Political posts
WOMEN IN THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
EN
International Women’s Day 8 March 2020 WOMEN IN THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
Unless otherwise stated:
women men
Data sources: uu European Parliament and its bodies: www.europarl.eu as of 15 January 2020, unless otherwise stated. DG ITEC, EDIT Directorate uu Photographs: European Parliament |
An initiative of the Equality, Inclusion and Diversity Unit - DG Personnel Responsible Administrator: Unit : Printing Print Petra Metzmeier-Weiss |
European Parliament, ADENAUER building : IDEA Unit 2, rue Alcide De Gasperi, L-1615 Luxembourg Tel: +352 4300 24397 email: [email protected] Conception & Design Conception Intranet: https://epintranet.in.ep.europa.eu/home/browse-as/human-resources/equality-diversity/gender-equality.html |
Disclaimer: the opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the official position of the European Parliament. L020021 EN
International Women’s Day – 8 March 2020 2 POLITICAL POSTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS is composed in a fully gender-balanced way. In my own cabinet, 60% of members are women. 4 High Level Group on Gender These are certainly encouraging steps, but they are only a start and the European Parliament endeavours to achieve even better Equality and Diversity, chaired by results in the future. Vice-President Dimitrios Papadimoulis We would like to set an example for national governments across the Union as progress towards equality has stalled in many EU countries. 6 Members The election of Ursula van der Leyen as President of the European Commission marks an important momentum towards gender 7 Representation of women in the equality. We need to act jointly to strive towards more inclusive institutions, starting from internal administrative practices. European Parliament and in national Last year, the European Parliament demonstrated its commitment parliaments, by Member State to prevent and combat sexual harassment in the workplace by adopting core measures included in the “Gender mainstreaming in 8 The Bureau the European Parliament” report on 15 January 2019. Newly elected MEPs have signed a code of appropriate behaviour, which prohibits offensive or discriminatory behaviour. Furthermore, a guide entitled 9 Political Groups “Harassment: Zero Tolerance in the EP” has been recently updated and made available to all MEPs outlining the behaviour expected in 10 Committees accordance with the dignity of our institution. With such measures in place, we are confident that we can contribute to achieving a 11 Interviews with the Chair of the work environment where both women and men representing our Union feel comfortable and supported. Committee on Women’s Rights and In the EU today, however, women still face discrimination in their Gender Equality and the Permanent everyday life, starting from the workplace where a wide gender pay and pension gap still remains common practice and women Rapporteurs on Gender Mainstreaming still struggle to reach positions of responsibility and to see their work duly recognized. Delegations 12 The adoption of the Work-life Balance Directive by the Parliament on 4 April 2019 marks a decisive step towards reducing the gender employment gap and it benefits both the economy and working families. We need to monitor and encourage the implementation of this legislation by national governments, which is crucial to A word from ensuring that women are not confronted by obstacles that affect their caring duties when seeking leadership positions. Women need the President to be empowered to further their career, return to work or make use of flexible working arrangements to reach their full potential in the work place. The Parliament strives for a Europe where both women and men can prosper and has called for more funding for women’s economic empowerment and a more significant portion of the budget to be allocated to gender equality issues. As stated in my inaugural speech, the European Union needs The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, in its women at the top of politics, the economy and the social sphere article 23, states that equality between men and women must be and the Parliament can and will play a vital role in passing legislation ensured in all areas, including employment, work and pay. which makes this possible. International Women’s Day is therefore a This means not only that equality is a founding principle for the EU, chance for us to reflect on achievements to date and above all on but also that all its institutions are bound to respect and promote the necessary concrete steps we still need to take in order to make it in their everyday action and in their administrative procedures. gender equality a reality for women and girls in the EU. In the run-up to the elections, the European Parliament actively encouraged national parties to boost the number of women candidates by issuing recommendations such as gender quotas or zipped lists and capacity building workshops for women. Today, the representation of women in the European Parliament stands at nearly 40% and is higher than the European average: this is a great cause for celebration. The new European Parliament Bureau David Maria Sassoli
Equality, Inclusion and Diversity Unit – Directorate-General for Personnel 3 WOMEN IN THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
HIGH LEVEL GROUP ON GENDER EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY
DIMITRIOS PAPADIMOULIS Chair (GUE/NGL – EL)
The High-Level Group on Gender Equality and Diversity (HLG) was established by the Bureau in 2004. It was created primarily to encourage and implement gender mainstreaming within Parliament’s activities, structures and bodies, and to promote the values of equality and non-discrimination in Parliament’s administration.
I am honoured to have been reappointed chair of the HLG for the legislative term 2019-2024. The group’s first consultation was very fruitful, and we will continue our important work on gender equality, the elimination of sexual harassment and making the parliament an inclusive workplace, which embraces all genders and other diversities.
The HLG is a horizontal body that closely cooperates with other parliamentary bodies, in particular the Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality (FEMM Committee) and the Conference of Committee and Conference of Delegation Chairs. Its priorities with respect to gender for 2019-2024 will revolve around incorporating the gender perspective into all aspects of the European Parliament’s work, boosting the number of women in both political and administrative leadership positions, fostering cooperation with gender equality specialists, and continuing to make the Parliament a workplace where all genders feel secure and supported.
