Report from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions - Annual Report on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men in the European Union 2002
Date: 2003-03-05
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: European social policy, activity report, enlargement of the Union, equal pay, equal treatment, gender equality

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES

Brussels, 5.3.2003
COM(2003) 98 final

REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION
TO THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT,
THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND
THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS

Annual Report on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men
in the European Union 2002

   
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

This Annual Report, the seventh on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men in the European
Union,  presents  an  overview  of  the  main  developments  and  achievements  at  Member  State
and European level in 2002 in the area of gender equality.

2002 was a momentous year, marking a historic milestone in the enlargement process with the
conclusion  of  accession  negotiations  with  Cyprus,  the  Czech  Republic,  Estonia,  Hungary,
Latvia,  Lithuania,  Malta,  Poland,  the  Slovak  Republic  and  Slovenia.  The  Union  now  looks
forward  to  welcoming  these  States  as  members  from  1  May  2004.  This  intervening  period
provides the opportunity to reinforce monitoring and co-operation support for these countries
in their final stages of preparation for full membership. In this context, the Action Programme
for gender equality was opened to candidate countries during 2002.

2002 also heralded the start of the work of the Convention on the Future of Europe. The lack
of women's representation  within  the  Convention  has  been  criticised  and,  to  counterbalance
this deficit, a strengthened gender mainstreaming approach has been advocated. In responding
to the many  challenges  facing the European  Union, it is clear that  any  future Constitutional
Treaty must reflect the aspirations of women and men in an enlarged Europe and confirm the
established  principle  of  equal  treatment  between  women  and  men.  In  order  to  achieve  a
gender equal society, the Union must continue working to eliminate inequalities and promote
equality between men and women in all its policies and actions (gender mainstreaming).

The Framework Strategy on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men continued to provide a
structure  for  gender  mainstreaming  of  all  policy  areas,  and  2002  saw,  for  example,  the
evaluation  of  the  European  Employment  Strategy,  including  the  impact  of  gender
mainstreaming,  and  an  analysis  of  Gender  in  the  Structural  Funds.  Important  progress  was
made in raising awareness and exchange of good practice in the Social Inclusion process and
in the Pension Report.

The  successful  amendment  of  the  Equal  Treatment  Directive  thanks  to  strong  collaboration
with the Council and  European  Parliament in  the co-decision  process, moved the agenda  of
equality  firmly  forward  in  the  area  of  employment.  Attention  also  focused  on  domestic
violence against women, including the adoption of indicators, and efforts were stepped up to
prevent and eliminate this unacceptable practice.

Gender  equality  is  a  human  right  for  all  and  visible  international  solidarity  and  support  for
women who are denied this right is essential. Some important steps were taken in 2002, but
much remains to be done and this therefore will continue to be a crucial area for efforts in the
future.

For comprehensive statistical data, an extensive statistical portrait of 'The life of women and
men in Europe' was published in 2002 by Eurostat (ISBN 92-894-3568-2).

2

Chapter I

GENDER EQUALITY IN AN ENLARGED EU

1. 

Challenges and opportunities of enlargement

With  the  conclusion  of  accession  negotiations  with  Cyprus,1  the  Czech  Republic,  Estonia,
Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, the Slovak Republic and Slovenia, the Union now
looks forward to welcoming these States as members from 1 May 2004.

Throughout  the  enlargement  process,  discussions  and  negotiations  on  gender  equality  have
implied more than candidate countries just catching up with EU legislation and processes. The
creation of an ever closer union of the peoples of Europe and the inclusion of these countries
within the European Union brings a wealth of experience and achievements from which the
existing Member States can also learn. This process of mutual amalgamation of what has been
achieved across so many countries can be expected to refocus gender equality in Europe and
to provide a fresh and promising impetus towards a gender equal society.

Gender equality has long been recognised as a fundamental principle and a fundamental right
and is an 'objective' within the European Union  Treaty. Gender  equality  is for  all  citizens –
women  and  men,  as  democratic  societies  can  only  achieve  their  full  potential  with  the  full
participation and contribution of all. Thus, it must be underlined that gender equality is not a
minority  issue  as  it  concerns  the  whole  population.  It  is  therefore  essential  that  legal  and
administrative  provisions  and  practices  to  achieve  equality  between  men  and  women  be
focused on this objective without conceptually categorising it as a minority concern.

More  than  anything  else,  however,  it  is  essential  for  all  the  accession  countries  to  increase
their efforts  to  raise awareness amongst citizens  of  their  new  rights.  To  fully  anchor  law  in
society, it is indispensable to inform citizens about their rights and to encourage them to avail
themselves of their rights in a culture of open discussion supported by the judicial capacity to
deal with disputes efficiently.

Legislative transposition

In the field of equal opportunities nine Directives dealing with gender and equality needed to
be transposed. As indicated in the Regular Report,2 the process of alignment with the acquis
is  well  advanced  in  many  candidate  countries,  in  particular  Cyprus,  the  Czech  Republic,
Latvia,  Lithuania,  Hungary,  Slovakia  and  Slovenia,  where  a  number  of  further  steps  were
added in  2002.  However,  Estonia,  Malta  and,  to  a  lesser  extent,  Poland  are  lagging  behind.
Progress  in  the  process  of  alignment  is  needed  in  all  countries  and,  in  line  with  the  firm
mandate  from  the  European  Council  in  Copenhagen,  the  Commission  will  intensify  its
monitoring of policy developments in all acceding states.

1

2

The terms concerning the accession of Cyprus to the EU with regard to the Turkish Cypriot community will depend on a settlement in the Treaty  of

Accession in line with the principles on which the EU is founded.

COM (2002) XXX,October 2002

3

                                                
An amendment to the Czech Employment Act, approved by Parliament in April 2002, further
refines  the  definition  of  direct  and  indirect  discrimination  in  access  to  employment.  An
amendment  to  the  Lithuanian  Law  on  Equal  Opportunities  concerning  direct  and  indirect
discrimination was adopted in June 2002 and support for both parents bringing up children to
the age of 8 has been  enhanced.  In  Slovenia,  the  Equal  Opportunities  Act,  an  umbrella  law
providing a common basis for creating equal opportunities for women and men in public life,
was  adopted  in  June  2002.  In  Latvia,  the  Law  on  Labour  Protection  came  into  force  on  1
January 2002 and the new Labour Code on 1 June 2002. In Slovakia, the new Act on Social
Insurance approved in  May  2002 aimed  at finalising transposition  of  the Directive on  equal
treatment in matters of social security. In September 2002, equal pay for men and women for
work of equal value was enacted in Cyprus.

Co-operation  will continue  with  Bulgaria  and  Romania,  who  have  made  important  progress
which is reflected in the advanced state of their accession negotiations, and also with Turkey.

Implementing structures

However,  transposition  of  legislation  in  itself  is  not  enough.  Experience  has  shown  that
supporting  mechanisms  are  essential,  including  structures  such  as  equality  bodies,
ombudsmen for equality and active, well-informed sources for independent advice. Effective
implementation  of  the  recently  adopted  legislation  now  becomes  the  challenge,  along  with
ensuring that the relevant institutions have the adequate administrative capacity in place and
are able to fulfil their new responsibilities emerging from the new legislation.

In  the  Czech  Republic,  labour  offices  can  implement  affirmative  measures  in  order  to
eliminate or at least decrease inequalities in the labour market. Furthermore, the Council for
Equal Opportunities for Men and Women met for the first time in April 2002. This Council is
an inter-ministerial consultative and advisory body with a mandate to promote gender equality
policy.  Since  January  2002,  each  Ministry  has  created  a  permanent  position  for  an  official
charged exclusively with the agenda of equal opportunities for men and women. In June 2002,
the Hungarian Government announced the creation of a new anti-discrimination bureau to
combat  labour  discrimination  against  disabled  people,  Roma  and  other  minority  groups  as
well as against women. With the decision in February 2002 to establish the Gender Equality
Council  in  Latvia,  a  co-ordination  and  advisory  body  has  been  created.  In  Lithuania,  the
Office of the Ombudsperson for Equal Opportunities continues to operate actively in the field
of  direct  and  indirect  discrimination.  In  2002  the  Office  was  further  reinforced.  The  new
Employment  Relations  Act  in  Slovenia  envisages  the  adoption  of  a  special  national
programme  on  equal  opportunities  and  will  also  allow  the  Government  Office  for  Equal
Opportunities  to  appoint  an  ombudsman  to  handle  cases  of  unequal  treatment.  In  October
2001, a Government Plenipotentiary for Equal Status of Women and Men was established in
Poland.  In  Cyprus,  the  structures  and  mechanisms  for  practical  implementation  of  the
legislation  would  need  to  be  strengthened,  particularly  regarding  independent  advisory
structures. The administrative capacity needed to implement the acquis in Malta is in place
but needs to be further strengthened.

