European community policies on sex equality: A bibliographic essay

Abstract

This article outlines the literature on women's rights in the European Community. It begins with reports of research into Community law and compliance with it by governments of Member States. This covers legal provisions for equal pay, equal treatment at work, equality in statutory social security and private occupational schemes and, finally, the Social Charter. It then draws attention to the main works on the politics of policy-making, as it relates to women, in Community institutions. Since law and policy have been criticized for failing to address persistent inequality and segregation, the third section of the article refers to research into patterns of society and employment, with particular reference to adverse features that may be reinforced by the Single European Market. In conclusion, the article notes that many recent writers are pessimistic about the capacity of the Community to expand women's autonomy because its rights rest so much on the status of citizens as paid workers. This makes it all the more important that feminist perspectives are included in the politics of policy-making.