1. No category

Austerity, the public sector
and the threat to gender
equality
Jill Rubery
European Work and Employment Research
Centre
Manchester Business School
From financial crisis to austerity
European response to the crisis
From Keynesian use of public expenditure to stabilise demand/
reduce risks to the vulnerable……
…..to strict austerity where public deficits. even if outcome of the
financial crisis, addressed primarily through reduced public
expenditure
Austerity policies
• In some cases imposed on bailout countries or taken up by those
at risk of bailout need
• In other cases seized as an opportunity to pursue longer term
political goals
Both imply a shrinking role for the ‘social’ state
The proposition explored here is that
‘there is no prospect of moving towards a socially progressive
model of gender equality without an active and expanded role for
the state’.
Gender equality and the European
social model
Counter arguments can be made that
• Men suffered more in financial crisis – only fair for women to play
their role and accept cuts under austerity
• Possible to have formal gender equality in the labour market
without a strong social model - look to the United States
But
• Discussing long term consequences, not short term gender
equality in misery
• ‘Market-based’ gender equality is only likely to be achieved
through either a major ‘care deficit’ or through high inequality
among women ( lower paid women to provide support for social
reproduction)
Gender equality as a progressive concept requires
• A new reproductive bargain
• Progressive change for all women
• Retention and development of non market values
Why are women most at risk from
austerity?
Austerity is not reducing power or role of the state in
general but is having a major impact on four areas of
direct interest for gender equality:
1. as a source of income support,
2. as a provider of free or subsidised public services,
3. as a direct employer
4. and as a defence against marketisation of all
aspects of society.
Note – these effects are probably strongest where the
provision is already low – so not an issue of equalising
down, in fact leading to increasing divergence within
Europe
1. The state as alternative income
support to the family and market
Three main sources of income support for citizens:
employer, family, state.
Women have traditionally been expected to rely on
the family but:
• Seeking more independence
• Family less reliable- instability/end of family wageless surplus for costs of children
• Access to employer support more limited- lower
pay/fewer hours/more insecure
• Reliance on state increasing
Cutbacks to income support of
concern to women
i)Support for social reproduction costs of children
Cuts to family benefits increasing child poverty- -managing
household budgets more difficult
ii) Support for non employment or underemployment
in prime age
Women often have less access to unemployment benefits but more
integration into employment increasing access
But increasing use of means-testing-e.g. for disability benefits in UKreducing women’s access
Lone parents major target of cuts
- expected to rely on employers who only provide low wages
- - lack of state support for lone parents makes women more
vulnerable to domestic violence etc.
iii) Support for continuity of employment in prime age
Maternity and parental leave so far mainly protected
- paternity leave postponed or cancelled in some countries
iv) Support for old age
Women two thirds of pensioners in Europe
• Current gender gap in pension is estimated to be nearly 40%
(Bettio et al. 2013)
Pension reform a central plank of austerity measures (even though
often no immediate impact on expenditure)
Negative reforms for women
• Increased contribution years
• Increased reliance on second and third pillars
• Reduced benefits for current pensioners
• Reduced future benefits in line with life expectancy
Gender neutral/ positive gender equality reforms
• More contribution credits for childcare and part-time work
periods
• Cuts in higher level pensions and/or raising or introducing
minimum pension income guarantees.
Source: Bettio et al. 2013
Narrow gender blind approach to
distributional justice
EU pension adequacy report states
‘the last decade of pension reforms had made the adequacy and
sustainability of pension systems far more contingent on outcomes in the
labour market and in financial markets. This does not just imply new risks
in general, but risks that weigh particularly to the detriment of pension
adequacy for women’ (EU 2012: 84)
However report comments on significant redistribution from men that die
earlier to women that live longer
but without reference men’s receipt of both women’s care time and higher
earnings through their working lives.