In Romania and Bulgaria, limited or no progress has been made to develop institutional and
administrative structures to facilitate the implementation and enforcement of equality rights.

In  addition,  other  gender  mainstreaming  initiatives  have  been  undertaken  in  the  candidate
countries.  Hungary  has  promoted  mainstreaming  by  training  the  legal  professions,  raising
awareness and tackling inequalities, in particular in the labour market. In Latvia, efforts have
focused on promoting implementation of the Concept of Gender Equality. In March 2002, the

4

accompanying Action Plan for the implementation of the concept in 2002 was approved and
provides for a National Gender Equality Strategy for 2003-2007, including training on gender
equality for civil servants.

2. 

Socio-economic dimension

2.1. 

Employment

Co-operation  with  accession  countries  has  already  started  in  socio-economic  co-ordination
processes. A co-operation process on employment, the so-called "Joint Assessments Papers"
(JAPs),  aims  at  preparing  candidate  countries  for  their  future  participation  in  the  EU
employment strategy and identifying employment policy priorities as part of the preparations
for future ESF support.

In marked contrast to the experiences of the 15 Member States, women's participation in the
labour market in accession countries used to be high (except for Malta where it is particularly
low) but dropped dramatically during the early years of the transition. Both women and men
have high unemployment levels, especially in Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland and the Slovak
Republic. On the other hand, male participation is lower than the EU average and thus gender
gaps  in  both  employment  and  unemployment  are  narrower  than  in  the  EU.  As  in  the  EU,
accession countries' labour markets are strongly gender-segregated whilst the gender pay gap
is even wider.

In most of the accession countries there is awareness of the need for a gender mainstreaming
policy  and  strategy  although 
lacking.  Family-friendly  working-time
arrangements  remain  poorly  developed  beyond  basic  provisions  for  maternity  and  family-
related leave. Most accession countries also need to develop affordable child-care facilities, in
particular  those  Central  and  Eastern  European  countries  where  such  facilities  disappeared
with the collapse of the previous system.

tools  are 

the 

Country

2001(%)

Cyprus

The Czech Republic

Estonia,

Hungary

Latvia

Lithuania

Malta

Poland

The Slovak Republic

Slovenia

Activity rate

Employment rate Unemployment rate

female

Male

female

56.9

63.3

65.5

52.4

63.0

67.9

34.4

61.4

63.8

62.8

81.5

78.7

74.4

67.7

72.1

75.9

81.4

73.9

78.0

72.8

male

79.1*

73.3

65.5

63.4

61.9

53.2*

57

57.3

49.8

55.7

58.5*

61.9*

31.6

48.9

51.8

58.8

76.4

61.2

62

68.6

female

male

6.5

9.9

12.5

5.0

11.6

13.8

8.2

20.3

18.3

6.3

3

6.8

12

6.4

14.1

18.4

6.2

17.2

20.5

5.7

The  inclusion  of  the  10  accession  countries  will  slightly  rebalance  the  employment  rates
targeted by Lisbon. The overall employment rate would be affected by about 1.5 percentage
points to 62.4%, with a higher impact on the male employment rate than female.

5

Employment rates before and after 2004 enlargement in the EU3
2001 (%)

Total 15–64

Women 15–64

EU15

CCs10

EU25 (EU15 + CCs10)

63.8

56.8

62.6

54.7

51.1

54.1

Targets

Close to 70%

More than 60%

As part  of  ongoing  co-operation,  gender  equality  and  gender  mainstreaming  were  expressly
included in the Structural Funds seminars organised with the accession countries in 2002. As
in the future implementation of the structural funds, they will also adopt the dual strategy of
gender mainstreaming and specific actions. It will also be important to ensure that, in the new
Member  States,  NGOs  are  involved  in  programmes  as  partners  in  programming  and
implementation as well as beneficiaries of the Funds.

2.2. 

Social inclusion

In  the  area  of  social  inclusion,  co-operation  mainly  consists  of  preparing  Joint  Inclusion
Memoranda (JIM), the aim of which is to prepare accession countries for full participation in
the  European  Social  Inclusion  Process  as  of  the  date  of  accession.  The  joint  drafting  of  the
memoranda  acts  as  a  mutual  learning  exercise  involving  both  the  Commission  and  the
national  authorities  in  each  of  the  accession  countries,  who  are  asked  to  describe  the  social
situation of women and men in low income groups, to identify gender-related problems and to
explain how gender issues are mainstreamed into social inclusion policies and what specific
measures  might  be  required.  The  memoranda  will  be  finalised  by  the  end  of  2003  and
represent a major step towards the establishment by accession countries of their first National
Action Plans to combat poverty and social exclusion in 2005.

2.3.  Women in decision-making

The enlargement process means a Europe "in which women can play a new role, without any
form of exclusion". Women's rights cannot be dissociated from social progress. It is therefore
essential  that  women  in  the  accession  countries  should  be  able  to  enjoy  the  benefits  of
existing Community legislation on male-female equality. In the European elections to be held
in  2004,  women  must  be  able  to  play  a  full  role  in  decision-taking  and  political  life.  This
should be taken up by women in the accession countries as a chance to make themselves more
visible in politics.

As  part  of  the  support  given  to  accession  countries,  the  Gender  Equality  action  programme
was  opened  to  them  in  2002.  A  phased  approach  is  being  followed  which  allows  accession
countries to raise awareness through of series of seminars held locally in 2003, and to which
local  and  national  stakeholders  will  be  invited.  The  second  phase  includes  participation  in
projects with partners from other Member States or countries.

In 2003 the Commission will concentrate its activities on the promotion of gender balance in
decision-making.  This  is  the  priority  theme  identified  in  the  call  for  proposals  published  in
November 2002 (deadline for submission of proposals is 14 March 2003). This will provide a
substantive basis for action and exchange between accession countries and Member States.

3

Source: Employment in Europe 2002

6

                                                
Finally, it is only through face-to-face dialogue that real understanding can be achieved and
act  as  a  basis  for  partnership.  Thus,  the  accession  countries  were  invited  to  attend,  as
observers,  the  Advisory  Committee  and  the  Programme  Committee  meetings  in  October
2002. This positive experience will be generalised from April 2003 in order to build a solid
foundation for future co-operation.

7

Chapter II

FRAMEWORK STRATEGY FOR GENDER EQUALITY

3. 

The dual approach

The  gender  mainstreaming  strategy,  recognised  internationally  since  the  1995  UN
Conference on Women held in Beijing, has proven to be an effective tool in the promotion of
equality  between  men  and  women.  Gender  mainstreaming  combined  with  specific  actions,
consisting  in  particular  of  legislation  and  financial  programmes,  form  the  dual  approach  as
presented  in  the  Framework  Strategy  on  Gender  Equality.  2002  was  the  third  year  of
implementation  of  the  Strategy,  which  includes  the  annual  work  programme  covering  all
departments of the Commission.

The  experience  drawn  from  drafting  and  monitoring  the  previous  two  annual  work
programmes shows that this is an effective approach which delivers results. This year's work
programme4 will take us to the midpoint of the five-year Community Framework Strategy on
Gender Equality, at which stage there will be a more detailed study of the progress made in
the  implementation  of  gender  equality  within  the  various  departments  of  the  European
Commission, including an evaluation of resource implications (human and financial).

