42 Amendments of Iratxe GARCÍA PÉREZ related to 2013/2156(INI)
Amendment 21 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
Aa. whereas equality between men and women is a fundamental principle of the European Union enshrined in the Treaties and in the Charter of Fundamental Rights; whereas although the Union has set itself the specific task of mainstreaming gender equality in all its activities, many inequalities between men and women still remain;
Amendment 25 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A b (new)
Recital A b (new)
Ab. whereas traditional gender roles and stereotypes depicting women as running the house and caring for children and men as protectors and the main source of family income continue to have a strong influence on the division of tasks between women and men in the home, in the workplace and in society at large; whereas gender stereotypes also tend to perpetuate the status quo of inherited obstacles to achieving gender equality, and to limit women’s range of employment choices and personal development, impeding them from realising their full potential as individuals and economic players, and therefore constitute strong obstacles to the achievement of equality between women and men;
Amendment 30 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A c (new)
Recital A c (new)
Ac. whereas the stereotypes which still exist with regard to the educational and professional options available to women help to perpetuate inequalities, and partly explain why sectoral and occupational segregation between women and men is not diminishing and is even increasing in certain countries;
Amendment 56 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D a (new)
Recital D a (new)
Da. whereas the search is still on for an appropriate solution to combine work, family and private life and, as a result, many women, who in most cases are responsible for looking after children and dependent family members, are forced to accept part-time jobs, and even have to leave the labour market, because of a lack of affordable childcare and care for the disabled and the elderly;
Amendment 64 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F
Recital F
F. whereas the policies applied in the name of the crisis have a particularly harsh impact on vulnerable people and particularly women, who feel the impact both directly – through loss of employment, wage, pension and benefit cuts, and loss of job security – and indirectly through budget cuts in public services and social care, particularly childcare and dependent care services and dependency allowances;
Amendment 69 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F a (new)
Recital F a (new)
Fa. whereas access to services providing care for children, elderly and dependent persons is essential for achieving equal participation of women and men in the labour market and in education and training; whereas home caregivers remain discriminated against in terms of the failure to count their years of work towards pensions and other entitlements;
Amendment 70 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F b (new)
Recital F b (new)
Fb. whereas the sharing of family and domestic duties between men and women, particularly by developing the use of parental leave and paternity leave, is a precondition for promoting and achieving gender equality;
Amendment 83 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H a (new)
Recital H a (new)
Ha. whereas various economists and demographers (World Bank, OECD, IMF) use economic and mathematical models to highlight the economic value of household production (carried out mainly by women), and whereas women’s contribution to GDP would be even higher if their unpaid work were factored in, which illustrates the discrimination that exists against women’s work;
Amendment 87 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H b (new)
Recital H b (new)
Hb. whereas the objective of gender equality implies that women are better represented in political and economic decision-making, and this representation has unfortunately not improved in any way in recent years; whereas there are still not many women in management posts in businesses and universities and the number of female politicians and researchers is rising only very slowly;
Amendment 110 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital I a (new)
Recital I a (new)
Ia. whereas violence against women is a prime obstacle to equality between women and men, is a violation of the fundamental rights of women and remains the most widespread violation of human rights despite measures taken by politicians to counter it; whereas economic recession also spawns increased violence in close relationships, and austerity measures affecting support services leave women who are victims of violence even more vulnerable than usual;
Amendment 113 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital I b (new)
Recital I b (new)
Ib. whereas trafficking in human beings for sexual exploitation, in which the vast majority of victims are women and girls, is an unacceptable violation of human rights and is a modern form of slavery;
Amendment 115 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital I c (new)
Recital I c (new)
Ic. whereas the right to health, particularly sexual and reproductive health, is a fundamental right that all women should be guaranteed, regardless of their social status, age, sexual orientation, origin, legal status or ethnicity;
Amendment 117 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital I d (new)
Recital I d (new)
Id. whereas women in rural areas suffer more from multiple discrimination and gender stereotypes than women in urban areas and the employment rate of women in rural areas is much lower than that of women in cities; whereas, in addition, a lot of women are never active in the official labour market and, therefore, are neither registered as unemployed nor included in unemployment statistics, which leads to particular financial and legal problems in relation to the right to maternity and sick leave, the acquisition of pension rights and access to social security, as well as problems in the event of divorce;
Amendment 119 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital I e (new)
Recital I e (new)
Ie. whereas many women, such as women with disabilities, women caring for children or other dependents, elderly women, women from ethnic minorities immigrant women and women with little or no education suffer from multiple and multisectoral discrimination and are more vulnerable to social exclusion, poverty and extreme human rights violations;
Amendment 121 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital I f (new)
Recital I f (new)
