Riitta Partinen,
Vice Chair of the ETUC Women’s Equality Committee,
|
ETUC Equality Conference
|
| Most honoured guests, ladies and gentlemen! As Vice Chair of the ETUC Women’s Committee I have the joy of wishing you all welcome to Helsinki where we now have mid summer and to the ETUC gender equality conference. This conference is held during a very important time prior to the ETUC Congress just as we are on the doorsteps to the new millennium. The aim of this conference is to emphasise the role of the trade union movement in order to improve the conditions for working women. The ultimate responsibility is of course in the hands of the employers, but the initiative to improve gender equality has come from the unions. One can say that without the initiatives from the trade union movement the equality in working life would not have had much progress. This is an important challenge in our work. In gender equality matters it is a question of a long running, planned work for reaching certain goals. Very often it is also a question of changing attitudes, improve skills, understanding but very often also will and commitment. The inequality in working life is generally well known and acknowledged. The fast – and often big changes in our economy are reflected in the equality between genders and there will then be new problems, and very seldom, if ever, the problems are resolved. Therefore the situation is not static but very quickly changing. Even very advanced ways of solving these problems can remain as helpless efforts in the new concept of economy and working life. The position of women is weaker in most countries measured with whatever means. The changes in the situation for women has been followed up for several years, even decades, and the reasons have also been analysed. So there is surely very much knowledge about the structures which generation after generation keeps up and which also renews the inequality. The development of women and men to social genders is a process related to culture and to gradual changes. There is anyway not any reason to fall into any pessimism here, because the progress of gender equality IS slow. In the long rung every man and woman can see that the changes HAVE happened by comparing their chances and restrictions with their mothers’ and grandmothers’. Every human being has the right to be independent as to economy. Work and salary in addition to an individual social security system is a guarantee for independency AND also a guarantee for a kind of mental independency. The social security and taxation systems in Finland give the guarantee for both parents to go to work as the child and elderly care is organised. The organised meals in school are also considered to be one pillar of support to both of the parents to work outside home. The Nordic women can therefore be said to be depended of well fare state and services. The attitudes can at least in Finland be said to be positive against gender equality. A majority of Finns give their support to gender equality in many occasions. According to the first equality barometer as much as 44 % of the men and 31 % of the women considered their chances in working life equally good. Among men the attitudes differ according to age and as to women according to education. Half of the young men and one third of the middle aged and old men considered there actually is equality in working life. The opinion of women about equality in working life is more critical and the critics grow according to education level. Only one third – one fourth considers the working life equal in spite of educational level. Inequality is often very hard to identify. The full filling of equality in working life is a responsibility matter for the negotiating labour market partners. And the responsibility and important role of the trade union movement one can never emphasise too much. We need action on every level. And this demands higher level of knowing about equality, more understanding about inequality, about the reasons and the means of solving the problem. In the labour market it is a question of employers, the trade unions, men and women - that is – on every level. We can always be better. Now is time for common actions. Now is time for mainstreaming. We do not demand too much of our selves or others when we put our first goal for the first ten years of the new millennium to take a statistical leap in gender equality in working life and every other sector of life. This conference will give its inspiration to the trade unions to work for gender equality. Welcome. I wish you all a fruitful conference! |
|
|
|