The  Commission has now endorsed  the  generalised  approach  of  Impact  Assessment.5  Thus,
from  2003,  an  Impact  Assessment  based  on  the  three  pillars  of  social,  economic  and
environmental sustainability will  gradually be applied to  all major new initiatives, i.e. those
which  are  presented  in  the  Annual  Policy  Strategy  or  later  in  the  Work  Programme  of  the
Commission. This impact assessment will replace existing requirements for business impact
assessment,  gender  assessment,  environmental  assessment,  small  and  medium  enterprises
assessment,  trade  impact  assessment,  regulatory  impact  assessment,  etc.  Indeed,  the  new
integrated  Impact  Assessment  tool  builds  on  these  existing  practices  and  incorporates  them
into  the  new  tool.  It  remains  however  for  individual  DGs  to  ensure  that  the  impact
assessments they conduct also take gender impact into account as appropriate  and  this is an
area for continued vigilance.

4. 

The European Employment Strategy

Since  the  beginning,  gender  equality  has  been  a  crucial  component  of  the  Luxembourg
process and the European Employment Strategy reflects this. In 2002, the Commission carried
out an evaluation exercise on the European Employment Strategy. One of the main findings
was  that  the  dual  strategy  towards  gender  equality,  namely  mainstreaming  and  specific
actions,  proved  to  be  successful.  The  visibility  of  gender  equality  has  improved  even  in
Member  States  that  are  "lagging  behind",  and  gender  gaps  have  decreased  in  particular  for
employment and unemployment rates.

4

5

Work Programme COM(2003)47, SEC(2003)137

Communication  from  the  Commission  on  Impact  Assessment  COM(2002)276  final,  see  http://europa.eu.int/comm/press_room/presspacks/pdf/276-

4en.pdf

8

                                                
However, despite several improvements achieved over the last five years, much remains to be
done to achieve the Lisbon and Stockholm targets and to close gender gaps which are still too
wide.  Sustained  commitment  will  be  needed  to  achieve  the  EU  employment  target  rates,  in
particular  the  target  rate  for  older  workers.  The  Joint  Report  on  increasing  labour  force
participation  estimated  the  necessary  increases  in  employment  to  be  15.4  million  between
2002  and  2010,  of  which  9.6  for  women  and  7.4  for  older  workers.  Based  on  current
scenarios,  the  Lisbon  target  of  a  70%  overall  employment  rate  is  only  within  reach  if  the
recent  structural  improvements  in  the  working  of  the  European  labour  markets  and  if
increases in female participation are sustained up to 2010 and, where necessary, built upon.

linked 

to  raising 

is  directly 

These targets (Lisbon and Stockholm) refer to the employment rate, and while it is clear that
raising  employment 
levels  of  participation,  reducing
unemployment  will  also  have  to  play  a  role.  Raising  participation  will  not  be  easy,  partly
because  it  will  depend  on  changes  in  cultural  and  socio-psychological  factors.  The  major
reasons  for  inactivity  of  the  population  aged  15-64  are:  personal  or  family  responsibilities
(almost  20%  of  the  total  inactive,  but  29,2%  of  inactive  women),  own  illness  or  disability
(9%), education and training (27%, almost 90% in the 15-24 age group) and retirement (16%,
about 90% in the 55-64 age group). There are strong gender differences in these reasons for
inactivity. Men are inactive mainly because of  education or retirement, while almost half of
inactivity  for  women  aged  25-54  is  due  to  family  and  home  care  responsibilities.  Tax
disincentives  affect  the  participation  decision  of  women,  particularly  when  combined  with
caring responsibilities and the continued existence of gender pay gaps, which implies a lower
expected income.

There  is  a  growing  awareness  that  gender  pay  gaps  do  not  decrease  as  an  automatic  by-
product  of  the  growing  female  participation  rate,  as  they  are  linked  to  structural  gender
inequalities in the labour market. Moreover, results need to be monitored and assessed in the
medium- and long-term and in relation to gender segregation.

At  the  Barcelona  European  Council,  Member  States  agreed  targets  for  childcare  provision.
Childcare  should  be  provided  for  at  least  90%  of  children  between  3  years  old  and  the
mandatory  school  age  and  at  least  33%  of  children  under  3  years  by  2010.  Even  though  a
growing  number  of  Member  States  have  introduced  new  measures  including  quantitative
targets and deadlines to improve childcare facilities, good and affordable services are still not
sufficient to meet the demand or to reach the Barcelona targets. The issue of improving care
for other dependants has, as last year, received very little attention.

Many  Member States  are expanding  leave arrangements  (Denmark,  France,  Finland,  Spain,
Sweden, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Austria and the Netherlands). Whilst this is a positive
development,  given  the  gender  imbalance  in  the  approach  to  caring,  with  the  responsibility
continuing  to  fall  on  women,  there  is  the  danger  that  long  periods  of  leave  could  have  a
negative  impact  on  women's  participation  rate,  widen  gender  pay  differentials  and  increase
gender segregation.

Gender  equality  policy  in  general,  and  the  dual  approach  in  particular,  is  the  key  to  raising
employment rates, improving quality at work and promoting an inclusive labour market. The
future challenges for equal opportunity continue to be : to reach the Lisbon targets, to increase
the  monitoring  of  policy  impact,  to  improve  childcare  facilities  (Barcelona  targets)and  to
extend the involvement of  the social  partners,  especially  in  the  field  of  gender  pay  gap  and
parental leave.

9

5. 

The structural funds

The  European  Union’s  Structural  Funds  provide  large-scale  financial  aid  to  develop  skills,
promote jobs and support regions in need. Gender equality is a key objective and follows the
dual approach, with specific measures for equal opportunities alongside a wider commitment
to mainstream gender concerns across the funds' operations.

This two-pronged approach is most developed in the European Social Fund (ESF), the EU's
main financial support tool for the European Employment Strategy. Most initiatives to reduce
gender inequalities focus on employment and are funded by the ESF. Gender mainstreaming
proved  to  be  more  difficult  to  implement  in  other  Structural  Fund  areas  like  transport,
environment or rural development.

ESF funding  for "Women's access to and participation in the labour market"  in  Euro  and  in
percentage of ESF total spending

spending in Euro

Austria

76 782 000

Italy

837 469 241

Germany

1 099 335 311

Luxembourg

3 380 600

UK

Greece

Spain

Ireland

355 121 072

193 761 925

521 899 539

46 631 000

%

10.5

10.0

9.5

4.6

4.6

4.5

4.4

4.3

spending in Euro

France

257 352 700

Belgium

38 252 364

Denmark

10 498 333

Netherlands

43 139 000

Sweden

Finland

8 102 800

6 723 000

Portugal

17 240 700

EU

3 515 689 585

%

3.8

3.5

2.3

2.2

0.8

0.8

0.4

6.0

The 3rd Conference on Gender Mainstreaming in the Structural Funds (14 and 15 June 2002,
Santander,  Spain)  underlined  that  only  a  few  programmes  implementing  the  funds  in  the
Member  States  take  on  a  comprehensive  gender  mainstreaming  strategy.  While  many
programmes  include  general  commitments  to  address  the  different  effects  of  the  funds'
operations  on  women  and  men,  most  lack  clear  targets  and  monitoring  in  terms  of  gender
equality.

Italy is one  of the  first Member States  to  introduce  a  comprehensive  evaluation  package  to
measure progress on gender equality through the Structural Funds. Armed with this package,
the  Italian  authorities  responsible  for  the  Funds  aim  to  ensure  that  the  people  who  design,
select and run projects to be funded take full account of the gender dimension.

Another example  of  good  practice  is  the  joint  effort  made  by  eight  regions  in  Spain  to  use
some  of  their  Structural  Funds  money  to  improve  women's  employability,  fight  gender
segregation,  and  promote  reconciliation  of  family  and  work.  The  actions  include  training
(mainly  in  sectors  where  women  are  under-represented),  financial  aid  to  companies  hiring
unemployed  women,  support  for  women’s  enterprises,  campaigns,  research  and  promoting
women in decision-making positions.