Solution involves
• extra care credits
• but also for women to work longer/ move from part to full-time
Need for more care services recognised but how to be achieved under
austerity not discussed
Implication is more wage work from women without any significant
new reproductive bargain
2.Public services as support for social
reproduction
Public services
• provide the main alternative to unpaid domestic labour• shortfalls in public services often made up by women’s domestic
labour
• major source of demand for female labour (next section)
Care services
• Longstanding member state differences in extent of childcare
and elder care services( some more developed on one, some
the other, some neither)
• Where care services for elderly underdeveloped, find family
organised informal/ migrant worker services
• Some evidence of convergence prior to crisis- progress towards
Barcelona childcare targets- recognition of need to provide elder
care services in Spain
• After crisis cutbacks in care services and halts to development of
new provision
Source: Simonazzi 2009
Share of children aged under 3 care for in formal structures
2011- and change in share 2005-11
Source: EU 2013
Changes to care regimes (Karamessini and Rubery 2014. ch.16)
Greece
Family support
Abolition of child tax credits
Childcare
Reduced provision and
understaffing
Modest expansion of nursery
facilities
Hungary
Freeze to family allowances
but generous family tax
reductions in new flat rate tax
Iceland
Frozen child benefits/ more
means testing
Rise in childcare costs
Ireland
Reduced child benefits
No change from low base.
Italy
Major reductions in funds for
family policies
2007 policy of giving €2500 to
new parents abolished.
Means-testing of social
benefits including family
support
Cuts in child tax credits and
freezes to child benefits plus
abolition for higher paid.
More generous child tax
credits
2007 childcare programme
halted
Spain
Portugal
UK
USA
Halt to new investments in
social care but existing
projects implemented.
Scaling down of subsidised
childcare services plus
reduced child tax credits
Reduced state funding for
childcare services
Eldercare
Future of ‘home help’ not
secure
Municipalities reducing
provision of elder care 1
Cuts to domiciliary care and
to carers’ allowances
Budget cuts reducing social
care
New domiciliary care rights
suspended
Halt to new investments in
social care but existing
projects implemented.
Budget cuts leading to
cutbacks in care provision
Reduced state funding for
eldercare services
Gaps in support for social reproduction
also in health and education
Different ratios of nurses
reflect different expectations
re family care in hospitals
School transport, school
hours, plus quality of
education also affect family
support for social
reproduction
Increases in charges for health
and education add to squeeze
on budgets- especially for
women’s management of
household budgets.
Buchan et al. 2011 Figure 1
3. Public sector as employer
Public sector
• is a major employer of women, especially the
higher qualified
• offers in many countries significantly better pay and
conditions for women than the private sector.
• offers in many countries better work life
reconciliation policies then the private sector .
• has implemented -in many countries- more far
reaching equality policies than the private sector.
The public sector as a major employer
of women
• Public services employment accounts for two fifths
of all female employment and nearly three fifths of
all women in employment (shares for men are 18%
and 32%)
• Current cutbacks in public services including
redundancies and restrictions on hiring will reduce
demand for female qualified labour
• Many qualifications for work in the public sector are
sector specific- such as teachers and nurses.
Source:
ELFS
EU-27
AT
BE
BG
CY
CZ
DE
DK
EE
ES
FI
FR
GR
HU
IE
IT
LT
LU
LV
MT
NL
PL
PT
RO
SE
SI
SK
Share of employed
women with tertiary
education in public
services
57.4
62.5
59.7
53.8
40.3
61.7
60.3
72.2
52.5
55.3
57.1
51.6
67.1
63.0
56.4
66.7
52.9
50.1
57.4
65.4
68.9
59.8
69.9
45.6
68.4
54.0
64.5
Share of employed
men with tertiary
education in public
services
32.1
32.6
32.6
34.1
31.7
34.3
31.1
40.5
27.6
35.2
24.8
29.5
54.4
37.0
26.8
49.0
28.4
32.8
31.8
43.2
40.1
35.2
46.8
31.1
37.8
31.5
37.6
Share of all
employed women
in public services
40.3
35.1
50.2
29.2
25.2
34.1
38.8
50.0
36.3
38.0
47.3
45.7
40.2
38.6
43.9
38.2
38.7
43.4
38.3
40.7
50.8
39.1
38.8
28.9
55.1
35.0
37.7
Share of all employed men
in public services
17.8
16.8
21.7
14.5
17.9
13.4
17.8
21.0
12.2
21.2
13.8
21.0
24.9
16.3
17.9
18.9
15.9
27.9
15.1
22.5
22.3
14.1
18.9
14.1
18.5
13.8
14.7
The public sector as provider of good pay
and conditions.
