Activities of Antigoni PAPADOPOULOU related to 2012/2301(INI)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the impact of the economic crisis on gender equality and women’s rights
Amendments (15)
Amendment 4 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas the European Union is addressing the greatest economic and financial crisis since the 1930s depression and whereas unemployment rates in the Member States, and especially in countries of the European South, have risen significantly as a result of this crisis; whereas the effects of this crisis are particularly serious for womenvulnerable people and women in particular who are affected directly – through loss of their jobs or salary reduction or loss of their job security -–- and indirectly via budget cuts in public services and welfare assistance; whereas, that being the case, it is essential among others that the dimension of gender equality in the handling of this crisis and the development of solutions be seriously examined;
Amendment 12 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas when the economic crisis first began, it had a greater impact on men than on women, whereas unemployment has risen since then at different rates for men and women: women were not hit initially by the crisis but they are now feeling its effects and more enduringly; whereas this phase is far less well documented; lacks reliable comparable statistical data, and, consequently, the impact of the crisis on women tends to be underestimated;
Amendment 18 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas it should be noted that unemployed women are often not included in official statistical figures because they tend to withdraw from the labour market for various reasons (pregnancy, family responsibilities, time constraints) and to perform unpaid or informal work, or serve the shadow economy;
Amendment 22 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas budget cuts by governments implementing austerity plans are affecting the public sector, staffed in the mainboth the private and public sector, with the latter being mainly staffed by women reaching – approximately 70 % of the sector's employees – and women are now becoming the main victims of austerity measures;
Amendment 30 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E
Recital E
E. whereas for women a fall in the number of jobs frequently goes hand in hand with an re-adjustment in working hours,the working schedule, including longer working hours often at different posts; and whereas it is extremely likely that recovery will be felt more rapidly in the industrial sector thereby bringing about recovery in male employment, which will pick up faster than female employment; whereas economy measures in the public services will have a more lasting effect on female employment;
Amendment 32 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F
Recital F
F. whereas the effects of the crisis now will also have a significant impact on women in the longer term on account of their non- linear career path, made up of poorly paid temporary, or even informal, jobs, often with part-time working imposed, and which only entitle them in the end to a very small pension; a whole generation of both young men and women is in danger of being lost, because it is deprived of job, opportunities, safe employment and often educational opportunities because of economic hardship;
Amendment 39 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital G
Recital G
G. whereas female employment is affected by gender stereotypes and whereas the idea that male unemployment is more serious than female unemployment is deep rooted;
Amendment 43 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H
Recital H
H. whereas approximately 23 % of European Union citizens were at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 201015 , and this impoverishment of the population affects women most of all who are very often facing a combination of difficulties: single-parent families, for the most part headed by women, difficulties in keeping a job or finding a new one in this context, difficulties in finding housing and taking on responsibility for dependants (children, parents, sick or disabled people); difficulties in reconciling work and family lives because of lack of appropriate support structures and varied national policies on the issue, in the 27 EU Member States;
Amendment 63 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Recalls that, having seen the employment rate for women climb steadily for over ten years to reach a level of 62.8 % in 2008, the European Union has now seen this rate fall slightly since the beginning of the economic crisis to 62.3 % in 2011; stresses therefore the need for lasting responses that take the gender equality dimension into consideration in both EU and Member State policies to safeguard employment and renew growth;
Amendment 68 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Recalls that there are still very wide disparities between the various EU Member States, with the employment rate for women varying between 48.6 % and 77.2 %, and that the contrasts in these situations call for tailor-made responses; emphasises moreover the need to have reliable common indicators so, and thus reliable comparable statistical data, so that various needs can be assessed and suitable responses found;
Amendment 71 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Recalls that even before the economic crisis, women were in the majority in temporary or part-time posts and that the crisis has reinforced this trend; this was particularly the case in countries of the European South;
Amendment 88 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Recalls that cuts in public budgets will have the effect of increasing gender inequalities and, female unemployment, women being in and the feminisation of Poverty, since women are the majority in the public sector and the principal beneficiaries of social policies and, consequently, increasing the feminisation of poverty;
Amendment 105 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Welcomes the proposal for a directive on a better gender balance in management posts in businesses enabling women to enter higher skilled and better paid jobs;
Amendment 114 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to promote vocational- training policies and programmes for women paying particular attention in obtaining new skills in new technologies and IT sector, in order to increase their access and participation in the various business sectors, envisaging specific support measures so women are able to combine their workload, training and family life; recalls the important role played by the European Social Fund in assisting entry into employment through training policies and suggests the Member States and local authorities promote recourse to this fund;
Amendment 125 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Calls on the Member States to promote female entrepreneurship, by encouraging and supporting women who set up companies, by facilitating women's access to finance, in particular via microcredits, and by promoting the development of female entrepreneurship and sponsorship networks; investment in women and gender equality, is of great importance in order to ensure economic stability and prevent economic shocks;