Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-v9fdk Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-19T12:26:48.542Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Gender mainstreaming in the European Union: broadening the possibilities for gender equality and/or an inherently constrained exercise?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 March 2020

Julia S. O'Connor
Julia S. O'Connor*
Affiliation:
Institute for Research in Social Sciences, University of Ulster, Magee Campus, Derry/LondonderryBT48 7JL, UK
*
*Email: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The European Union (EU) was an influential voice in advocating the adoption of gender mainstreaming by the 4th United Nations World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995. Since then gender mainstreaming has become a central policy plank of gender justice globally, but progress has been variable and modest. This paper examines the unfolding of gender mainstreaming in the EU, which was one of the early adopters as reflected by its commitment to gender mainstreaming in 1996. The objective is to identify patterns that may have implications for gender justice on a broader scale. The lenses are the European Employment Strategy dating from 1997 and targeted gender equality initiatives dating from the Community Framework on Gender Equality (2001–2005). Drawing on documentary analysis of these sources constraints on moving form aspiration to policy practice and outcome are identified. These are intensified by the multilevel structure of decision-making in the EU, which means that commitments agreed at the EU level are not pursed with the same fervour by all member states. But constraints are inherent in gender mainstreaming because of the contested and vague nature of the concept, the context of cross-cutting inequalities and the structural basis of these inequalities.

Keywords

genderEUEuropean employment strategygender mainstreaming
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of International and Comparative Social Policy , Volume 30 , Issue 1: Gender justice and global policy paradigms , February 2014 , pp. 69 - 78
Copyright
Copyright © 2014 Taylor & Francis

