“Women generate less income and enjoy fewer social rights”

Speech by Kartika Liotard on the judicial, cultural, social and economic conditions which keep women disproportionately poor

Kartika Liotard, MEP for the Socialist Party of the Netherlands and the United Left Group (GUE-NGL) gave this speech at a workshop in Brussels to discuss the situation of women in the runup to International Women's Day, 8th March 2010
Since 2010 has been declared European Year for Combatting Poverty and Social Exclusion<http://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?langId=en&catId=637>, I would like to focus on a specific group at risk, namely older women. I do not only want to refer to women who have already reached a respectable age but also to today’s younger women, because today’s younger women will be tomorrow’s older ones.
Hence, I consider this seminar an excellent opportunity to share our knowledge and ideas so as to make an effort together to find efficient solutions:
•on the one hand, efficient solutions for the problems that women have been facing for generations now and because of which women face an increased risk of poverty as they get older;
and …
•on the other hand, efficient solutions for the problems that have been created by the economic crisis, because of which women are hit even harder and because of which women could be confronted with possibly harsh consequences in old age.
But first some comments on the problems that women have been facing for generations.
The most common mistake is to claim that women are responsible for their particular problems, while studies have sufficiently demonstrated that their situation is caused and maintained through judicial, cultural, social and economic circumstances in our current society.
Because I do not want to annoy you with endless enumerations of risk factors, I suggest we take a closer look at one of the most pressing problems, that is, the risk factors related to labour and income.
Women’s increased risk of poverty is, amongst other things, caused by a wide range of disadvantageous and discriminating circumstances in the labour market. For instance: the pay gap, the under-representation of women in top jobs, the over-representation of women in precarious and part-time jobs, as well as in informal work and in the care sector.
 
Such circumstances cause women to generate less income and often to enjoy fewer  social rights, such as a decent pension.
 
Further, we should take a closer look at women’s socio-cultural position, more specifically the fact that they are still forced into traditional role patterns.
 
We all know that there are only a few men who combine their job with caring responsibilities, whether it is taking care of children or older relatives. We also know that men who quit their job to take care of children or older relatives, are definitely a rarity, almost a curiosity.
 
Such circumstances actually force women to leave the labour market for a determined or even an undetermined period of time, in fact, a commitment or constraint which most likely will have disadvantageous consequences on these women’s socio-economic situation: not only in regard to their possibilities for re-integration into the labour market, but also in regard to their current and future income and pension rights.
 
Secondly, I would like to emphasize that because of the consequences of the economic crisis women will be hit even harder. Moreover, because of the consequences of this current crisis, women might be confronted with its possibly harsh consequences in old age.
I am convinced that we all realize that the current economic crisis can take a dangerous course, that is, when the crisis is (ab)used to justify cutbacks, or even a dismantling of social rights and achievements, in particular of health care and pensions. 
We should, however, realize that women, even older women, contribute greatly to our society in many ways: not only by participating in the labour market and our economy, but at the same by taking care of our families and relatives. Therefore, we must guarantee that their contributions are valued and valorized, even in times of crisis.