives a great need to increase childcare facilities in many countries, arguing that: "Long periods of leave do not substitute for lack of good-quality and affordable childcare."
Caring for the ageing population
With life expectancy increasing, the number of people living well into their 80s and 90s will rise substantially in the years ahead. According to the commission, while this will "provide an opportunity from the economic perspective", it will also mean that in the future many people will reach ages when frailty and disability are common. It is predicted that the dependent population will increase very significantly in future years in the EU. This will generate extra demand for high-quality care for the elderly.
To meet the demand and to cater for individual requirements, it will be necessary to provide both informal and formal care, the commission argues. Effective reconciliation policies should help to ensure that informal care is shared more equally between men and women and that such responsibilities and paid work can be combined. This is also seen as a necessary precondition for higher labour market participation rates of women, particularly older women.
Increasing women's labour market participation
To underpin economic growth, the member states must attract more people, and in particular more women, into the labour market, the commission states. This is all the more important because the ageing population will result in a decline in the proportion of people of working age. It is also seen as important to ensure that the increasing educational attainments of women are reflected not only in their "quantitative" but also in their "qualitative" participation in the labour market.
The EU's Lisbon employment targets state that by 2010 the overall employment rate should be raised to 70%, and that of women to 60%. The commission believes that this target can be reached if efforts are sustained to create better conditions for women to enter and stay in the labour market. Women's participation in lifelong learning and opportunities for them to update and adapt their skills are also regarded as important for this. Special attention should be paid to actions directed towards men in order to promote "a change in the workplace culture in support of gender equality".
Business benefits of reconciliation
According to the commission: "Apart from the general macroeconomic, equality and demographic arguments in favour of reconciliation policies, there is also a business case for such policies at the microeconomic level." The business case arguments cited include:
- lower staff turnover and consequently a reduction in time and expenditure on recruitment, induction and training of staff, as well as retention of key experienced personnel;
- improved morale, commitment and productivity;
- increased return on investment in training if employees remain with the employer longer;
- enhanced capacity to attract staff;
- reduced absence from work; and
- enhanced reputation and public image of the employing organisation.
Gender diversity within organisations can, it is argued, contribute to profits, as "inclusion of both women and men in all areas and at all levels of an organisation will bring different perspectives and talents to the organisation." It can also help the organisation to "understand better the needs of a diverse market". At the same time, it should be recognised that reconciliation policies can involve certain costs and challenges for employers, including:
- recruiting suitable replacement workers (in particular in the case of smaller companies);
- the costs of recruiting and training replacements;
- a potential temporary reduction in productivity; and
- additional administrative and management duties in order to manage the workload, to meet customer demands and to schedule meetings and training courses so most staff can attend in the case of flexible working hours, job-sharing, part-time work, etc.
The commission believes that, as reconciliation policies benefit individuals (including children), employers and society at large, ways of sharing these costs should be addressed in order to foster a positive impact of such policies on competitiveness, in particular of smaller firms, and prevent them becoming a disincentive to employing particular workers, with a negative effect on job creation.
Equal sharing of caring responsibilities
Women continue to be the main carers for children and other dependants, such as the elderly, and as a result are more affected by the "tensions arising when trying to combine participation in the labour market with private responsibilities". Data indicate that participation in the labour market is linked to parenthood, but that the effect is negative for women while it is positive for men. For example, according to commission figures, the employment rate for women aged 20 to 49 is 61.1% when they have children under the age of 12, compared with 75.4% when they do not. For men aged 20 to 49 with children under 12, however, the employment rate is 91.2%, compared with 85.6% for men without.
Statistics cited by the commission on how men and women organise their everyday lives in 10 European countries suggest that around two-thirds of all work done by women is unpaid, with women performing 60%-65% of all domestic work, while the majority of work done by men is paid work. When gainful employment and domestic work are combined, the total hours worked by employed women tend to exceed the total hours worked by employed men; as a result, women have less free time than men.
A 2003 Eurobarometer survey carried out in the EU15 found that 75% of current or prospective fathers knew of their entitlement to parental leave, but 84% had not taken this leave or were not intending to do so. The main factors deterring fathers from staying at home to look after a new baby or a small child were found to be financial considerations and fear of damaging their careers. According to the commission, parental leave reform can help to encourage fathers to make greater use of this opportunity. For example, since the introduction of a second month of parental leave for the exclusive use of fathers, Swedish men have increased substantially their use of available leave days. The introduction of more flexible forms of parental leave - for example the right to take leave in hourly units - might also encourage more fathers to take leave and help reduce possible adverse effects on the careers of women.
Adapting working patterns and harnessing new technologies
In the commission's view, adapting working patterns can be a very effective way of reducing the negative effects of long absences from the workplace, enabling employees to maintain contact with their working environment. Further, new technologies "allow the temporal and spatial boundaries of work to be extended, potentially facilitating more people, especially those with caring responsibilities, to participate in the labour market".
Examples of innovative
working patterns agreed between individual employers and workers include jobsharing, flexible working hours, term-time working and teleworking. The availability of these schemes appears to
depend on factors such as the size of the organisation, the sector of activity,
and the employee's occupational level and level of education. Other
arrangements being explored in some member states include "saving hours" or
"life-course" schemes, which are personal time accounts allowing employees more
individualised working arrangements that enable them, for example, to take
longer periods of leave (as in Luxembourg) or to combine various
activities - such as work, education and care
- more effectively at different phases of their lives (as in the Netherlands).
In some member states, there is an entitlement to, or the possibility to
apply for, part-time work or flexible work, such as a change in working hours
or days or place of work, subject to certain limitations (as in Germany, Malta,
the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia and the UK).