Currently, the HLG’s members comprise:
Ewa KOPACZ – Vice Chair Lívia JÁRÓKA Heidi HAUTALA Monika BEŇOVÁ (EPP - PL) (EPP - HU) (Greens/EFA - FI) (S&D - SK) Furthermore, the permanently invited members are:
Inma RODRÍGUEZ-PIÑERO Evelyn REGNER Irène TOLLERET Gwendoline DELBOS-CORFIELD (S&D - ES) (S&D - AT) (Renew - FR) (Greens/EFA - FR) Conference of Delegation Women’s Rights and Gender Chairs (CDC) Equality (FEMM) Permanent Rapporteurs on Gender Mainstreaming The eighth term drew to a close last year, inviting us to reflect back on the main achievements of this mandate. The ‘Action Plan for the promotion of gender equality and diversity in the European Parliament’s Secretariat for the period 2014-2019’1 provided a solid framework for all Directorates-General and created a clear vision of what we, as an institution, wished to accomplish by
1 Action Plan for the promotion of gender equality and diversity in the European Parliament’s Secretariat for the period 2014-2019, adopted by the Bureau on 27 April 2015
International Women’s Day – 8 March 2020 4 POLITICAL POSTS
the end of the eighth mandate. The latter part of the eight mandate focused on carrying out the recommendations outlined in one key document: the Papadimoulis report1 on ‘Gender Equality in the European Parliament Secretariat: state of play and the way forward 2017-2019’. With the guidance of a well-indicated roadmap and step-by-step changes, considerable gains were made in ensuring that the Parliament is a more balanced, inclusive and supportive workplace. In particular, a great deal of attention has been placed on gender-sensitive vacancy notices, gender-balanced selection panels, the promotion of role models of female senior managers and a more balanced uptake of work-life balance measures.
Furthermore, the statistics displayed in this brochure reveal a growing trend whereby more women are being promoted and occupying management positions. As the Parliament launches into its ninth term, we endeavour to welcome even more women among our MEPs, directors-general, directors and heads of units in order to become a true champion of gender equality and model to other parliaments and governments across the Union. Moreover, we aspire to full gender-equality across the Directorates-General within the Parliament and have already taken steps to realise this goal, such as the implementation of targeted training and mentoring programmes in technical areas where women are under-represented.
The European Parliament fully embraces the values of dignity and respect. Indeed, a workforce, which is treated respectfully works more efficiently and is more productive overall. The HLG remains committed to establishing a safe working environment for all and stamping out any sort of harassment suffered by the Parliament’s personnel. In this regard, prevention is better than cure and the Parliament is doing its utmost to raise awareness about what is deemed to be inappropriate behaviour with a view to avoiding future harassment claims. This last year has seen a dynamic campaign about the institution’s zero-tolerance harassment policy as well as first-rate anti-harassment training courses, which are available on a voluntary basis. Looking ahead, it is crucial that further action is taken to strengthen the application of the Code of Appropriate Behaviour, which all incumbent MEPs have signed, and to examine any breaches by promoting measures such as internal mediation at Member level.
As we embark on the Parliament’s ninth mandate, the HLG has laid out ambitious targets to build on the advancements made regarding women in management positions. By 2024, we hope that 50% of Heads of Unit, 50% of Directors and 40% of Directors- General will all be women. Furthermore, we are looking forward to putting the upcoming gender-mainstreaming report and its accompanying roadmap into action, which will assist us in making further progress in gender-equality by the end of this mandate. As far as future roadmaps are concerned, the HLG is currently drawing up an Equality and Inclusion Charter for the years 2019-2024, which seeks to eliminate all discrimination whether it be based on disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or race. It is my personal belief that a crosscutting approach is essential if we are to become an institution, which is inclusive of all genders and other diversities.
In addition, the HLG acknowledges that far-reaching progress can only be achieved in cooperation with others, therefore, we are excited to collaborate more with experts in the field of gender equality in the future, such as EIGE, with a view to sharing best practices and fostering mutual learning.
The implementation of the Papadimoulis report 2017-2019 and the Gender Equality Action Plan 2014-2019 has led to critical measures, which support and empower our women colleagues and has contributed to the Parliament becoming a more egalitarian employer. However, we will not rest on our laurels but will continue our efforts to achieve equality for all women, other genders and other diversities. International Women’s Day offers us the chance both to reflect on how far we’ve come and on the exciting journey to equality which lies ahead!
11.1% 88.9%
8 1
1 Gender Equality in the European Parliament Secretariat: state of play and the way forward 2017-2019, adopted by the Bureau on 16 January 2017
Equality, Inclusion and Diversity Unit – Directorate-General for Personnel 5 WOMEN IN THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
MEMBERS At 39.5%, the percentage of women MEPs has risen since the end of the last term where it stood at about 36.4%. At the beginning of the year, prior to the United Kingdom’s departure from the Union, the percentage was slightly higher, standing at 40.6%. A higher representation of women in the European Parliament increases the level of democratic representation of EU citizens and helps Parliament to achieve gender mainstreaming more effectively, whether in the context of EU-wide legislation and policies or within its own internal structures and bodies, including its Secretariat.