If. whereas positive actions aimed at women have proved to be fundamental for their full incorporation in the labour market, in decision-making and in society in general;
Amendment 133 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Calls on Member States to invest in affordable, high-quality facilities for the care of children, the sick, the disabled, the elderly and other dependent persons, making sure that they have flexible opening times compatible with full-time working days and are accessible so that as many people as possible can combine professional with family and private life; calls on the Commission and Member States to ensure that men and women caring for children or other dependents receive recognition through dependency allowances and by giving them individual social security and pension rights; invites the social partners to present specific initiatives to validate the skills acquired during a care-related leave period;
Amendment 138 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 b (new)
Paragraph 1 b (new)
1b. Calls on the Council to break the deadlock on the adoption of the Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council 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;
Amendment 139 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 c (new)
Paragraph 1 c (new)
1c. Calls on the EU institutions and the Member States to look into the possibility of introducing electronic voting from home or proxy voting, so that MEPs on sick leave, particularly those on maternity leave or on paternity or parental leave, can fulfil their electoral duties;
Amendment 146 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Stresses the fact that, despite unemployment rates for men and women being comparable, the crisis has affected women differently; points out that working conditions for women have become considerably more insecure, especially with the increasing prevalence of atypical forms of contract, and that women’s incomes have fallen significantly thanks to a number of factors, including the persistent wage gap between men and women and the resultant inequality in their respective levels of unemployment benefit and pensions, the rise in compulsory part-time working, and the rise in the number of temporary or fixed-term jobs to the detriment of more stable employment; points out that the experience of previous crises shows that the male employment rate generally recovers more quickly than that for women, and expresses concern that the budget cuts will exacerbate the problem, as women will be disproportionately affected; calls on Member States’ governments as well as on social partners to draw up an action plan and concrete, ambitious targets, and that they assess the gender impact of the economic and financial crisis through gender equality impact assessments;
Amendment 158 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Emphasises that reducing gender inequalities, including by closing the gender pay gap, will bring benefits not only for women but also for society as a whole, and insists that closing the gender pay gap should not be seen as a cost but as an investment; in this respect, points out that according to the European Added Value Assessment conclusions, a one- percentage-point decrease in the gender pay gap will increase economic growth by 0.1 %, which means that closing the gender pay gap is of crucial importance in the current economic downturn;
Amendment 163 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3b. Reiterates that Directive 2006/54/EC, in its current form, is not sufficiently effective to tackle the gender pay gap and achieve the objective of gender equality in employment and occupation; therefore urges the Commission to revise Directive 2006/54/EC without delay and to propose amendments to it in accordance with Article 32 of the Directive and on the basis of Article 157 TFEU, following the detailed recommendations set out in the annex to the Parliament’s resolution of 24 May 2012;
Amendment 166 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 c (new)
Paragraph 3 c (new)
3c. Requests the Commission to support Member States in reducing the gender pay gap by at least five percentage points annually with the aim of eliminating it by 2020, by implementing policies to close the gender pay gap and exchanging and promoting best practices;
Amendment 168 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 d (new)
Paragraph 3 d (new)
3d. Calls on the Member States and the Commission to take appropriate measures to reduce the gender pension gap, which is a direct consequence of the gender pay gap, and to assess the impact of the new pension systems on women, paying special attention to part-time and atypical contracts;
Amendment 197 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Strongly urges the Member States to increase their investment in public services, education and health, particularly health services relating to sexual and reproductive health, nurseries and care centres for elderly and disabled persons, grants for school canteens, etc;
Amendment 203 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Reiterates its position on sexual and reproductive health rights, as stated in its resolutions of 10 February 2010, 8 February 2011 and 13 March 2012 on equality between women and men in the European Union – 2009, 2010 and 2011; expresses concern in this respect about recent funding cuts to public health, family planning and sexual education and also restrictions on access to sexual and reproductive health services in some Member States, in particular pregnancy and maternity protection, annual gynaecological check-ups and safe and legal abortion; stresses that all women must have control over their sexual and reproductive rights including by having access to affordable high-quality contraception;
Amendment 212 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Calls on the Member States to increase their child support budgets in order to expand the public network of day care, nurseries and public services providing extracurricular activities for children, as well as grants for enrolment, books, school meals and school transport;
Amendment 220 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Stresses that in order to eliminate gender stereotypes and promote egalitarian behaviour models in social and economic life, it is extremely important to inculcate these values from an early age, in schools, and to carry out awareness campaigns in schools, workplaces, and the media, highlighting men’s role in promoting equality, the equal distribution of family responsibilities and creation of work-life balance;
