Equality between women and men is one of the founding principles of European Union : 1957, "equal pay for equal work". The Europe 2020 strategy emphasizes that gender equality is a driver of economic growth and sustainable development. As such, one of the priorities is the increase in the female employment rate by 2020. In Europe, only 63% of women are in work compared to 76% of men. Among these women, 35% focus on six occupations traditionally feminine low-paid : domestic helpers, personal care workers, office clerks, shop salesperson, administrative professionals and housekeeping workers. On average, women earn 16% less than men. For men, 25% are building frame and finishers workers, physical and engineering science technicians, managers of small enterprises or machinery mechanics. Occupations well-paid and more promising. The labour market is divided between traditionally masculine occupations, well-paid and more promising, and traditionally feminine occupations, low-paid. A European Commission study describe it as "employment segregation" and "gender segregation in the labour market" (Francesca Bettio and Alina Verashchagina Study - Directorate-Genral for Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities). This European need and the inadequacy of vocational guidance for women in the employment market have been the rationale behind the European training project: "GENDER DIVERSITY IN PROFESSIONS MEANS MORE EMPLOYMENT" "MIXITÉ DES MÉTIERS, EMPLOI À LA CLÉ" This training project aims to solve the problem of retraining unemployed women. Its purpose is to guide them towards jobs traditionally considered as “masculine” jobs, that are more profitable. Key project activities : - Development of a Guide : 10 keys to successful retraining in a said "masculine" profession - Creation of a Training Requirements for coaches specialized in retraining unemployed women in a said "masculine" profession - Training of job-to-job accompaniment professionals in retraining unemployed women in a said "masculine" profession (concrete application of the Training Requirements) - Creation of a Facilitation Guide for the Training Requirements (feedback of Trainings) - Organisation of Company Tours : discovery of the said "masculine" jobs by unemployed women - Development of a Teaching Kit on implementation of "Company tours" action The project partners : - CCI de Dobrich (Bulgaria): Chamber of commerce and industry - www.cci.dobrich.net - Charline Jambert (France): Consultant in equality between men and women at work - www.niplusnimoins.fr - CIAPE (Italy): Training center in lifelong learning - www.ciape.it - Maison de la Promotion Sociale (France): Training center for adults - www.maisondelapromotionsociale.org - Hauts de Garonne Développement (France): Economic development agency - www.hdgdev.com Statistics : Eurostat source
Equality between women and men is one of the principle ideals of the European Union. In its “strategy Europe 2020”, the European Union considers equality between women and men as a growth driver for the economy, employment, of social cohesion and long term development. On this basis, one of its priorities is the increase of female employment between now and 2020. In Europe, only 60 % of women work in contrast to 76% of men. 36% of working women including women seeking employment, are predominantly from 6 categories of industries within a list of 130: sales, care work, clerical work and other office jobs, catering and cleaning jobs. These types of employment are generally paid less, often part time, and for certain jobs are antisocial hours. For men, 25% are predominantly from the following categories: drivers, builders, tradesmen, management of small businesses, science and technology or mechanics. These jobs are generally better paid, often on a full time basis, and at normal working hours. Therefor the job market is divided into jobs which are traditionally held by men, better paid, and more buoyant, as opposed to roles traditionally held by women that are less so. A study by the European Commission describes this situation of “employment segregation” and of “gender segregation in the labour market” (Study of Francesca Bettio and Alina Verashchagina). Women struggling to reintegrate into the job market are the most affected by this phenomenon. These women choose or are guided towards jobs that they believe or are led to believe are appropriate to their skill set, more often than not in the care or cleaning industry. A structured support network while seeking employment has a crucial role to play in retraining unskilled women in the industries listed above. More specifically, this support is essential to broaden women’s professional horizons regarding jobs in industries traditionally male orientated and often higher paid and less precarious. The project, “Gender Diversity means more employment” provides tools to raise awareness and training necessary for these structured support networks to help find employment. The tools : - A guide to raise awareness: 10 step guide to a successful female retraining into a traditionally male role - A training manual on the retraining of women in the work place towards jobs traditionally held by men, for structured support to help find employment - A methodological guide to facilitate implementation of company visit : on site visit to experience professional roles traditionally held by men for female job seekers Available on project website : www.mixite.eu 5 partners participated in the realization of this project: - Dobrich CCI (Bulgaria): Chamber of Commerce and Industry - Charline Jambert /CJ Conseil (France): Consultant in professional gender equality - CIAPE (Italy): Training Center for Lifelong Learning - GUIMEL (France): Company acting for the social bond in the field of vocational training - Hauts de Garonne Développement (France): Economic Development Agency