There have also been changes regarding the number of women in decision-making posts in the ninth parliamentary term, compared with the eighth. The number of female members of Parliament's governing bodies has increased, and the Bureau is fully gender-balanced.
Women Members of the European Parliament 1952-2020
50%50%
40%40% 39.5% 35.8% 31.1% 30.3% 30%30% 30.2% 25.9%
20% 19.3%
20% 17.7 % 16.6%
10%10% 4.9% 3.5% 3.5% 1.3% 0%0% 1952 19581958 1964 1975 1979 1984 19891989 19941994 1999 2004 2009 20142014 2020
MEPs
1979 2010 2020 post Brexit
16.6%
34.9% 39.5%
65.1% 60.5% 83.4%
68 342 257 479 278 426
International Women’s Day – 8 March 2020 6 POLITICAL POSTS
REPRESENTATION OF WOMEN IN THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND IN NATIONAL PARLIAMENTS, BY MEMBER STATE1
60%
55% % women in national parliaments
% women in the European Parliament 50%
45%
40%
35%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0 Italy (IT) Spain (ES) Latvia (LV) Ireland (IE) Malta (MT) Finland (FI) Finland France (FR) France Poland (PL) Poland Greece (EL) Greece Austria (AT) Austria Estonia (EE) Estonia Cyprus (CY)Cyprus Croatia (HR) Croatia Slovenia (SI) Slovenia Sweden (SE) Sweden Slovakia (SK) Belgium (BE) Belgium Bulgaria (BG) Portugal (PT) Lithuania (LT) Romania (RO) Hungary (HU) Germany (DE) Denmark (DK) Netherlands (NL) Luxembourg (LU) Luxembourg Czech Republic (CZ) Czech
With women making up over half of the world’s population, their involvement in and contribution to the political process are not only a fundamental right, but also both significant and essential for the creation of an egalitarian society.
As displayed in the chart above, Finland, for the second year running, and Sweden have come out on top boasting more female MEPs than male MEPs. Furthermore, five Member States have reached gender parity among their MEPs, namely Malta, Latvia, Slovenia, Luxembourg and Denmark.
With the exception of Cyprus (0%), Estonia, Romania and Belgium, the percentage of women in the European Parliament surpasses that of its Member States’ national parliaments.
Women currently constitute 39.5% of all MEPs, almost 11 points above the average for European Union Member States’ national parliaments (28.6%), and 15 above the world average for national parliaments (24.6%).
1 National parliament data based on the number of women elected to the Lower House as of 01/11/2019. Source: www.ipu.org on 09/01/2020
Equality, Inclusion and Diversity Unit – Directorate-General for Personnel 7 WOMEN IN THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
THE BUREAU The Bureau is made up of the President of Parliament, the 14 Vice-Presidents and the five Quaestors, who have observer status. It is elected by Parliament to serve for two and a half years and may be re-elected. The Bureau guides Parliament’s internal operations, including budget estimates, and all administrative, organisational and personnel matters.
The number of female Vice-Presidents has risen from five in the previous parliamentary term to the present eight, out of a total of 14. The ratio for female and male Quaestors has not changed since the last term with two Quaestors out of five being women. Thus, considering all members of the Bureau, it is fully gender-balanced.
8 women Vice-Presidents
57.1% 8 6 42.9%
Mairead McGUINNESS Katarina BARLEY Ewa KOPACZ Klára DOBREV Dita CHARANZOVÁ (EPP - IE) (S&D - DE) (EPP - PL) (S&D - HU) (Renew - CZ)
Nicola BEER Lívia JÁRÓKA Heidi HAUTALA (Renew - DE) (EPP - HU) (Greens/EFA- FI) 2 women Quaestors
40.0% 2 3 60.0%
Monika BEŇOVÁ Anne SANDER (S&D - SK) (EPP - FR)
International Women’s Day – 8 March 2020 8 POLITICAL POSTS
POLITICAL GROUPS In the European Parliament, Members form groups on the basis of political affiliation rather than nationality. There are currently seven political groups in Parliament, each led either by a chair or by two co-chairs. Three parties have women as chairs or co-chairs: Ms Iratxe Garcia Pérez chairs the group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats, Ms Ska Keller co-chairs the group of the Greens/European Free Alliance and Ms Manon Aubry co-chairs the Group of the European United Left - Nordic Green Left. Members who do not belong to a political group have a secretariat and are classed as ‘Non-attached’.