Information and communication technologies are creating new opportunities to combine work with caring responsibilities, the commission states, and for easy connection between home and work through mobile phones and email. This potentially increases productivity, reduces absence from work, improves staff commitment, increases retention rates and reduces employers' costs. However: "Care should be taken in order to ensure that new technologies are available to all staff, but do not erode the boundaries of working life, invading the private sphere, and creating new problems such as social isolation and family tensions."
Why EU-level action?
The commission states that there is a broad consensus among member states, the social partners and other stakeholders on the need to promote reconciliation of work, private and family life. Progress has been made at EU level, particularly in the form of legislation granting entitlements to maternity and parental leave, but some of the existing provisions "may need to be revisited in the light of experience with implementation, taking into account good practice" from member states that have gone further than the EU Directives.
Leave arrangements are only one of the policy tools that can be used to improve reconciliation, in the commission's view. Other options that it believes might play a useful role include adapted working patterns, the use of new technologies, changing attitudes of men and women to family responsibilities, and the provision of care facilities - "it is important to achieve the right mix of all of these components". The commission argues that there is evidence that further efforts are required in this area to address demographic challenges, raise the quantitative and qualitative level of women's participation in the labour market, and encourage men and women to take an equal share of caring responsibilities. Along with improving gender equality, it considers that better reconciliation of work, private and family life can bring economic benefits and help meet the challenges of the Lisbon agenda for growth and jobs.
The commission believes that it is worth exploring what further action might be taken at European level in relation to reconciliation. This should include examining what might be done in the areas of leave for childcare purposes, leave to care for elderly parents or disabled family members, care facilities for children and other dependants, and other forms of working arrangements that would make it easier to balance work, private and family life. Action is described as "necessary at national and European level to effectively achieve the objective of reconciliation between professional, private and family life. Beyond the benefits of sharing information and good practice in this important area, increased mobility between member states also warrants Community action in this area. In summary, the scale and effects of action in relation to reconciliation can be reinforced when acting at Community level."
Questions for the social partners
In the light of the above data and arguments, the commission has asked the European-level social partners for their views on the following five questions:
- "Do you consider that there is a need for further action on reconciliation between professional, private and family life in the European Union? If you consider action to be necessary, should such action be undertaken at Community level, national level, enterprise or sectoral level?"
- "What are the main areas in which improvements could be needed, taking into consideration in particular: 1) working time and flexible working arrangements; 2) new possibilities offered by information technologies; 3) availability and quality of childcare and care services for the elderly and other dependants; 4) leave, including paternity leave and leave to care for an elderly parent or a child or other family member with a disability?"
- "By which means do you consider that better reconciliation between professional life and private and family life could be achieved?"
- "Do you consider the existing Community legislation (notably on parental leave and protection of maternity) adequate to help meet the needs for reconciliation between professional and private and family obligations and to create the conditions for more equal sharing of professional, private and family responsibilities between women and men?"
- "How can the best balance be struck between the costs and benefits - for both individuals and companies - of measures permitting reconciliation of professional, private and family life?"
The social partners have six weeks to respond to the consultation (that is, until late November), after which the commission will decide if it is appropriate to come up with more concrete proposals for action.
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Maternity leave Directive 92/85/EEC on the introduction of measures to encourage improvements in the safety and health at work of pregnant workers and workers who have recently given birth or are breastfeeding (EIRR 226 p.16) provides for a minimum of 14 continuous weeks of maternity leave. The Directive also lays down requirements on health and safety in the workplace to protect pregnant workers and workers who have recently given birth or are breastfeeding. Paternity and adoption leave Directive 92/85/EEC does not apply to adopting parents or fathers. However, according to the European Commission, EU law does at least provide protection for the employment rights of workers who take paternity and/or adoption leave. Directive 2002/73/EC (Parliament: Conciliation texts on equal treatment and vibration), which amended Directive 76/207/EEC on the implementation of the principle of equal treatment for men and women, states that its provisions are without prejudice to the right of member states to recognise distinct rights to paternity and/or adoption leave. It also requires member states that recognise such rights to protect workers against dismissal for exercising those rights and to protect such workers' employment rights, including the right to return to their job. Parental leave The Commission first consulted the European-level social partners on the issue of reconciliation of work and family life in 1995. As a result, the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), the Union of Industrial and Employers' Confederations of Europe (Unice) and the European Centre of Enterprises with Public Participation and of Enterprises of General Economic Interest (Ceep) opened negotiations that led to a framework agreement on parental leave, which was subsequently implemented by Directive 96/34/EC (EIRR 267 p.19). The agreement sets out minimum requirements on parental leave and "force majeure" leave, while allowing member states the option of having more favourable provisions. The agreement provides an entitlement to at least three months' parental leave following the birth or adoption of a child until a given age (up to eight years) to be specified by the member states and/or the social partners. It is left to the member states and/or the social partners to decide whether the leave is paid or not. The agreement also provides for time off work for urgent family reasons in cases of sickness or accident. It is left to member states and/or the social partners to specify the amount of time off and the conditions for access to such leave. Situation in the member states There are marked variations between the member states in areas such as the length of maternity and parental leave and the level of payment. The duration of maternity leave varies from 14 weeks in a small number of member states to 28 weeks in others (eg the Czech Republic and Slovak Republic) and, in the UK, in certain circumstances up to 52 weeks, not all of which is paid. Similarly, the length of parental leave varies substantially between countries, ranging from three to four months in some member states to three years in others (eg the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Poland and the Slovak Republic). Parental leave is paid, subject to certain conditions and limitations, in a considerable number of member states (eg Austria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Poland, the Slovak Republic, Slovenia and Sweden). Many member states provide for time off or leave that goes beyond the scope of the EU Directives. For example:
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