Public /private premiums thought to be high but vary across countries and
reflect gender discrimination in private sector
Ratios of public to private sector compensation per employee in Eurozone
countries (Giordana et al. 2011)
Comparing public sector pay to average
private sector male earnings for different
groups
Source: Grimshaw et al. 2012
Countries exercise social choice over pay in public sector
(Source: OECD 2012 Figures 5.8 and 5.12)
Secretarial workers
Relative to tertiary educated
per capita
Central government middle managers
Relative to GDP
Relative to tertiary educated
per capita
Relative to GDP
Countries exercise social choice over
pay in public sector
Ratio of salary of lower secondary
teachers to earnings of full-time full
year workers with tertiary education
aged 25-64 2011
Teacher salary
ratios
>1.1.
1-1.09
0.9-0.99
0.8-0.89
0.7-0.79
0.6-0.69
0.5-0.59
0.4-0.49
Ratio of hospital nurses pay to
average wage 2008
OECD countries
Korea, Portugal ,Spain
Canada, Germany, New
Zealand
Australia, Denmark,
England, Finland, Israel
Belgium, France, Ireland,
Netherlands, Slovenia,
Sweden
Chile, Norway, Poland
Austria, Estonia, Italy, US
Czech Republic, Hungary
Slovak Republic
Sources: OECD 2013 Table D3.2 Buchan et al. 2011; figure 2
Changes to pay and working conditions in the public sector (Karamessini and Rubery 2014. ch.16)
Greece
Pay cuts up to 45%. Working time increased from 37.5 to 40 hours. Recruitment
freeze/10- 20% replacement rate form 2011.
Hungary Pay scale freeze plus 8.2% average cut in gross average pay 2008 -2010. Public works
programmes but at only around 70% of the minimum wage.
Iceland
Nominal salary cuts for many government employees.
Ireland
Pay cuts average 14% lower pay, pensions for new entrants Recruitment freeze/ early
retirement scheme.
Italy
Pay freeze plus 5-10% cuts for higher paid and a 20% replacement rate. Plan for 10%
cut in public sector employment.
Spain
Salary cuts 5% 2010, a base salary freeze for 2012,plus bonus cut. 0-10% replacement.
Increase in civil servants’ and teachers’ working time.
Portugal
Pay cuts (3.5% to 10.5%) plus suspension of 13th and 14th month salaries,
recruitment freeze since 2011 and 2% per annum personnel until 2014. Increase in
teaching hours.
Imposed two year wage freeze 2010-2012 to be followed by two years of 1% pay rises.
Budget cuts imply a 16% cut in public sector employment by 2018.
UK
USA
Federal wages freeze since 2010 and 0.5% employment decline 2011. Higher cuts at
state level plus removal of public sector employees’ collective bargaining rights in
some cases.
Public sector employment and
reconciliation policies.
Type of work life balance policy varies between countries
Work–life balance options offered by the public sector relative to the private
sector (Rubery 2013)
Germany
Right to work part-time for family reasons and to return to full-time work.
Estonia
Some provisions for parental leave and some protections during pregnancy
Ireland
More supplementary payments for maternity leave, more opportunities to take
unpaid leave
Longer paid childcare leave after maternity leave and longer unpaid working
time reductions as alternative to leave
Wider range of additional rights to leave, flexible working , shorter hours
Greece
Spain
France
Latvia
Lithuania
Hungary
Right to work 50% to 90% time -50 % paid at 60%- right to return to full-time
work. Plus extra care days
No differences known
No differences known
Longer period when can work two hours less per day until the child is two
Netherlands
Portugal
Work and Care act 2001 implemented universally in public sector
More rights to reduce working time when child is young
Romania
Sweden
No specific policies
Top ups to parental leave pay influences fathers ‘ take up of parental leave.
United Kingdom
More additional maternity leave pay, more job sharing and flexitime and more
requests flexible working granted.
No specific policies but women return sooner from parental leave
Croatia
The public sector as promoter of gender equality
Country
Germany
Gender equality in the public sector (Rubery 2013)
Federal Equality Act : preferential consideration of underrepresented sex ; flexible
work and career breaks; equal opportunity plan; equal opportunity reps; regular
reporting.
