Women's employment is central to the changing face of European labour markets and social systems. Now, employment and unemployment is at the top of the political agenda at European Union level; women will be a key source of labour supply in the near future and in the next century. Women's Employment in Europe examines the far-reaching changes in gender relations in all fifteen member states of the European Union. Looking at women's labour in the 1990s, the book analyses trends in terms of changes which have taken place in international and national economies, within enterprises, and in the behaviour and aspirations of individuals and households. This contextualisation allows the authors to consider the progress towards equal treatment in the labour market: this is assessed in terms of key issues: care and wage work, occupational segregation, pay and working time.
This is the first book to provide a systematic and international analysis of key dimensions for understandingwomen's labour market position; and reveals that to assess future trends it is necessary to look beyond the narrow focus of equal opportunities policies to broader issues of labour market conditions, regulations and policy developments. Women's Employment in Europe is a key text for economists, policy makers, those working in gender and European studies.