10

the  Santander  conference  helped 

The  results  of 
to  draw  up  a
Communication6 at the end of 2002. This highlighted good practice in gender mainstreaming
and  recommended  ways  of  enhancing  it.  The  communication  feeds  into  the  Commission's
mid-term review of the Structural Funds' six-year programming period, which is due in 2003
and carries a number of clear messages:

the  Commission 

– 

– 

– 

Specific measures aimed at the under-represented sex are essential – for which
dedicated  funding  needs  to  be  visible,  particularly  by  assigning,  from  the
outset,  additional  points  in  the  selection  criteria  to  those  projects  which
contribute to gender equality.

Funding  allocated 
mainstreaming needs to be visible – and in many cases increased.

to  specific  equality  actions  and  especially  gender

Gender  mainstreaming  is  difficult  and  specific  expertise  with  training  is
essential if it is to be effective. Gender-disaggregated statistics are the key in
this respect.

In  any  future  support  from  the  Structural  Funds,  it  will  be  important  to  maintain  the  dual
strategy  of  gender  mainstreaming  and  specific  actions  in  order  to  reduce  inequalities  and
achieve the objective of an equal society.

6. 

The Social Inclusion Process

The European Social Inclusion Process is designed to support the Member States in their fight
against  poverty  and  social  exclusion.  The  Council  set  common  objectives  on  the  basis  of
which Member States establish National Action Plans. The Council asked the Member States
to incorporate a gender dimension throughout all their strategies to combat poverty and social
exclusion.

In  the  EU,  16%  of  women  and  15%  of  men  were  at  risk  of  poverty  in  1999,  with  10%  of
women and 8% of men at persistent risk of poverty.7 When sex is cross-classified with other
factors,  big  gaps  appear.  For  instance,  among  one-person-households,  24%  of  women,
compared  with  19%  of  men,  are  at  risk  of  poverty.  The  risk  of  poverty  of  single  parents,
mainly women, is around 38%.8

The gender dimension was not very visible in the first National Action Plans put forward in
2001. In July 2002, ministers agreed that the gender dimension needed to be improved. This
political  commitment  gave  strong  impetus  to  successful  gender  mainstreaming.  The  next
round of National Action Plans are due in July 2003 and their preparation has already started.

At  European  level,  a  mutual  learning  exercise  was  organised  in  September  2002  with  the
national co-ordinators of the Plans and national gender experts. Member States discussed their
experience in gender mainstreaming, their successes and also their difficulties, and how they
intend  to  overcome  them.  A  special  session  on  gender  mainstreaming  was  also  organised
within  the  context  of  the  European  Round  Table  on  Social  Inclusion  held  in  Aarhus  in
October  2002.  The  Round  Table  brought  together  members  of  the  European  Parliament,

6

7

8

COM (2002)748

Eurostat, ECHP-UDB ver. Dec. 2002

Joint Inclusion Report – data 1997 – table 3c

11

                                                
national  administrations,  local  and  regional  authorities,  researchers,  social  partners  and
NGOs.

As  a  result,  the  text  on  the  Common  Objectives  for  the  Plans  for  2003  was  adapted  by  the
Council to underline that gender should be integrated into every stage of the Plans. This was
further  detailed  in  the  common  outline  of  the  Plans  that  the  national  co-ordinators  set  up.
Thus, it is anticipated that specific actions on gender will feature more strongly in the Plans
for 2003 and that gender mainstreaming throughout will be more evident.

7. 

The gender dimension in the national strategies on Pension

In December 2001, Member States agreed to submit reports on how they intend to ensure that
coming  generations  of  pensioners  have  adequate  incomes  without  placing  an  excessive
burden on future generations of workers. Reports are built on common objectives relating to
the  pension  systems'  adequacy,  financial  sustainability  and  their  capacity  to  respond  to
changing needs. Objective 10 invites the Member States to explain how their pension systems
can meet the aspirations for greater equality between women and men.

Women represent the majority of older people – nearly 60 % of people over 65 and close to
two thirds of those over 75. However, most pension schemes were traditionally designed for
men  as  the  family  breadwinner,  working  full-time  and  without  career  breaks.  The  first
national reports, submitted in September 2002, show that many  pension  systems still reflect
these basic principles.

The average level of women's pensions remains significantly lower in many countries than the
average  level  of  men's  pensions,  mainly  due  to  differences  between  men's  and  women's
employment histories.9 In Finland women’s average total pensions are at 841 euros in 2000,
27% lower than the men’s average. In Spain the gap is 37%. The average contributive pension
for women was 405 euros  and 650 euros  for  men  in 2001.  In Austria,  the average  statutory
pensions in 2000 was 734 euros for women and 1334 euros for men, a gap of 45%. In France
the  average  monthly  pension  for  men  in  1997  was  1342  euros,  compared  to  767  euros  for
women, a gap of 43%. In the UK the gap in 2001 was 16%, men receiving £183 per week and
women £153.

However,  the  Commission's  evaluation  of  the  reports  shows  that  the  Member  States  are
gradually adapting their systems to the evolving social and economic role of women and men,
taking  into  account  the  higher  labour  market  participation  of  women  and  moving  to  new
provisions to facilitate the reconciliation between work and family responsibilities. However,
their  effects  will  be  slow  and  significant  differences  between  women's  and  men's  pension
entitlements will persist for a long time to come.

9

Commission communication on Draft Joint Report on Adequate and Sustainable Pensions – COM(2002)737 final

12

                                                
8. 

Other policies

8.1. 

External relations

A sub-group on external relations has been established within the context of the Inter-service
the  Directorates-General  for
group  on  gender  equality,  with  representatives  from 
Development,  Enlargement,  EuropeAid 
relations,
Humanitarian Aid Office, Trade and Employment. In 2002, the sub-group undertook a review
of existing policies, including the state  of  implementation of  the three Communications10 in
external relations, on the basis of a report prepared by a gender expert.

-  Co-operation  Office,  External 

The group is focusing on effective implementation of the June 2001 Programme of Action for
the mainstreaming of  gender  equality in  Community  Development  Co-operation  and  is  also
looking at what the impact has been of EU trade, development and other foreign policies on
women up until now. It will further investigate what the Commission can offer as added value
in its negotiations and within its bilateral contacts with partners outside the EU, along with the
issue of how the Commission supports the empowerment of women and their participation in
humanitarian and political processes.

8.2. 

Research and development

The Commission has continued its activities in the area of 'Women and Science' using diverse
approaches. An expert group which was set up in January 2002 to review the participation of
women in industrial research reported in January 2003.

The  Commission  is  also  planning  to  establish  a  European  Platform  of  women  scientists,
which will develop activities to promote women scientists and to enhance their involvement,
at national and European level, in the political debate on science. To prepare this, a study of
women scientist networks was launched in November 2002. This study will cover the period
from November 2002 to June 2003.

At the end of October 2002, the Commission set  up  the  Enwise  Expert  Group  to  study  and
report on the situation facing women scientists in Eastern and Central European countries and
in the Baltic States. This  Group  will  put  forward  recommendations  to  improve  the  role  and
place of women in European scientific research (European Research Area’s objective) and to
increase the number of female participants from the targeted countries in the 6th Community
Research Framework Programme (2002-2006).

On 17 December 2002, the Commission published its first calls for proposals under the Sixth
Framework Programme. Among them is an open call for proposals for Women and Science
activities. The focus will be on developing synergies between national and  regional policies
and actions, increasing the participation  of  women in industrial research  and  mainstreaming
gender equality in scientific institutions.

Moreover,  integrated  projects  and  networks  of  excellence  funded  by  the  Framework
Programme will have to provide a gender equality action plan within each project. In addition
to this, evaluators will be asked to ascertain if there is a gender dimension in a project, and if
so, how it should be addressed.

10

Gender in development co-operation; Women in conflict prevention; The EU's role in the promotion of human rights and democratisation

13

                                                
8.3. 

Education

A seminar was held on 29 and 30 November 2002 in Budapest with the national Agencies and
Ministries  of  Education  in  charge  of  the  management  of  Socrates.  The  results  and
recommendations  of  the  study  on  the  evaluation  of  the  gender  impact  of  first  phase  of  the
Community action programme were debated and indicators were identified to be used in the
second phase of the programme

In  response  to  the  Commission  Communication  "Making  a  European  Area  of  Lifelong
Learning  a  Reality",11  the  Council  adopted  a  Resolution  in  May  2002.  In  this  text  equal
opportunities is  one  of  the  fundamental  principles  of  the  life  long  learning  concept.  Among
the objectives, access and participation by women in life long learning, especially within the
framework of companies, are key factors.

