Gender regimes, employment and family. What is gender

equality?Ulla Björnberg

Department of SociologyGothenburg University

Sweden Ulla.Bjornberg@sociology.gu.se

Paid work and gender equality

• Implications for gender equality is dependant on region and class

The problem of care and gender equality

• The extended family decreasing source of care

• Migrant women as workers domestic workers

• Extension of public care

Care as a class problem

• Poor families• Lower and middle educated women-• Higher educated women• Childlessness as an option

Gender regimes

• Care – a concern for men and women• Commodification of care • Leave schemes – maternity leave,

Paternity leave, parental leave• Men and care – how to make them take on

care• Regulation of working conditions

Conclusions

• Unequal sharing of care and domestic work is a main reason behind social reproduction of gender inequality

• The extended intergenerational caring family is decreasing

• The care problem is locally and globally interlinked

• Men as carers must be more focussed in policies

• Regulations of working conditions globally and locally