Political group chairs and co-chairs
30% 3 7 70%
Iratxe GARCÍA PÉREZ Ska KELLER Manon AUBRY (S&D - ES) (Greens/EFA - DE) (GUE/NGL - FR)
Gender breakdown in the political groups post Brexit
100% 33% 44% 31% 44% 44% 49% 38% 34% 90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10% 67% 56% 69% 56% 56% 51% 62% 66% 0% EPP S&D ECR RENEW GUE/NGL Greens/EFA ID NI
EPP Group of the European People’s Party (Christian Democrats)
S&D Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament
ECR European Conservatives and Reformists
RENEW Renew Europe Group
GUE/NGL Group of the European United Left – Nordic Green Left
Greens/EFA Group of the Greens/European Free Alliance
ID Identity and Democracy Group
NI Non-attached Members
Equality, Inclusion and Diversity Unit – Directorate-General for Personnel 9 WOMEN IN THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
COMMITTEES There are 20 standing committees and two subcommittees operating in spring 2020. By drawing up reports on legislative proposals and adopting own-initiative reports, the committees prepare the business of Parliament’s plenary sittings. The committee 45.5% chairs coordinate committee proceedings in the Conference of Committee Chairs. Ten of the 22 committees are currently chaired by a woman. 54.5%
10 12
Conference of Committee Chairs – 10 women committee chairs
Nathalie LOISEAU Maria ARENA Monika HOHLMEIER Lucia ĎURIŠ Irene TINAGLI (Renew - FR) (S&D - BE) (EPP - DE) NICHOLSONOVÁ (S&D - IT) Subcommittee on Security and Subcommittee on Human Rights Budgetary Control (CONT) (ECR - SK) Monetary Affairs (ECON) Defence (SEDE) (DROI) Employment and Social Affairs (EMPL)
Petra DE SUTTER Karima DELLI Sabine VERHEYEN Evelyn REGNER Dolors MONTSERRAT (Greens/EFA - BE) (Greens/EFA - FR) (EPP - DE) (S&D- AT) (EPP - ES) Internal Market and Consumer Transport and Tourism (TRAN) Culture and Education (CULT) Women’s Rights and Gender Petitions (PETI) Protection (IMCO) Equality (FEMM)
Women in parliamentary committees
100% 90% 80%
70% * Committee chaired by a woman 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 91.2% 66.0% 48.0% 46.9% 44.8% 44.4% 44.4% 42.4% 39.6% 39.0% 38.8% 38.1% 36.6% 35.5% 34.5% 32.1% 31.4% 28.2% 24.0% 23.7% 20.0% 17.9% 0% LIBE ITRE JURI REGI INTA ENVI AGRI AFET PETI* DEVE PECH AFCO BUDG CULT* DROI* SEDE* TRAN* EMPL* IMCO* CONT* ECON* FEMM*
International Women’s Day – 8 March 2020 10 POLITICAL POSTS
COMMITTEE ON WOMEN’S RIGHTS AND GENDER EQUALITY
INTERVIEWS WITH EVELYN REGNER, GWENDOLINE DELBOS-CORFIELD and IRÈNE TOLLERET What are your top three priorities for 2020? EVELYN REGNER Chair
2020 has to be the year where we achieve substantial progress in gender equality. Therefore, my wish number one is nothing short of a big vision: A Europe free from discrimination! What must be clear in our joint way ahead, is that in the 21st century it must not make a difference, which gender or sex one has or (S&D - AT) whom one loves. Taking a look around Europe, it is evident that women's rights are at risk once again. The European Parliament has proven itself as a guarantor of women's rights, which are being threatened by backlash across the continent. To fight for a Europe in which women finally have equal opportunities has been the central goal of my political life and I will continue this fight inside and outside the European Parliament.
My second wish is also very close to my heart: Without economic independency, women cannot fully decide for themselves. Thus, it is crucial that Europe efficiently tackles the gender pay gap once and for all. I expect the Commission to put forward a binding legislation to close the pay gap and put an end to female poverty.
My third wish is directed at our institution itself, the European Parliament. We need more awareness when it comes to gender- sensitive language. Compared to German or Spanish, the English language does help in this regard. To me a plea for sensitive language is always a strong call for inclusion and visibility. In order to make politics as inclusive as possible we also need to reach as many people as possible. Society does not only consist of men, so Members should pay more attention when delivering their speeches. GWENDOLINE DELBOS-CORFIELD and IRÈNE TOLLERET Permanent Rapporteurs on Gender Mainstreaming
Our mission as gender mainstreaming standing rapporteurs for the European Parliament will be to make sure that a gender perspective is integrated into the content of EU policies, initiatives and programmes and across the Union’s political, budgetary, administrative (Greens/EFA - FR) (Renew - FR) and executive levels.
The year 2020 will start with the publication of the new European Gender Equality Strategy. We expect an ambitious and comprehensive strategy containing binding measures on sexual and reproductive health and rights, LGBTI rights, the gender pay gap and pay transparency.
The strategy must adopt an intersectional approach aimed at protecting the most vulnerable categories of women and promoting equal access to their rights.
We will also call on the Commission to adopt concrete measures against gender-based violence and femicides to ensure the full integration of the Istanbul Convention into the EU legislative and policy framework. To this end, we have to push all EU Member States to ratify the Convention.
To achieve the goal of gender equality, we also need an ambitious Multiannual Financial Framework that integrates gender budgeting into all the EU policies and programmes and in the entire budgetary process. We need targeted objectives and a gender perspective in every aspect of policy making – preparation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies, legal measures and spending programmes.