As  a  result  of  the  Commission  Report  on  "Concrete  future  objectives  of  Education
Systems",12  the  Council  adopted  a  work  programme13  which  integrated  an  engendered
approach. These two texts constitute a baseline for the future development of education and
training policies in Europe.

8.4. 

Environment

In association with the Spanish Presidency, a seminar was held in February 2002 in Segovia,
on European Environmental Policy and Women. Three topics were  considered: the need for
in-depth  analysis  of  environmental  issues  from  a  gender  perspective;  concrete  actions  to
incorporate  gender  perspectives  into  environmental  policies;  and  the  need  for  training.  The
results were presented at the Council meeting on 4 March 2002.

Gender  mainstreaming  was  included  as  part  of  the  DG  Environment  Management  Plan  in
2002 and progress was especially visible in the field of waste management and water, marine
and soil. Two gender impact studies have been undertaken:

– 

– 

In relation to waste management, an analysis of the effects in terms of gender impact
of current waste planning policy at municipal level in the EU is being conducted with
a  view  to  utilizing  the  results  of  such  study  in  the  development  of  guidelines  for
Member State waste management planning.

A  second  study  on  gender  mainstreaming  in  the  field  of  the  Water  Framework
Directive has been launched with the objective  of determining whether  the  policies
impact  differently  in  women  and  men,  and  as  necessary,  how  to  minimise  any
negative impact.

Training on Gender Mainstreaming was extended to co-ordinators level and included contact
points in all units.

11

12

13

COM (2001) 678 final of 21 November 2001

COM (2001) 59 final of 31 January 2001

Adoption on 14 February 2002 No. 6365/02

14

                                                
9. 

Gender equality stakeholders

On 6 March 2002, the Group of Commissioners on gender equality held a dialogue with key
bodies  at  European  level,  including  the  European  Parliament,  the  Spanish  Presidency,  the
Advisory  Committee  on  Equal  Opportunities  for  Women  and  Men  and  the  European
Women's Lobby.

The  Inter-service  Group  on  Gender  Equality  continued  its  co-ordination  of  gender
mainstreaming  policy  within  the  Commission  and  supported  the  Commissioners'  Group  in
monitoring progress and achievements.

The Advisory Committee for Equal Opportunities for Women and Men14 continued its work
and  adopted  5  opinions.  Two  of  these  were  addressed  to  the  Convention  concerning  the
substance  of  a  future  EU  Constitution  and/or  Treaty.  These  opinions  set  out  fundamental
principles which, according to the Committee, need to be taken up if Europe is to be a gender
equal society.

In order to step up co-operation with EU national gender equality authorities and co-ordinate
activities, the Commission, working in close co-operation with the EU presidency, organises a
high-level  meeting  with  senior  officials  from  the  Member  States  with  responsibility  for
gender equality policies twice a year. The aim is to create a forum for an exchange of views
on  political  and  strategic  matters  related  to  gender  mainstreaming  and  gender  equality.  The
focus  has  been  put  on  the  follow-up  of  the  Beijing  Platform  for  Action  in  the  Council  and
gender  mainstreaming  in  Council  formations.  In  2002,  the  Spanish  presidency  followed  the
example  of  previous  presidencies  of  integrating  the  gender  dimension  into  two  Council
formations,  the  Environment  Council  and  the  Agriculture  Council.  The  Danish  presidency
further integrated the gender dimension into all relevant agenda items in the Employment and
Social  Policy  Council  and  presented  a  guide  on  how  to  gender  mainstream  Council
formations.

Co-operation with other international organisations such as the United Nations (follow-up to
the  Beijing  Platform  for  Action),  the  Council  of  Europe  (Steering  Committee  for  Equal
Opportunities) and the OSCE (new action plan on gender equality) was continued in order to
build on the expertise of these organisations and to further gender mainstreaming in relevant
policies.

Non-governmental  organisations  play  a  major  role  in  promoting  gender  equality.  Their
contribution  is  particularly  valuable  in  the  fight  against  trafficking  in  human  beings  and
helping  the  victims.  During  2002,  women's  NGOs  were  particularly  active  in  making
contributions to the work of the Convention on the Future of Europe.

The Committee on Women's rights and Equal Opportunities of the European Parliament has
provided  invaluable  input  throughout  2002  in  the  area  of  gender  equality.  The  tasks  of  this
committee  include  areas  such  as  monitoring  the  evolution  and  implementation  of  women's
rights in the Union and fostering women's rights in third countries, implementing and further
developing  mainstreaming  in  all  sectors,  promoting  policy  on  equality  between  men  and
women  with  regard  to  labour  market  opportunities  and  treatment  at  work,  as  well  as
monitoring the implementation of current expenditure for which the committee is responsible.
During  2002,  the  committee  was  the  lead  committee  as  co-legislator  in  the  amendment  of

14

http://europa.eu.int/comm/employment_social/equ_opp/strategy/advcom.html

15

                                                
Directive 76/207/EEC  relating  to the implementation of the  principle  of  equal  treatment  for
men  and  women  as  regards  access  to  employment,  vocational  training  and  promotion,  and
working  conditions.  At  the  same  time,  the  committee  had  the  opportunity  to  debate  on  a
variety  of  issues  such  as  the  EU  policy  towards  Mediterranean  countries  in  relation  to  the
promotion  of  women's  rights  and  equal  opportunities  in  those  countries;  representation  of
women among the social partners of the European Union; the mid-term review of the 2000-
2003  Daphne  Programme;  sexual  and  reproductive  health  and  rights;  the  mainstreaming  of
gender equality in Community Development Co-operation; and women and fundamentalism.

16

Chapter III

SPECIFIC POLICIES AND ACTIONS FOR GENDER EQUALITY

10. 

Legislation

10.1. 

Equal treatment

Directive 76/207/EEC on the implementation of the principle of equal treatment for men and
women  as  regards  access  to  employment,  vocational  training  and  promotion,  and  working
conditions  was  amended  in  September  200215  after  intensive  and  constructive  co-operation
between the Council of Ministers, the European Parliament and the Commission.

One of the key reforms focuses on sexual harassment at work. Now, for the first time at EU
level, binding legislation defines sexual harassment and outlaws it as a form of discrimination
based on sex. It bans any form of unwanted sexual behaviour that creates an intimidating or
degrading environment and also urges employers to take preventive action against all forms
of discrimination and to compile regular equality reports for staff.

Adoption of collective agreements establishing rules to end discrimination on the grounds of
sex are strongly encouraged. The Directive also requires the establishment of equality bodies
in  the  Member  States  and  gives  them  extensive  powers  to  monitor  progress  and  to  assist
complainants  against  sex  discrimination.  It  further  provides  that  compensation  awarded  to
employees  discriminated  against  must  be  adequate  in  relation  to  the  damage  sustained,
excluding any prior upper limit.

The Directive also provides that a woman on maternity leave will be entitled, after the end of
her  period  of  maternity  leave,  to  return  to  her  job  or  to  an  equivalent  post  on  terms  and
conditions  which  are  no  less  favourable  to  her  and  to  benefit  from  any  improvement  in
working conditions to which she would be entitled during her absence.

Although  Member  States  have  until  2005  to  amend  their  national  laws  to  comply  with  the
Directive, most of them have already anticipated this obligation and have already taken action
against  sexual  harassment  at  national  level.  The  Belgian  Act  against  harassment  at  work16
was  adopted  in  June  2002.  French  legislation  on  harassment  was  amended17  to  widen  the
definition to  include  bullying  and  the  scope  of  persons  eligible  for  protection.  Furthermore,
the  Finnish  social  partners  have  combined  to  draw  up  and  publish  the  first  common
guidelines  to  combat  sexual  harassment  in  the  workplace.  Finally,  in  Ireland,  three  new
Codes  of  Practice  have  been  issued  under  three  different  pieces  of  legislation,  all  reflecting
the large number of complaints concerning bullying in the workplace.18

15

Directive  2002/73/EC  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  23  September  2002  amending  Council  Directive  76/207/EEC  on  the

implementation  of  the  principle  of  equal  treatment  for  men  and  women  as  regards  access  to  employment,  vocational  training  and  promotion,  and

16

17

18

working conditions, OJ L 269, 05/10/2002, p. 0015 - 0020

Moniteur belge/Belgisch Staatsblad, 22 June 2002.

