EWL Campaign “Who Cares?” Sign up to the EWL's Care Campaign Petition

“European Women’s Lobby Campaign: Advancing Equality between Women and Men through the Better Provision of Care Services in the European Union”  

 

Download PDF-Version der Petition, available in:  

• Greek
• German
• French
• Lithuanian
• Czech
• Portuguese

Click here to sign EWL Care Campaign an e-petition

 

Women have careers, jobs, professional responsibilities, and at the same time women continue to be in large part responsible for their children, housework and care of dependants (whose numbers are increasing as the population ages). One way out of this "double life burden" for women lies firstly in changes in the gender division of work, leading to an equal sharing of caring tasks between women and men. Social and employment policies and the provision of services also have a very important part to play. This inequality in the division of task in the private sphere has a direct impact on the way in which women and men can integrate in the labour market and get involved in social life. Care policies and the provision of care services are therefore intrinsically related to the achievement of equality between women and men.

 

The European Women’s Lobby therefore launched a specific Campaign on the provision of care services for children, the elderly and other dependants in the European Union. In this Campaign, EWL highlights the responsibility of the State in relation to the provision of publicly funded care services, in particular at a time when Europe is facing important demographic and economic challenges. EWL also makes recommendations in relation to labour market issues and policies for the conciliation of private and working life.

 

EWL Care Campaign

 

At the EWL Board of Administration meeting in May 2006, the European Women’s Lobby officially launched its “Who Cares?” campaign. This campaign focuses on the provision of affordable, accessible and high quality care services for all dependants, available to all women and men whatever their financial situation.

 

As part of the Care Campaign, EWL developed a Position Paper on Care,  which covers a range of issues related to care that need to be addressed in order to fully tackle this issue in European societies view a view to realising gender equality, including: 1) Gender stereotypes and care; 2) the Economics of care: provision of affordable care services; 3) Quality work and quality care services: care and the labour market; and 4) The case of domestic migrant care workers; and European Union policies and care.

 

During the EWL Care Campaign an e-petition was launched on the EWL website. The petition is available for signing until International Women’s Day (8th March) 2007. We will then forward the signatures of the petition to European Commission President Barroso and to all of the EU Heads of State and Governments at the European Spring Council, 2007. The EWL General Assembly Seminar of October 2006 was dedicated to the issue of care where a Manifesto on Care was adopted. This Manifesto on Care will be used as the key EWL reference document along with the list of signatories to the e-petition to the European Spring Council 2007.