Gender mainstreaming is not a policy goal in itself, but a means to achieve gender equality. This is why we need the contribution of every parliamentary committee to take a gender perspective into consideration in all decisions, in each phase of the policy- making process, by all the actors involved. http://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/femm/home.html
Equality, Inclusion and Diversity Unit – Directorate-General for Personnel 11 WOMEN IN THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
DELEGATIONS 68.3% Delegations maintain and develop Parliament’s international contacts. Their activities are intended to enhance contacts with the EU’s traditional partners' parliaments and, as regards non-EU countries, to help to promote the values on which the EU is founded. There are currently 44 delegations; 13 out of the 44 delegation chairs are women. Furthermore, the Conference of Delegation Chairs (CDC), which is the political body in the European Parliament that coordinates the work of the House’s 44 standing delegations, is chaired by a Member of the Group of the Progressive 31.7% Alliance of Socialists and Democrats: Ms Inma Rodríguez-Piñero. Following the United Kingdom’s departure from the European Union on 31 January 2020 the Delegations for 13 28 relations with India (D-IN), with the countries of South Asia (DSAS) and with Japan (D-JP) are all awaiting the appointment of a new chair. Therefore, the gender composition of the Conference of Delegation Chairs is set to change over the coming months.
Conference of Delegation Chairs – 13 delegations chaired by a woman
Inma RODRÍGUEZ-PIÑERO Stéphanie YON-COURTIN Sara SKYTTEDAL Cornelia ERNST Tanja FAJON Pilar DEL CASTILLO Ulrike MÜLLER (S&D - ES) (Renew - FR) (EPP - SE) (GUE/NGL - DE) (S&D - SI) (EPP - ES) (Renew - DE) Chile (D-CL); CDC Canada (D-CA) Iraq (D-IQ) Iran (D-IR) Serbia (D-RS) Andean Community (DAND) Australia and New Zealand (DANZ)
Hannah NEUMANN Tilly METZ Isabel SANTOS Magdalena ADAMOWICZ María Soraya Marina KALJURAND (Greens/EFA - DE) (GUE/NGL - LU) (S&D - PT) (EPP-PL) RODRÍGUEZ RAMOS (S&D - EE) EU-Armenia Parliamentary Southeast Asia and ASEAN (DASE) Central America (DCAM) Mashreq countries (DMAS) South Africa (D-ZA) (Renew – ES) Partnership Committee, the EU- Pan-African Parliament (DPAP) Azerbaijan Parliamentary Cooperation Committee and the EU-Georgia Parliamentary Association (DSCA) Women in parliamentary delegations
7070%
60% 60 * Delegation chaired by a woman 5050% 4040% 3030% 2020% 1010%
00% 70.6% 61.1% 58.3% 58.3% 57.1% 55.6% 54.1% 50.6% 46.7% 46.7% 46.2% 45.8% 44.4% 42.9% 42.9% 42.5% 41.7% 41.7% 41.7% 41.7% 40.0% 39.7% 39.1% 35.7% 35.3% 33.9% 33.3% 33.3% 32.0% 31.3% 31.3% 30.8% 30.4% 30.0% 27.8% 27.8% 27.3% 26.7% 23.1% 22.2% 22.2% 21.4% 14.3% 13.8% D-IL D-JP D-IN D-TR D-BY D-BR D-AL D-AF DSEE D-US D-IR* DLAT DPAL D-RU DEPA D-UA DASE DSAS DEEA D-CN D-ME D-IQ* D-MK DNAT DCAS DACP D-MX DCAR DKOR DKOR D-RS* D-CL* D-MD DMER D-ZA* D-CA* DPAP* DMED DMAG DARP* DSCA* DANZ* DMAS* DAND* DCAM*
International Women’s Day – 8 March 2020 12 Administrative posts
WOMEN IN THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
EN
International Women’s Day 8 March 2020 WOMEN IN THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
Unless otherwise stated:
women men
Data sources: uu European Parliament Secretariat: Streamline as of 7 January 2020, unless otherwise stated. uu Photographs: European Parliament
An initiative of the Equality, Inclusion and Diversity Unit - DG Personnel Responsible Administrator: Petra Metzmeier-Weiss
European Parliament, ADENAUER building 2, rue Alcide De Gasperi, L-1615 Luxembourg Tel: +352 4300 24397 email: [email protected] Intranet: https://epintranet.in.ep.europa.eu/home/browse-as/human-resources/equality-diversity/gender-equality.html
Disclaimer: the opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the official position of the European Parliament.
