Overall, men want to reduce long working hours. While single women expect to work after childbirth this may not be a realistic expectation in present circumstances. Approximately half of all women in the EU and Norway aged between 16 and 64-years are currently employed. The employment rate of women varies considerably from country to country. The waste majority of married or cohabiting employed men work full-time.
Men are generally more often in paid work and have longer working hours than their partners.
The couples' preferences still include gender-specific differences, but to a lesser degree. Indeed, there is an increased interest in part-time work for both men and women, that means for a more equal sharing of labour market participation and working time. The Employment Options of the Future survey is a large scale representative survey conducted in 1998 in 15 member states of the EU and in Norway. The survey was designed to find out who wants to work and who doesn't.