Women and Employment in Southern Europe: The Implications of Recent Policy and Labour Market Directions

Abstract

This article examines the implications of European Union and national policy directions for women's integration into the labour markets of southern European countries. First, there is a discussion of the distinctive nature of women's integration into the labour markets of Greece, Italy, Portugal and Spain. Secondly the paper considers the implications of recent policy directions with respect to public sector employment, payment structures, small firms, flexible work, and policies to reconcile employment and family life. Despite the welcome focus on mainstreaming gender equality into EU employment policies, many of the developments discussed in this paper would seem to be contradictory to this commitment.