International Women’s Day – 8 March 2020 2 ADMINISTRATIVE POSTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS A word from the Secretary-General 4 Interviews with Kristian Knudsen (Director-General for Personnel) and Erika Landi (Director for HR Support On this International Women’s Day, it is with great pride that I reflect on the positive steps we have and Social Services, DG PERS) taken in recent years in working towards gender parity within the European Parliament’s secretariat. 5 Interviews with Leena Maria Since 2009, and bearing in mind the targets for 2019 set by the Linnus (Director-General of DG Bureau, gender balance in senior and middle management posts in the European Parliament Secretariat has improved overall. INLO) and Agnieszka Walter-Drop Substantial progress was made at the level of the Heads of (Director-General of DG LINC) Unit. The target set for Directors was reached and exceeded, while great improvements are required at the Director-General level. Taking into account this progress, the Bureau recently 6 European Parliament Secretariat approved my proposal to set the following ambitious targets - Establishment Plan concerning female management positions for 2024: 50% female representation at the Head of Unit and Director levels and 40% 6 Management posts held at the Director-General level. At the Head of Unit level, women today account for 39% of by women: statistics the staff, nearly doubling the percentage in 2009 (21%). As regards Directors, the past ten years saw an overall rise in the 8 EP Secretariat, political groups’ number of women at the level of Directors, i.e. from 32% to 39%. This positive development has allowed Parliament, and secretariats, and accredited the Bureau as the responsible Appointing Authority, to reach parliamentary assistants: statistics and exceed the target set for 2019 (35%). These excellent achievements are due to the Secretariat’s 10 Work-life balance: statistics commitment to women’s professional advancement. By way of illustration, I recommended that in the event of two candidates Gender equality structures being otherwise equal, the under-represented gender should 12 be preferred. Since 2009, the average success rate by gender (i.e. the ratio of the number of successful female/male candidates and the number of female/male applicants) is very clearly in favour of women. The average success rate of female applicants is almost double that of male applicants. This trend is reflected in the increased female representation within the group of newly appointed Heads of Unit. Another important indicator to be considered concerns the increase in the number of women applying for Head of Unit posts. In order to give highly qualified female Heads of Unit the possibility to gain relevant experience and accede to senior management positions, I have started to entrust acting Director’s positions systematically to outstanding female candidates. A broad base of female Directors is the precondition for a better gender balance among Directors-General. As you can see, gender equality is a core element of our philosophy at the European Parliament. The Secretariat remains fully committed to developing a culture of equality in our workplace and we look forward to the work that awaits us.
Klaus Welle
Equality, Inclusion and Diversity Unit – Directorate-General for Personnel 3 WOMEN IN THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
INTERVIEW WITH KRISTIAN KNUDSEN Director-General for Personnel
How can we empower young women in the EP Secretariat? Empowering young women is very important if we want to achieve real gender equality in the EP Secretariat. We need to prepare and support talented female colleagues at an early stage of their careers, in order to make sure that in future we have more women in senior management positions. We are already doing this, via training programmes such as “Emerging talent”, and I am pleased to say that in the past few years we were able to increase the number of women applying for management positions. The new goals for gender equality that the chair of the High-Level Group proposed and which the Bureau approved in January, aiming for gender parity at head-of-unit and director level and for 40% among Directors-General, will help us make further progress. We now have a clear mandate and the impetus in the EP Secretariat to become a leading example in terms of gender equality in Europe - and beyond. Nevertheless, if we want to ensure real gender equality, we will have to achieve more fundamental changes than those made thus far. Gender equality at work starts at home. We are still in a situation where women are more involved in childcare than men. Our statistics show that women make up the majority of staff members who use our extensive work-life balance measures, e.g. 78% of all staff members working part-time are women and only 22% are men. This needs to change. I myself worked part- time when my boys were small - at a time when I, as a man, had to struggle for the right to do so. I am still very happy that I did so - and it certainly did not prevent me from pursuing my career. Men should not be afraid that using work-life balance measures will hurt their careers, but instead should see parental leave as a way to spend precious time with their children. Recent EU legislation encourages men to take parental leave: the directive on work-life balance for parents and carers, which Parliament and the Council adopted in the summer of 2019, provides that only two of the four months each parent can take as parental leave may be transferred to the other parent. That means that if fathers don’t take parental leave, the parents will lose part of the parental leave. For me this is the right way to go, but only a starting point, and the regulatory framework for the EU civil service should be adapted accordingly.
INTERVIEW WITH ERIKA LANDI Director for HR Support and Social Services, DG PERS
What about work-life balance? The world of work has been changing at a considerable pace. An increasing presence of digital technologies in all aspects of our lives requires from us to reflect more deeply upon staff well-being and the human element in our administration. This has been the mission of the Directorate for HR Support and Social Services of DG Personnel, whose efforts are aimed at fostering a healthy and safe working environment, inclusive of all genders and other diversities. Through our work, we take initiatives and articulate proposals to ensure that all staff can take full advantage of the benefits that technological advances bring in terms of flexible working arrangements and work-life balance measures. In this perspective, we are developing an internal initiative, aiming to encourage our managers and staff to reflect on their own values, skills and behaviours that help build a “good” workplace, and to share stories and ideas on how each of us can contribute to a workplace with high standards of care, respect and support for all. I am optimistic about this initiative, which has the potential for our Directorate to reach out and involve other parts of the administration, and through small steps introduce a real awareness supporting our institution to develop on this point. A healthy and inclusive organisational climate is of the utmost importance for our institution as a whole. Recent studies1 have demonstrated that employees who feel respected, accepted and valued are committed to achieving organisational success. As for the inclusion of women in the Parliament, as one of the pillars of an inclusive workplace, it is essential that no obstacles prevent them from fulfilling their career development goals. By working towards gender parity in decision-making positions, we are also showing that we are a workplace that values and grows from our differences in all levels of our institution.