UK
2007 duty to promote gender equality -eliminate discrimination, harassment and
victimization; advance equality of opportunity; foster good inter-group relations
and publish information/ ensure pay system promotes gender pay equality.
France
From 2001 -gender parity in recruitment committees: in central government female
share increased from 36.1% to 47.6% 2006-elsewehre more limited. 2008 charter to
promote equality in the public sector- some ministries adopted “action-plans” with
quantitative targets.
Sweden
All organizations must have a gender equality plan (gender pay monitoring) and
take measures if there are differences. Implementation is widespread but stronger
in public sector
Netherlands The 2001 Work and Care Act requires employers to facilitate the combination of
work and care but scope for variation and public sector takes the lead.
Spain
The 2007 Gender Equality Act required the promotion of equality in the public
sector with respect to employment and training, gender balance in recruitment
committees, gender equality monitoring etc.
The public space and public realm
Difference between the US and European nation states
is the belief in and support for the public space or
public realm (Wickham 2005)
Specifically important for women because
• Resisting marketisation by returning to family system
has also to be resisted
• Need the state involved in new emancipatory
movement between family and market (Fraser)
• Need space for caring values ( not all care can be
provided through wage employment)
• Need support from public sphere for personal/child
development
Threats to public space and realm
• Presentation by policymakers and the media that public
expenditure is regressive- by class, generations and
between non working poor and ‘hard working’ people
• Cuts to resources and substitutes by volunteers- big
society all about mobilising largely female unpaid labour
force
• Reinvention of public goods and values as market
goodse.g.
a)education as an investment ( may put women's
education in question as not repaying loans)
b) citizens rights- access to the law or to the right to marry
someone from abroad now only at a price (excludes more
women)
Conclusions
• Austerity without reversal would mark the end of a
progressive gender equality agenda.
• But women would not return to the household to
become primary carers
• If austerity not reversed the main question is whether
Europe is willing to accept the implied deficits in both
public and private life- in particular care deficits
• State intervention not yet as unpopular in Europe as in
the US -governments are still held to account when
vulnerable people suffer.
• The main hope lies in the ballot box and in the
continuing commitment to an active social state in
Europe.
References
Bettio, F., Tinios, P. and Betti, G. (2013) The Gender Pensions Gap in Europe Report for
DG Justice European Commission http://ec.europa.eu/justice/genderequality/files/documents/130530_pensions_en.pdf
Buchan, J. and S. Black (2011), “The Impact of Pay Increases on Nurses' Labour Market:
A Review of Evidence from Four OECD Countries”, OECD Health Working Papers, No.
57, OECD Publishing. http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/5kg6jwn16tjd-en
European Commission (2013) Progress on equality between women and men in 2013
http://ec.europa.eu/justice/genderequality/files/annual_reports/141002_report_progress_equality_between_women_men_
2013web_en.pdf
Giordano, R., Depalo, D., Pereira, M.C., Eugène, B., Papapetrou, E., Perez J.J., Reiss, L.
and Roter, M. (2011), The public sector pay gap in a selection of euro area countries,
European Central Bank Working Paper Series No. 1406 (December).
Grimshaw, D., Rubery, J. and Marino, S. (2012) Public sector pay and procurement in
Europe during the crisis. EWERC working paper Manchester Business School. Available
at: https://research.mbs.ac.uk/europeanemployment/Portals/0/docs/Comparative%20report%20final.pdf
Karamessini, M. and Rubery, J. ed. (2014) ‘Economic crisis and austerity: challenges to
gender equality in Karamessini, M. and Rubery, J. ed. (2014)Women and Austerity.
Routledge IAFFE Advances in Feminist Economics. Abingdon 314-351
OECD (2012) Government at Glance Paris:OECD
OECD (2013) Education at a Glance Paris:OECD
Rubery, J. (2013) ‘Public sector adjustment and the threat to gender equality’, in D.
Vaughan-Whitehead (ed), The public sector shock. The impact of policy
retrenchment in Europe, Geneva, Switzerland: International Labour Office, 23-43.
Simonazzi, A (2009) Care regimes and national employment models. Cambridge
Journal of Economics 33(2): 211–32
Wickham J (2005) The End of the European Social Model – Before It Began?
Dynamo Project thematic working paper. Available at:
http://www.dynamoproject.eu/publications.php