Amendment 227 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 b (new)
Paragraph 6 b (new)
6b. Highlights the importance of developing the legal construct of shared ownership with the aim of ensuring that women’s rights in the agricultural sector are fully recognised, that they receive appropriate social security protection and that their work is recognised;
Amendment 229 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 c (new)
Paragraph 6 c (new)
6c. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to take further measures to improve women’s access to and participation in the labour market, especially in sectors such as high- technology, research, science and engineering, in which they are still under- represented, and to improve the quality of employment of women, in particular by means of lifelong learning and education programmes at every level; urges the Commission and Member States to make use of the European Structural Funds to achieve this;
Amendment 231 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 d (new)
Paragraph 6 d (new)
6d. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to give priority to and take particular note of groups of women with special needs, such as disabled women, women with dependants, elderly women, minority and immigrant women and women with little or no professional training, and to develop targeted measures to meet their needs and circumstances;
Amendment 242 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Paragraph 7 a (new)
7a. Stresses the need for Member States to adopt measures, in particular through legislative means, to set binding targets to ensure the balanced presence of women and men in positions of responsibility in business, public administration and political bodies;
Amendment 249 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 b (new)
Paragraph 7 b (new)
7b. Asks the Council to present at the earliest possible date its common position on the proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on improving the gender balance among non-executive directors of companies listed on stock exchanges and related measures;
Amendment 255 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 c (new)
Paragraph 7 c (new)
7c. Points out that the European Elections in 2014, followed by the appointment of the next Commission and the nominations for the senior administrative positions within the European institutions, are a chance to move towards parity democracy at EU level; therefore askes the Member States to support parity by nominating a man and a woman as candidates for the post of Commissioner and asks the President-elect of the Commission to bear in mind the parity objective when forming the Commission; also calls on the Member States and political parties to support parity in their electoral lists;
Amendment 257 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 d (new)
Paragraph 7 d (new)
7d. Points out that the use of electoral quotas has positive effects on women’s representation, and welcomes the parity and gender quota systems incorporated by several Member States into their legislation; calls on the Member States with particularly low representation of women in political assemblies to consider introducing equivalent measures;
Amendment 277 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8a. Stresses the importance of combating violence against women to achieving equality between women and men; calls on the Member States and the Commission, therefore, to undertake concerted action in the field; urges the Commission to consider the possibility of new measures on combating violence against women;
Amendment 282 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 b (new)
Paragraph 8 b (new)
8b. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to combine their efforts in fighting organised crime and trafficking networks, and to adopt and strengthen legislative, administrative, educational, social and cultural measures that discourage demand for prostitution;
Amendment 286 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 c (new)
Paragraph 8 c (new)
8c. Welcomes efforts, both at Community and national levels, to combat violence against women, men and children such as the European Protection Order, the Directive on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings and the legislative package to strengthen the rights of victims in the EU, but stresses that this phenomenon remains a major unresolved problem;
Amendment 289 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 d (new)
Paragraph 8 d (new)
8d. Calls on the Commission to implement its commitment to mainstream gender equality in the Common European Asylum System.
Amendment 297 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 a (new)
Paragraph 9 a (new)
9a. Calls on the Commission to present an EU-wide strategy and an action plan to combat violence against women and to put forward by the end of 2014 a draft law, based on Article 84 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, establishing measures to promote and support action by the Member States in the sphere of prevention of violence against women; also asks the Council to activate the passerelle clause and adopt a unanimous decision identifying gender- based violence (including female genital mutilation) as an area of crime listed in Article 83(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union;
Amendment 308 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 a (new)
Paragraph 10 a (new)
10a. Asks the Commission to set up a European Observatory on Violence Against Women, within the existing institutional structures (European Institute for Gender Equality);
Amendment 312 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 b (new)
Paragraph 10 b (new)
10b. Appeals to the Member States to ratify at the earliest possible date the Council of Europe’s Istanbul Convention on violence against women and urges the Commission promote national ratifications and set in motion the process leading to the EU’s adhesion to the Convention, after having assessed the consequences and added value of adhesion;
Amendment 314 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 c (new)
Paragraph 10 c (new)
10c. Stresses the need to include gender mainstreaming and the fight against gender violence into EU external, development cooperation and international trade policy; calls on the Commission, the Council and the Member States actively to promote and support the empowerment of women to participate in their bilateral and multilateral relations with states and organisations outside the Union; stresses the importance of applying United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security in the ambit of the EU’s external action;