1 "3 Steps for a Healthier Workplace", Healthier Workplace WA, CIPD Factsheet, Well-being at work
International Women’s Day – 8 March 2020 4 ADMINISTRATIVE POSTS
INTERVIEW WITH LEENA MARIA LINNUS Director-General for Infrastructure and Logistics
What did you do in your DG to empower young women? I am tempted to answer in a simple manner: to begin with, by recruiting women! Ten years ago, DG INLO had hardly any women in key positions and not a single one in management. This has changed profoundly as today 36% of our Heads of Unit and 50% of the Directors are women, and the percentage of women ADs in total stands at 36%. In 2019 alone, in a year when a big recruitment took place due to a reorganisation, seven young AD-women with technical backgrounds started with us. Also by encouraging young women to take responsibility, by pragmatic organisational arrangements and by creating an atmosphere where gender equality is taken seriously every day, our DG has changed quite drastically from what it was in the past. This has been a collective effort by all in senior management, not an individual manager’s success. However, if the senior management doesn’t seem to care about change in equality matters, change won’t happen in the units either. For young colleagues, it’s important to see that both men and women can have a varied and interesting career which can take you to management positions or other functions which allow you to make a difference. The office must be a psychologically safe environment where both women and men can put forward their ideas openly, and naturally, where all kinds of harassment are rooted out. I have personally tried to encourage young women with children to aim as high in their career as they can imagine!
INTERVIEW WITH AGNIESZKA WALTER-DROP Director-General for Logistics and Interpretation for Conferences
What did you do in your DG to empower young women? I am always impressed by the enthusiasm and determination of our young generation working in the European Parliament. Young women know what they want in life: to have their voices heard, their professional ambitions fulfilled, while enjoying happy family lives and an equal role in power structures. They also know how to achieve that: having good tools to balance private and professional life; sharing family duties; working in gender and age diverse teams, in a culture of transparency and inclusiveness; mitigation of social and cultural prejudices; zero tolerance towards the abuse of power; and equal participation in panels. In DG LINC we practice these principles, by using existing legal and organisational structures and promoting our own diversity, responsiveness and mutual support culture. We enable flexible working arrangements for parents, bring more diversity into our teams and have a large share of female project managers. We have encouraged women to join traditionally male- dominated professions: 27 out of 67 ushers are female - many of them at the beginning of their careers. For the first time a woman is leading the Conference Technicians Unit, while a number of skilled young women started their career in our IT and CT Units. We also appeal to trainees, with 60% of our DG’s trainees being young women. Attracting young people, particularly young women, is even more important as the DG grows older, with staff reductions, and the broad experience and skills needed to enter our conference professions. These factors make it even more important to boost young female talent to embark on a career in the European institutions.
Equality, Inclusion and Diversity Unit – Directorate-General for Personnel 5 WOMEN IN THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT SECRETARIAT ESTABLISHMENT PLAN
Directors-General and Directors
Legal Service Directorate for relations with political groups Jurisconsult Secretary-General Office of the Secretary-General
DG PRES DG IPOL DG EXPO DG EPRS Parliamentary Presidency Internal Policies External Policies Research Services
* * * * DG COMM DG PERS DG INLO DG TRAD Communication Personnel Infrastructure and Logistics Translation
* * DG LINC DG FINS DG ITEC DG SAFE Logistics and Interpretation Innovation and Security and for Conferences Finance Technological Support Protection
* * * Acting Key women men
MANAGEMENT POSTS HELD BY WOMEN: STATISTICS* Deputy Secretary-General and Directors-General
2 15.0% 85.0% 11
Directors Heads of Unit
20 39.0% 61.0% 32 106 39.0% 61.0% 169
15.0% Directors-General 30.0%
Situation as of 7 January 2020 39.0% Directors 35.0% Overall targets for 2019 ** 30.0% Minimum targets by DG for 2019 ** 39.0% Heads of Unit 40.0% 30.0%
* Acting not included ** As set by the Bureau in 2017 (Papadimoulis Report)
International Women’s Day – 8 March 2020 6 ADMINISTRATIVE POSTS
Directors by gender and DG