Act of 2 November 2002.

These codes are the Code  of Practice Detailing  Procedures  for  Addressing  Bullying  in  the Workplace  under  the  Industrial  Relations  Act,  1990;  the

National Authority for Occupational Safety and Health Code of Practice on the Prevention of Workplace Bullying under the Safety, Health and Welfare

at Work Act, 1989 and the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (General Application) Regulations, 1993 (Council Directive 89/391/EC); and the Code

17

                                                
National  courts  are  also  increasingly  involved  in  addressing  this  issue  and  the  range  of
remedies varies greatly from one national court to another. In France, for instance, the Cour
de  Cassation19  upheld  the  decision  of  an  employer  to  dismiss  the  medical  manager  of  an
undertaking  on  the  grounds  of  sexual  harassment.  In  Spain,  the  Tribunal  de  Justicial  de
Castilla y León20 found a mayor guilty of the crime of sexual harassment of a councillor in the
Town Hall. A substantial penalty was therefore imposed. In Austria, the Constitutional Court
confirmed  a  decision  of  the  Ministry  for  Labour,  Health  and  Social  Affairs  by  which  the
former  head  of  a  federal  research  institute  was  transferred  to  another  post  (of  lower  level)
because  he  had  subjected  several  of  his  female  subordinates  to  verbal  sexual  harassment.21
Finally, in Ireland, following the report by an external advisory committee, the policy in the
Irish  Defence  Forces  is  set  to  be  altered  to  remedy  the  high  level  of  harassment  faced  by
individuals.

10.2. 

Equal pay

National courts have also been called upon to address the issue of equal pay. In Luxembourg
the law provides that a qualified worker must  receive  an increase of  20%  of the  guaranteed
minimum  wage  when  the  worker  holds  professional  qualifications  usually  acquired  by
education or training certified by an official diploma or has worked for  at least ten  years in
that profession. The kantonrechter of Hilversum in the Netherlands has given  a favourable
judgment  on  an  equal  pay  claim  brought  by  a  woman  care  worker.22  The  woman  received
lower pay than her colleagues because she did not have a diploma. When she was young, in
1957,  she  received  the  required  training  and  education,  but  was  not  allowed  to  take  the
examination because by then she  was married.  Ruling in  accordance  with  an opinion  of the
Equal  Treatment  Commission,23  the  judge  decided  that  the  woman  had  been  barred  from
obtaining  a  diploma  because  she  was  a  woman.  In  her  case,  the  diploma  requirement  for  a
higher pay scale was indirectly discriminatory. New Danish legislation24 requiring employers
to produce gender-specific wage statistics for the enterprise entered into force on 1 July 2002.

10.3.  Reconciliation of work and family life

Legislative  initiatives  have  been  introduced  in  a  number  of  Member  States  during  2002.  In
Austria, a new Family Care Leave Act25 was introduced in labour law in order to allow better
care for dying family members and for children who are very sick. The Act provides to any
worker the right to reduce working hours or to take unpaid leave with the employer’s consent.
On 21 January 2002, the Dutch Government proposed a Bill in Parliament which introduces a
scheme for statutory long-term care leave.26 In Finland, the government submitted a report to
the  Parliament  on  11  April  2002  on  child-related  policy  and  evaluation  of  methods  to
reconcile work with family life. As a result it plans to expand the right to paternity leave up to
four weeks from the present 18 days. The Spanish province of Catalonia has established by
law  the  right  of  its  employees  to  reduce  their  working-day  schedule  by  one  third  for  eight

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

of Practice issued by the Equality Authority on Sexual Harassment and Harassment at Work under the Employment Equality Act, 1998 - Employment

Equality Act, 1998 (Code of Practice)(Harassment) Order 2002.18

Soc. 5 mars 2002 Société Louisiane v. Alsaz RJS 5/02- No 528, p. 411.

The Highest Court of Justice in the Autonomous Community of Castilla-León, Judgment of 30 May 2002.

Verfassungsgerichtshof 26.11.2002, B 2212/00.

Source: www.cgb.nl/cgbrief/11-rechters1.html

Opinion 1998-01.

Act No 445 of 7 June 2001.

OJ I 89/2002

Source: press release Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment, 21-1-2002. www.minszw.nl

18

                                                                                                                                                        
months, with  no reduction  in  salary,  after  the 18 weeks’  maternity leave. This measure  was
provided, in principle, only for women, but will be extended to all civil servants regardless of
sex.  The  Danish  parental  leave  and  child-minding  leave  rules  have  changed  considerably.
Under  Act  No  141  of  25  March  2002,  there  is  no  longer  a  separate  child-minding  leave  in
addition to parental leave.27 The German Job Active Gesetz ensures as of 1 January 2003 that
persons  on  parental  leave  are  able  to  benefit  from  unemployment  insurance  upon  their
return28.

National  courts  decisions  are  also  very  encouraging  with  regard  to  reconciling  work  with
family  life.  The  German  Constitutional  Court29  rejected  a  claim  opposing  the  extension  of
primary  school  hours  in  Saxony  Anhalt.  The  general  idea  behind  the  schedules  is  to  make
primary  school  times  more  convenient  for  working  parents.  In  the  United  Kingdom,  the
Court of Appeal30 decided that an employer had indirectly discriminated against a woman on
the grounds of sex by selecting staff on fixed-term contracts for redundancy before those on
permanent contracts. Finally, in Italy, the Tribunal of Venice31 held that under national law32
parents are free to choose the period in which they wish to make use of their parental leave on
the sole condition that they  give prior notice. Employers cannot refuse or postpone  parental
leave on the grounds that the demands of the job do not permit it.

11. 

The action programme

The  Commission  supports  transnational  projects  for  the  exchange  of  information  and  good
practice and for networking at EU level, offering subsidies of between €250 000 to €500 000,
to cover up to 80% of costs. The remaining 20% must be funded in cash by the applicant or
other sources. Projects must involve partners from at least three countries, and generally run
for 15 months.

11.1. 

Equal Pay: Priority in 2001

Equal pay for women and men in the EU was the priority theme for the programme's first year
because the gender pay gap is one of the most visible inequalities women face  at work. On
average,  women  in  the  Union  earn  only  84%  of  men’s  wages.  The  majority  of  the  27
projects33 selected in 2001 under the action programme – and funded to the tune of €8 million
– dealt with equal pay issues, and the results are due in 2003. However, as projects run for 15
months, a number of conferences already took place in 2002. The continuing existence of the
gender  gap  was  again  highlighted  at  these  and  in  a  number  of  reports34  confirming  the
importance of collective agreements, gender-sensitive job evaluation systems, a checklist for
wage negotiations, and an action plan for equal pay.

27

28

29

30

31

32

33

34

This is available in Danish in Retsinformation at http://www.retsinfo.dk/DELFIN/HTML/A2002/0014130.htm

Bundesgesetzblatt Teil I, 2001, Nr. 66 vom 14.12.2001, S. 3443; http://217.160.60.235/BGBL/bgbl1f/b101066f.pdf

Decision of 16 April 2002, 1 BvR 279/02, http://www.bundesverfassungsgericht.de/entscheidungen/rk20020416_1bvr027902.

Whiffen v Milham Ford Girls’ School [2001] Industrial Relations Law Reports 468.

Il lavoro nella giurisprudenza, 2001, p. 1052 ff.

Article  32  of  Decree  No  151  of  21  of  March  2001  constitutes  the  Consolidation  Act  on  the  Protection  of  Maternity  (published  in  the  Government

Gazette on 26 April 2001, No 93 http://www.parlamento.it/parlam/leggi/deleghe/01151dl.htm).