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Bettio, F., Corsi, M., D'Ippoliti, C., Lyberaki, A., Samek Lodovici, M., & Verashchagina, A. (2012). The impact of the economic crisis on the situation of women and men and on gender equality policies. Synthesis report European network of experts on gender equality prepared for the European Commission Directorate-General for Justice, Unit D2. Retrieved from http://www.cite.gov.pt/pt/destaques/complementosDestqs/crisis_report_dec_2012_enp.pdfGoogle Scholar
Beveridge, F. (2008). Implementing gender equality and mainstreaming in an enlarged European Union: Prospects and challenges. In Beveridge, F. & Velluti, S. (Eds.), Gender and the open method of coordination perspective on law, governance and equality in the EU (pp. 11–34). Aldershot: Ashgate.Google Scholar
Council of Europe. (2004). Gender mainstreaming conceptual framework, methodology and presentation of good practices. Final report of activities of the group of specialists on mainstreaming (EG-S-MS). Strasbourg: Council of Europe. Retrieved from http://www.coe.int/t/dghl/standardsetting/equality/03themes/gender-mainstreaming/EG_S_MS_98_2_rev_en.pdfGoogle Scholar
European Commission. (1995). Proposal for a Council decision on the fourth medium-term Community action programme on equal opportunities for women and men (1996–2000). Official Journal n. C 306 November 17, p. 2. Retrieved from http://eur-lex.europa.eu/JOHtml.do?uri=OJ:C:1995:306:SOM:EN:HTMLGoogle Scholar
European Commission. (1996). Incorporating equal opportunities for women and men into all Community policies and activities, COM (96)67 final. Retrieved from http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=COM:1996:0067:FIN:EN:PDFGoogle Scholar
European Commission. (2000). Community framework strategy on gender equality (2001–2005), COM (2000)335.Google Scholar
European Commission. (2006a). Communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. A roadmap for equality between women and men – 2006–2010. COM (2006) 92 final. Retrieved from http://eurlex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=COM:2007:0424:FIN:EN:PDFGoogle Scholar
European Commission. (2006b, March). European pact for gender equality annex II to the presidency conclusions (2/15). Bulletin of the European Union. Retrieved from http://www.consilium.europa.eu/ueDocs/cms_Data/docs/pressData/en/ec/89013.pdfGoogle Scholar
European Commission. (2008). A European recovery plan. Communication from the Commission to the European Council, 26.11.2008 COM (2008) 800 final, Brussels.Google Scholar
European Commission. (2010a). Communication from the Commission. A Strengthened Commitment to Equality between Women and Men A Women's Charter COM (2010) yyy final. Retrieved from http://ec.europa.eu/commission_2010-2014/president/news/documents/pdf/20100305_1_en.pdfGoogle Scholar
European Commission. (2010b). Strategy for equality between women and men 2010–2015, COM(2010) 491 final. Luxembourg: Publication Office of the European Union. Retrieved from http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=COM:2010:0491:FIN:EN:PDFGoogle Scholar
European Commission. (2010c). Commission Staff Working document. Actions to implement the Strategy for Equality between Women and Men 2010–2015 SEC(2010) 1079/2. Retrieved from ec.europa.eu/social/BlobServlet?docId=5776&langId=enGoogle Scholar
European Commission. (2010d). Commission Staff Working Background document accompanying the Strategy for Equality between Women and Men 2010–2015. Retrieved from http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=SEC:2010:1080:FIN:EN:PDFGoogle Scholar
European Commission. (2011). Report on progress on equality between women and men in 2010. Luxembourg: Publication Office of the European Union.Google Scholar
European Parliament. (2009). ‘European Parliament resolution of 11 March 2009 on a European Economic Recovery Plan’, European Parliament, adopted text P6_TA(2009)0123.Google Scholar
Hafner-Burton, E., & Pollack, M. (2009). Mainstreaming gender in the European Union: Getting the incentives right. Comparative European Politics, 7(1), 114–138.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kantola, J. (2010). Gender and the European Union. Houndmills, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lavena, C., & Riccucci, N. M. (2012). Exploring gender mainstreaming in the European Union. International Journal of Public Administration, 35, 122–136.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lombardo, E., & Meier, P. (2006). Gender mainstreaming in the EU incorporating a feminist reading? European Journal of Women's Studies, 13(2), 151–166.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lombardo, E., & Verloo, M. (2009). Institutionalizing intersectionality in the European Union? International Feminist Journal of Politics, 11(4), 478–495.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mazey, S. (2000). Introduction: Integrating gender – Intellectual and ‘real world’ mainstreaming. Journal of European Public Policy, 7(3), 333–345.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
O'Connor, J. S. (2008). The OMC and the EES: Broadening the possibilities for gender equality. In Beveridge, F. & Velluti, S. (Eds.), Gender and the open method of coordination perspective on law, governance and equality in the EU (pp. 77–101). Aldershot: Ashgate.Google Scholar
O'Connor, J. S., Orloff, A. S., & Shaver, S. (1999). States, Markets, Families: Gender, Liberalism and Social Policy in Australia, Canada, Great Britain and the United States. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Plantenga, J., Remery, C., & Rubery, J. (2008). Gender mainstreaming of employment policies: A comparative review of thirty European countries. Luxembourg: Office for Official Publication of the European Commission.Google Scholar
Rees, T. (1998). Mainstreaming equality in the European Union. London: Routledge.Google Scholar
Richardson, A., & Loubier, C. (2008). Intersectionality and leadership. International Journal of Leadership Studies, 3(2), 142–161.Google Scholar
Rubery, J., Grimshaw, D., Smith, M., & Donnelly, R. (2006). The national reform programme 2006 and the gender aspects of the European Employment Strategy. The co-ordinators’ synthesis report prepared as part of the work by the co-ordinating team of the Expert Group on Gender Inclusion and Employment commissioned by the Equal Opportunities Unit in the European Commission. Retrieved from www.escholar.manchester.ac.uk/uk-ac-man-scw:5b100Google Scholar
Sainsbury, D., & Bergqvist, C. (2009). The promise and pitfalls of gender mainstreaming. International Feminist Journal of Politics, 11(2), 216–234.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
TFEU. (2010). Consolidated version of the treaty of the functioning of the European Union. Official Journal of the European Union C83/47. Retrieved form http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:C:2010:083:0047:0200:en:PDFGoogle Scholar
Treaty of Amsterdam. (1997). Official Journal of the European Union C340/1. Retrieved from http://eur-lex.europa.eu/en/treaties/dat/11997D/tif/JOC_1997_340__1_EN_0005.pdfGoogle Scholar
UN Division for the Advancement of Women. (2000). The four global women's conferences 1975–1995: Historical perspective. Retrieved from http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/followup/session/presskit/hist.htmGoogle Scholar
UN Women 2000. (1997). Gender mainstreaming. Extract from Report of the Economic and Social Council for 1997. Retrieved from http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/csw/GMS.PDFGoogle Scholar
Villa, P., & Smith, M. (2009). The national reform programme 2008 and the gender aspects of the European employment strategy. The co-ordinator's synthesis report prepared for the Equality Unit, European Commission final report. Retrieved from http://www.praxis.ee/index.php?id=575&L=1Google Scholar
Villa, P., & Smith, M. (2010). Gender equality, employment policies and the crisis in EU Member States: Synthesis report 2009. EU Expert Group on Gender and Employment (EGGE). Retrieved from ec.europa.eu/social/BlobServlet?docId=5630&langId=enGoogle Scholar
Walby, S. (2005a). Introduction: Comparative gender mainstreaming in a global era. International Feminist Journal of Politics, 7(4), 453–470.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Walby, S. (2005b). Gender mainstreaming: Productive tensions in theory and practice. Social Politics: International Studies in Gender, State and Society, 12(3), 321–343.CrossRefGoogle Scholar