Can the state set decent standards for gender equality?

Jill RuberyEuropean Work and Employment Research Centre

Manchester Business SchoolUniversity of Manchester

The importance of the public sector for gender equality

• Source of employment opportunities and source of support services for employment integration (only effective alternative to female domestic labour)

• Potential for protection in pay and employment practices from discrimination/ from organisation of labour market around male lifecourse

• Space for alternative social values- social choice over how to value care work, for example

Employment Working Conditions Active Promotion of Gender Equality

Employment quantity

Concentration of women’s employment

Work-life balance options to facilitate employment continuity

Childcare to facilitate labour market participation

Employment quality

Concentration of women graduates

Pay and pension premiums especially for lower skilled

Specific duties and policies or more effective implementation of national policies

Gender equality and the public sector

France Germany Hungary Sweden UK

Share of the public sector:in total employment 30 25 22 32 28in female employment 42 36 33 51 43in high-educated female employment

48 56 56 66 59

in medium-educated female employment

39 31 24 45 37

in low-educated female employment

37 26 23 33 31

Share of women in total public sector employment

67 66 69 76 70

Female employment in the public sector (NACE O, P, Q), 2010

Source: ELFS

France Right to work 50 per cent to 90 per cent time; r those on 50 per cent time e paid at 60 per cent. Also right to return to full-time work. No maternity leave ceiling unlike private sector. 12 days rather than 3 days sick child leave.

Germany Right to work part-time for family reasons and to return to full-time work plus opportunities for flexible distribution of hours and for combining part-time work with the parental leave allowance.

Hungary Civil servants have rights for more flexible working when children young but rarely used .

Sweden Collective agreement in public sector provides top ups to parental leave pay; encourage take up by fathers.

UK 31% public sector compared to 11% private sector provide additional maternity leave pay, opportunities for job sharing and flexitime and requests for part-time or flexible hours granted more often.

Work–life balance options in the public sector

Source: adapted from Rubery (2013: table 2.6).

Public-private gaps in average pay in five countries, national data 2010

All males All females

Male full-time

Female full-time

Female part-time

France 1.10 1.13 1.22Germany 0.95 1.04 0.95 1.01 1.08

Hungary 1.24 (CS)

0.851.21(CS)

0.90

Sweden 0.98 0.96UK 1.17 1.29 1.15 1.25 1.44

Women in most but not all countries paid more in public than private sectors

0.5

0.6

0.7

0.8

0.9

1

1.1

1.2

1.3

Private sector male average earnings

GERMANYHUNGARY

SWEDEN UK

FRANCE

Public and private sector pay for men and women relative to average male earnings in the private sector, 2010

But pay premium disappears if compare to male private sector pay

Interdecile - P90/P10 P10/Male private P50*

P90/Male private P50*

Public Private Public Private Public Private

FranceMale FT 2.59 2.71 0.74 0.69 1.90 1.88Female FT 2.17 2.51 0.69 0.61 1.50 1.53Female PT 2.78 3.12 0.58 0.46 1.60 1.43SwedenAll 1.77 2.17 0.73 0.72 1.30 1.56UKMale FT 3.17 4.16 0.75 0.56 2.37 2.35Female FT 2.83 3.47 0.70 0.51 1.97 1.77Female PT 3.39 2.36 0.54 0.48 1.83 1.13All 3.34 4.04 0.63 0.49 2.02 1.98

. Inter-decile wage ratios in the public and private sectors, five countries, 2010

Lower paid fare better in public sector but part-timers also have better career opportunities

Lower secondary teachers’ statutory pay France Germany Hungary Sweden UK

As % pay of all full year workers with tertiary education 2009

0.85 0.97 0.45 0.75 0.81

Trends in real pay (2000=100) 2008 2009

9191

145129

110113

109109

Trends in pay compared to GDP per capita 2000 2008 2009

1.271.051.06

No dataNo data

1.71

0.730.790.73

1.000.890.96

1.431.261.31

Comparative levels of teachers’ paySource : OECD (2011a, 2012).

High degree of social choice over pay for professions- very low pay in feminised public professions in eastern Europe

Pensions in public compared to private sector

France Final salary compared to career average and high minimum entitlements but bonuses not included- contribution rates now harmonised.

Germany Better occupational pensions and 100% coverage compared to 48% in private sector

Hungary No difference

Sweden Better than average top ups to statutory pensions

UK Extensive defined benefits pensions- important as state pension low, private sector has closed schemes and women less covered in private sector

Pensions in public compared to private sectors: importance depends on statutory system

Gender equality policy programmes and trade union equality campaigns in the public sector

Source: adapted from Anxo et al. (2010) and Rubery (2013: box 2.1 and box 2.2).

Childcare provision (under 3s)

Public sector employer equality policies

Public sector trade union equality campaigns

Germany Low enrolmentAffordable

Specific Federal Equality Act -gender equality in recruitment and promotion

Failed Ver.di campaign for gender sensitive job evaluation

France Medium/high enrolmentAffordable

Gender parity in recruitment committee; 2008 equality charter -

No trade union campaigns

Hungary Low enrolmentAffordable

No employer initiatives No trade union campaigns

Sweden High enrolmentAffordable

Both public and private sectors must have a gender equality plan

Some policies to reduce low pay r

UK Medium enrolmentNot affordable

From 2007 gender duty in public sector . Voluntary equal pay audits (40 per cent of public bodies).

Single pay spines based on gender sensitive job grading in local government, the NHS and universities.

Germany France Hungary Sweden UKEmployment opportunities Quantity 1 2 1 3 2 Quality 3 2 3 3 3 Total for employment 4 4 4 6 5Working conditions Work-life balance policies

3 3 2 3 3

Pay and pensions 3 2 1 2 3Total for working conditions

6 5 3 5 6

Active promotion of gender equality Child care provision 1 3 1 3 1 Gender equality policies 2 2 1 3 2Total for active promotion 3 5 2 6 3Overall total score 13 14 9 17 14

Variations in the contribution of the public sector to gender equality

Type of adjustment Country examplesCuts to public sector employment Reduced employment Higher work intensity

Employment cuts in UK. Restrictions on vacancy filling in France.

Change to contracts Reduced job security More internal differentiation

↑ non civil service in France- more women -lower benefits/ work life balance options.

More outsourcing Lower pay and conditions

Increased outsourcing in UK, Germany and Sweden –lower pay in UK, Germany.

Pay cuts/freezes/reforms Wider gender pay gap More managerial discretion

Pay cuts in Hungary, pay freezes in UK, France, long term ↓ Germany and France, stability Sweden

Changes to pensions Wider gender gap

Major changes to public sector pension cuts in UK

Freezing promotion opportunities Affects women’s careers

Failure to appoint to higher grades in Germany

Changes to working time Reduced work life balance

↑in full-time working hours in Germany plus ↑ in part-time work. ↑unpaid overtime in France.

Changes to equality policies Reduced attention in public and

private sectors

End to equality reviews, equality duty likely in UK

Public sector adjustment and implications for gender equality