Web reference

Centraal  Bureau  voor  de  Statistiek,  www.cbs.nl  press  release  of  29  May  2002.  See  Bulletin  2/2002,  p.  32.  See  Bulletin  2/2002,  p.  24.  Bericht  zur

Berufs- und Einkommenssituation von Frauen und Männern im Auftrag des Bundesministeriums für Familie, Senioren, Frauen und Jugend, July 2001;

available 

at 

http://www.bmfsfj.de/Anlage19920/Bericht_der_Bundesregierung_zur_Berufs-

_und_Einkommenssituation_von_Frauen_und_Maennern.pdf. http://www.destatis.de/presse/deutsch/pm2002/p2460042.htm.

19

                                                
The  Danish  Presidency  hosted  a  conference  on  29  November  2002  on  equal  pay  in  co-
operation  with  two  projects  within  the  European  Community  programme  relating  to  the
Framework Strategy on gender equality. The aim of the conference was to show the "business
world" that equal pay is value added. Public and private companiesplus representatives of the
social partnersand governmental and European bodies were invited.

11.2.  Reconciliation of family and working life: Priority in 2002

Reconciliation  policies  are  key  components  of  the  gender  dimension  in  the  European
Employment  Strategy  and  the  Social  Inclusion  Process  aimed  at  ensuring  favourable
conditions for women and men to enter, re-enter and remain in the labour market.

This  includes  access  to  affordable  and  high  quality  care  services,  equal  share  of  care  and
household  responsibilities,  encouragement  for  fathers  to  take  up  parental  leave  and
possibilities for flexible arrangements for both men and women. Special attention is given to
problems  met  by  women  in  low  income  groups.  Only  12%  of  women  in  the  16  to  64  age
group  are  in  full  employment  and  8%  work  part-time,  while  66%  of  them  are  inactive
compared to 35% of the men in low income groups. 35

It is also important for the Member States to take reconciliation measures into account when
reforming  their  pension  systems  to  prevent  jeopardising  the  pension  entitlements  of  those
women and men who take time off to care for their children.

The  Finnish  Prime  Minister,  Paavo  Lipponen,  is  an  excellent  example  of  successfully
managing to reconcile family and working life.  After the  birth of both of his daughters,  the
Prime Minister took five days of paternity leave. "A Prime Minister is never on holiday. I had
to  be  reached  all  the  time  by  telephone.  This,  however,  did  not  disturb  the  most  important
thing  –  being  with  the  family.  It  was  the  best  time  for  the  whole  family.  And  my  paternity
leave  did  not  have  any  negative  consequences  to  my  career.  On  the  contrary,  the  press  in
Spain, Italy, Belgium and France – and to some extent also the Finnish newspapers – reported
on the Prime Minister who preferred to stay home with his new-born baby during the summit
meeting in Madrid. That was the best publicity Finland ever could get. I did it to encourage
Finnish – as well as all European – fathers to benefit from the opportunity of having paternity
leave".

In response to the calls for proposals under the Gender Equality Programme, 18 projects were
selected in 2002 under the action programme – and  funded  to the tune of €7.5 million.  The
projects started at the end of 2002, and will run for 15 months.

11.3.  Women in decision-making: Priority in 2003

Parity in political life remains an issue at both Member State  and European level. Whilst in
some  Member  States  there  is  a  trend  towards  the  introduction  of  legislation  on  parity,  the
results of recent national elections have left mixed feelings. In France, for instance, the law
on parity has not had the expected impact of balancing gender representation either in local or
in  the  parliamentary  elections.36  On  the  other  hand,  although  Portugal  shows  a  low
representation of women  at  parliamentary and  governmental levels,  a  slight  improvement  is

35

36

The life of women and men in Europe-Astatistical portrait,Eurostat,ECHP-UDB,Dec2001,p.102
See Bulletin 2/2002, p. 21.

20

                                                
noticeable in this country.37 By contrast, the progress of women at the parliamentary election
in the Netherlands  in  May  2002  was  negative  by  comparison  to  the  previous  election.38  In
Germany, a Government report on gender balance in committees39 is fairly encouraging.40

A  number  of  Member  States  are  now  addressing  the  issue  of  gender-balanced  political
representation. In Belgium, the Constitution was amended to facilitate gender parity at federal
and federate level.41 In Ireland, the Equality Authority has produced a framework document42
which  includes  the  objective  of  achieving  political  equality.43  The  Parliaments  of  two
Spanish  Autonomous  Communities  have  also  adopted  laws  on  electoral  equality,  which
oblige political parties to present an equal number of candidates of each sex.44 Finally, in the
United  Kingdom,  the  Sex  Discrimination  (Election  Candidates)  Act  200245  amends  United
Kingdom  sex  discrimination  legislation  so  as  to  permit  political  parties  to  select  candidates
from women-only shortlists.46

In  2003  the  spotlight  will  be  on  women  in  decision-making.  Following  the  ongoing
assessment  of  women's  participation  at  the  decision-making  level,  and  in  advance  of  the
elections  to  the  European  Parliament  in  2004,  the  Commission  will  concentrate  its  2003
funding  activities  on  the  promotion  of  gender  balance  in  decision-making,  both  in  political
and in economic life.

An  open  call  for  proposals  was  launched  in  October  2002  under  the  Gender  Equality
Programme.  Proposals  from  NGOs  or  social  partners  at  European  level,  and  networks  of
regional or local authorities and organisations that aim to promote gender equality are invited.

11.4. 

Priority themes for the Future years in the Gender Equality Programme

In order to cover all strands of the Framework Strategy on Gender Equality (2001-2005), for
which the Programme gives financial backing, the Commission has defined the following
priorities:

2001: Equal Pay

2002: Reconciliation of work and family life

2003: Women in Decision-making

2004–2005:  Gender  stereotyping,  including  themes  set  out  in  the  Framework

Strategy

37

38

39

40

41

42

43

44

45

46

See Bulletin 2/2002, p. 33.

See Bulletin 2/2002, p. 33.

See http://www.bmfsfj.de/top/sonstige/Politikbereiche/Gleichstellung/ix4790_htm.

See Bulletin 2/2002, p. 24.

See Bulletin 2/2002, p. 17.

National Action Plan for Women, (April 2002) The document is available at www.equality.ie – go to publications.

See Bulletin 2/2002, p. 30.

See Bulletin 2/2002, p. 35.

The Act is available at: www.hmso.gov.uk/acts/acts2002/20020002.htm.

See Bulletin 1/2002, p. 40.

21

                                                
Chapter IV

HUMAN RIGHTS

12. 

Trafficking in human beings

The  issues  of  combating  trafficking  in  human  beings,  especially  of  women  for  sexual
exploitation continued to be high on the political agenda in 2002. Tens of thousands women
and children are trafficked into the European Union which gives rise to great concern.,

The fight against trafficking in human beings is one of the EU’s political priorities. In 1996, it
launched the STOP programme to support actions to combat trafficking in human beings and
the  sexual  exploitation  of  children.  It  has  intensified  law-enforcement  co-operation  to  deal
with traffickers and has tried to tackle this problem in its talks with countries of origin, transit
and destination, with a budget of €2 million for activities during 2002.

Within  the  framework  of  the  2002  Community  budget,  a  new  budget  line  A-3046  was
adopted  by  the  European  Parliament  for  funding  women's  organisations  other  than  the
European  Women's  Lobby  (EWL).  This  new  line  entitled  'Woman's  Organisations'  with  a
budget  of  €300  000  was  designed  to  cover  grants  to  Women's  Organisations  other  than  the
European Women's Lobby and be implemented by the Directorate-General for Employment
and  Social  Affairs.  Consequently,  an  open  call  for  proposals  was  launched  with  the  aim  of
creating  a  "consortium"  of  women's  organisations  not  covered  by  the  European  Women's
Lobby, which assist the victims of trafficking across Europe.

From  18  to  20  September  2002,  the  European  Conference  on  "Preventing  and  Combating
Trafficking  in  Human  Beings  –  Global  Challenge  for  the  21st  Century"  took  place  in
Brussels.The  Conference  was  initiated  by  the  European  Commission  under  the  STOP  II
Programme and organised by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) in close co-
operation  with  the  European  Parliament  and  the  European  Commission.  It  brought  together
more  than  1000  participants  representing  EU  Member  States,  Candidate  Countries,
neighbouring countries of an enlarged Union, United States, Canada, international and inter-
governmental and non governmental organisations (NGOs) and the EU institutions.

