Description

In the context of a fall in birth rates across Europe and the Lisbon strategy targets for increased employment it has become more important than ever to enable the full participation of parents in paid employment.

The main articles of this issue present and discuss the results of an EU-funded research project examining whether and how family-friendly policies, as well as women's conditions on European labour markets, influence and determine women's decision to have children. Specific issues examined include a comparison of public childcare provision across the EU, parenthood and time allocation, the wages mothers receive and the wage gap between mothers and women in general, and a critique of how working parents, and especially mothers, are treated under different types of European welfare states.

This issue will be of interest to policy-makers, trade unions and employers. It provides a wealth of information and analysis on how public policies (both labour market and social) in different European countries aim to reconcile work and family life.

Coordinators

Table of contents

Editorial

Main articles

• Sinead Tiernan: ETUC policies on motherhood and work
• Danièle Meulders and Síle O'Dorchai: The role of welfare state typologies in analysing motherhood
• Siv Gustafsson and Eiko Kenjoh: New evidence on work among new mothers. What can trade unions do?
• Haris Symeonidou: Parenthood and time allocation in the countries of the European Union
• Jérôme De Henau, Danièle Meulders, Síle O'Dorchai and Hélène Périvier: The relative generosity of the EU ountries' childcare systems
• Cécile Wetzels: Motherhood and wages
• Daniela Del Boca and Silvia Pasqua: Labour supply of Italian mothers. A comparison with other EU countries: facts, data and public policies

News and background

• Saving jobs, protecting rights: the Autoeuropa Agreement
  (Hermes Augusto Costa)
• Goodbye to the unemployment rate?
  (Monica Threlfall)

Book reviews

• Motherhood at work: a critique of Gøsta Esping-Andersen's Why we need a new Welfare State
  (Susanne von Auerbach)
• Hans Sallmutter (ed.)
  Nachdenken über die EU - Vordenken für Europa. Gewerkschaftliche Impulse für ein soziales Europa[Thinking about Europe - thinking for Europe. Trade union contributions to a social
  Europe].
  (Norbert Kluge)
• Ian Fitzgerald and John Sterling (eds.)
  European Works Councils: Pessimism of the intellect, optimism of the will?
  (Peter Kerckhofs)

Reports

• Working against Racism (WaR) organises its first conference, Brussels, 29 January 2004.
  (Grigor Gradev)