The  Brussels  Declaration  is  the  major  outcome  of  the  conference.  It  aims  at  further
developing  European  and  international  co-operation,  concrete  measures,  standards,  best
practices and mechanisms to prevent and combat trafficking in human beings. To that end the
Brussels Declaration comprises recommendations regarding prevention of trafficking, victim
protection  and  assistance,  police  and  judicial  cooperation.  The  Commission  is  giving  high
priority to the implementation of the Brussels Declaration.

A Commission conference "Turning the spotlight on trafficking in women" on 5-6 December
2002  in  Syracuse,  Sicily,  brought  together  experts  and  politicians  from  several  EU  and
candidate countries. Existing tools to fight trafficking at national and EU level were discussed
and prevention and assistance measures examined to stamp out this menace.

22

During  the  Conference,  the  creation  of  the  "consortium"  funded  under  the  new  budget  line
was announced The consortium's activities will be co-ordinated by an Italian  NGO,  IRENE,
with  the  aim  of  helping  sister  groupings  in  six  member  states47  and  Norway  to  provide
assistance  to  some  of  the  estimated  half  a  million  women  and  children  who  fall  prey  to
trafficking each year in Europe.

13. 

Domestic violence

Within  the  context  of  the  implementation  of  the  Beijing  Platform  of  Action  and  under  the
impulse  of  the  Spanish  Presidency  in  the  first  half  of  2002,  a  Study  and  a  Good  Practice
Guide on violence against women was published. Its findings were discussed by the Council,
which  underlined  the  importance  of  a  multidisciplinary  and  multilevel  approach  to  the
eradication of violence against women, of the exchange of good practices within the EU, and
of continuing to develop awareness-building campaigns. Building on this, the Council, under
the Danish Presidency, adopted a set of indicators in December 2002.

The  choice  of  these  indicators  demonstrates  both  a  common  concern  and  approach  to
domestic violence across Member States. Within this context, the Commission is drawing up
a  Communication  aiming  to  pull  together  the  common  elements  of  the  policies  for  the
prevention  and  elimination  of  domestic  violence  into  which  these  new  indicators  can  be
integrated in order to enhance action at Member State and European level.

The  second  phase  of  Community  action  (2004-2008)  to  prevent  violence  against  children,
young  people  and  women  and  to  protect  victims  and  groups  at  risk  (the  DAPHNE  II
programme) was proposed in December 2002. The proposal builds on the experience gained
during the implementation of the first programme, and the structure of this proposal is similar
to  that  of  the  original  Daphne  programme,  which  runs  during  the  period  2000-2003.  The
Daphne Programme, its projects and results are indeed recognised, in Europe and beyond, as a
major  programming  tool  against  violence  and  a  model  of  good  practice  in  linking  regional
policy and frameworks with regional co-operative action.

14. 

Muslim women in Europe

One  other  initiative  that  was  pursued  in  2002  was  the  integration  of  Muslim  women  into
European society. The Commission's 8 March International Women's Day event was devoted
to this issue and on 24 October 2002 Commissioner Diamantopoulou hosted a webstreaming
conference with a view to giving Muslim women living all around Europe the possibility to
participate in an interesting and technically innovative discussion on how they perceive their
role and involvement in European society and what they expect from the EU as a response.

The conference was part of the EU's efforts to combat discrimination and promote  equality,
and  followed  recent  visits  by  Commissioner  Diamantopoulou  to  the  Palestinian  Territories
and  Israel.  The  message  delivered  by  the  European  Union  is  that  "European  society  is
founded  on  the  principles  of  human  rights,  equality  between  men  and  women  and  non-
discrimination.  While  it  is  true  that  Europeans  must  respect  Muslims'  way  of  life,  Muslims
living in Europe must themselves respect European principles and rules".

Indeed,  the  European  Union  has  called  for  further  efforts  by  both  the  European  and  the
national institutions  and  agencies  as well as  the  Muslim communities themselves  to  combat
xenophobia and islamaphobia and to understand the needs, priorities and demands of Muslim

47

Belgium, Denmark, France, Greece, Italy and Spain.

23

                                                
women. More needs to be done to acknowledge the barriers that these women face in gaining
access to a job and education, and also the contributions they bring to their communities.

15. 

Stoning of women

The death penalty is no longer applied in any Member State. Thus, the death penalty in itself,
and particularly when enforced through stoning is not considered acceptable. Unfortunately,
stoning  is  more  common  than  we  realise  as  it  gets  little  worldwide  publicity.  Women  are
heavily discriminated against in this respect, too. In 2002, 12 women were stoned to death in
Iran for "moral" crimes. Men "just" get their hands amputated for similar offences.

In the  Presidency Conclusions  of the  Barcelona Council  (15-16  March 2002),  the  European
Union expressed its concern with regard to information received on the potential stoning of a
woman in Nigeria and urged the Nigerian authorities to fully respect human rights and human
dignity, with particular reference to women.

In September 2002, 1.3 million signatures were presented to the Nigerian High Commissioner
in London against a sentence of death by stoning for adultery imposed on a Nigerian woman.
Amina Lawal, 30, was found guilty by an Islamic appeal court in Katsina state in March after
bearing a  child  outside marriage.  On 24  September  2002,  Belgium  demonstrated for  Amina
Lawal outside the Nigerian Embassy in Brussels.

16. 

Afghan women

Attention was given to the plight of Afghan women in the European Union in 2002. There are
thousands  of  widows  in  the  capital  of  Afghanistan.  Women  are  forced  to  cover  themselves
from  head  to  toe,  denied  access  to  education  and  proper  health  care,  forbidden  to  work  in
order to support their families, and face brutal beatings if they do not comply with the rules
set forth for them by their oppressors.

On  9th  October  2002  Commissioner  Diamantopoulou  met  with  the  Afghan  Vice-President
and  first  Women's  Minister,  Habiba  Sorabi.  Willingness  was  expressed  on  both  sides.  Both
agreed that the situation of women in Afghanistan should not be forgotten and expressed their
willingness  to  develop  further  co-operation  to  improve  the  situation  for  women  in
Afghanistan.  Capacity  building  and  education  were  central  themes  of  the  discussions  along
with EU-funded projects. Commissioner Diamantopoulou also underlined the need to involve
women in all aspects of reconstruction and state building.

24

CHAPTER V

PERSPECTIVES FOR 2003

17. 

The Framework Strategy

The  Commission  work  programme  for  2003  will  include  the  following  horizontal  priorities
for all DGs and services:

– 

– 

– 

A gender impact assessment will be incorporated into the overall Impact Assessment
of new proposals as appropriate, and gender mainstreaming will continue in selected
policy areas which have not up to now been gender mainstreamed.

Each  service  will  enhance  its  efforts  to  collect  gender-disaggregated  data  and
systematically  break  down  by  gender  all  related  statistics  and  develop  gender
equality indicators.

Each DG and service will incorporate gender mainstreaming modules into its training
plans for staff members of all levels, in particular management level.

18. 

Legal Initiatives

In  the  field  of  equal  treatment,  a  recast  of  the  existing  Directives  responds  to  the  new
guidelines  for  "better  regulation"  and  aims  to  simplify  and  update  existing  Community
legislation. The Commission will launch open consultation on the possible guidelines for this
recast in the first quarter of the year, with a proposal scheduled for the end of the year.

In 2003, the Commission intends to produce a report on the implementation of the Directive
on  parental  leave,  including  considerations  on  why  so  many  fathers  have  not  exercised  this
right.

19. 

Reinforcement of the Lisbon Strategy

As  stated  in  the  Commission's  Communication48  to  the  Barcelona  Summit,  an  analysis  of
gender gaps, including the pay gap, will be prepared in 2003.

20. 

Greek and Italian Presidencies' initiatives on women in decision-making

In  order  to  complete  the  Beijing  indicators  on  women  in  decision-making,  the  Greek  and
Italian presidencies will prepare an analysis of women in decision-making in  economic life,
with indictors. This will coincide with the setting-up of the Commission database on decision-
makers, which will encompass both political and economic life.

48 COM (2002) 14 final, 15.01.02

25