DG TRAD 66.7% 33.3% Legal Service 66.7% 33.3% DG PRES 60.0% 40.0% Secretary-General* 50.0% 50.0% DG PERS 50.0% 50.0% DG LINC 50.0% 50.0% DG IPOL 40.0% 60.0% DG EXPO 33.3% 66.7% DG INLO 33.3% 66.7% DG COMM 28.6% 71.4% DG EPRS 25.0% 75.0% DG ITEC 25.0% 75.0% DG FINS 100.0% DG SAFE 100.0%
*Private Office and Central Services
Heads of Unit by gender and DG
DG PRES 57.9% 42.1% DG EPRS 52.9% 47.1% Legal Service 45.5% 54.5% DG COMM 44.2% 55.8% DG PERS 43.8% 56.3% DG LINC 43.5% 56.5% DG TRAD 41.7% 58.3% DG IPOL 37.9% 62.1% DG INLO 27.8% 72.2% Secretary-General* 25.0% 75.0% DG SAFE 25.0% 75.0% DG EXPO 23.5% 76.5% DG FINS 23.1% 76.9%
DG ITEC 15.4% 84.6%
*Private Office and Central Services
Selection of Heads of Unit - 2019
Applicants 39.3% 60.7%
Applicants interviewed 42.3% 57.7%
Shortlisted applicants 50.7% 49.3%
Appointed 51.6% 48.4%
Equality, Inclusion and Diversity Unit – Directorate-General for Personnel 7 WOMEN IN THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
EP SECRETARIAT, POLITICAL GROUPS’ SECRETARIATS, AND ACCREDITED PARLIAMENTARY ASSISTANTS: STATISTICS
EP Secretariat staff
All staff 3060 59.8% 40.2% 2056
AD 1344 53.2% 46.8% 1182
AST 1570 65.4% 34.6% 832
AST/SC 146 77.7% 22.3% 42
AD staff AST staff
AD16 2 16.7% 83.3% 10 AST11 21 42.0% 58.0% 29 AD15 12 32.4% 67.6% 25 AST10 34 42.0% 58.0% 47 AD14 35 32.1% 67.9% 74 AST9 257 65.6% 34.4% 135 AD13 93 45.6% 54.4% 111 AST8 189 64.1% 35.9% 106 AD12 158 49.2% 50.8% 163 AST7 173 65.8% 34.2% 90 AD11 65 42.5% 57.5% 88 AST6 196 67.8% 32.2% 93 AD10 168 53.3% 46.7% 147 AST5 343 73.4% 26.6% 124 AD9 323 60.8% 39.2% 208 AST4 172 67.5% 32.5% 83 AD8 155 60.5% 39.5% 101 AD7 143 54.2% 45.8% 121 AST3 104 54.5% 45.5% 87 AD6 78 60.5% 39.5% 51 AST2 5 71.4% 28.6% 2 AD5 112 57.4% 42.6% 83 AST1 76 67.9% 32.1% 36
AST/SC staff
AST/SC3 3 100.0% AST/SC2 75 78.9% 21.1% 20 AST/SC1 68 75.6% 24.4% 22
Average age by gender Total Total Total Total
47 49 48 46 49 47 49 50 50 42 41 42 All staff AD AST AST/SC
International Women’s Day – 8 March 2020 8 ADMINISTRATIVE POSTS
Promotions by gender and Percentage of staff promoted amongst those function group (2019) eligible, by gender and function group (2019)
54.4% 56.3% 68.9% 69.9% 84.5% 83.3% AD Total AST Total AST/SC Total AD Promoted AST Promoted AST/SC Promoted
45.6% 43.7% 31.1% 30.1% 15.5% 16.7% 47.4% 43.9% 44.1% 42.1% 41.7% 45.5% AD AST AST/SC AD AST AST/SC
Example: In 2019, 83.3% of AST/SCs promoted were women (the total m+f Example: in 2019 a 47.4% of female ADs eligible for promotion always being equal to 100), with women accounting for 84.5% of AST/SC were promoted. staff eligible for promotion in 2019. Contract staff by gender Secretaries-General and function group of political groups
39.7% 62.2% 62.7% 78.9% 22.8% 615 150 148 101 216 28.6%
936 91 88 27 730 71.4%
60.3% 37.8% 37.3% 21.1% 77.2% o Total FG IV FG III FG II FG I 2 5
Political group staff Contract staff in the (officials and temporary staff) political groups
57.1% 42.7% 68.4% 58.1% 62.0% 51.0% 87.0% 25.0% 392 128 264 115 44 49 20 2 294 172 122 83 27 47 3 6 42.9% 57.3% 31.6% 41.9% 38.0% 49.0% 13.0% 75.0% o o Total AD AST Total FG IV FG III FG II FG I
Accredited parliamentary assistants
51.5% 48.5%
965 908
Equality, Inclusion and Diversity Unit – Directorate-General for Personnel 9 WOMEN IN THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
WORK-LIFE BALANCE: STATISTICS (January-December 2019)
Staff working part-time* (as a proportion of all staff, broken down by gender and function group) 55.5%
67.7% 49.8%
23.1% 37.3% 15.7% 29.4% 31.0% 7.9% 18.4% 50 34 821 285 788 154 44 3 1703 476 AD management ** AD AST AST/SC All staff
Staff working part-time, by working time ***
Working time Working time
95% 95%
5.6%
90% 3.2% 90% 14.1%
80% 11.8% 80% 44.9% 59.9%
17.2% 75% 9.7% 75%
60% 60% 14.5% 17.4% 50% 50% 0.8% 1.1%
Staff working part-time, by age group****
Total number: 1209 Total number: 396
38.9% 34.8% 55 and over 55 and over
39.5% 45-54 45-54 32.3%
36-44 26.3% 36-44 21.9%
3.8% 35 and under 2.5% 35 and under
* 'Staff’ means officials and temporary staff (political groups not included). ** Directors-General, Directors, Heads of Unit *** Members of staff who changed their working time arrangements during January - December 2019 are counted in each category of working time for which they opted. **** Members of staff whose age group changed while they were working part-time are counted in both groups.
International Women’s Day – 8 March 2020 10 ADMINISTRATIVE POSTS
Staff on full-time parental leave Staff on half-time parental leave
AD 182 68.9% 31.1% 82 AD 208 66.7% 33.3% 104 AST 128 78.5% 21.5% 35 AST 136 72.3% 27.7% 52 AST/SC 13 92.9% 7.1% 1 AST/SC 12 92.3% 7.7% 1 (broken down by function group) (broken down by function group)
Staff on full-time family leave Staff on half-time family leave
AD 8 47.1% 52.9% 9 AD 11 61.1% 38.9% 7 AST 12 70.6% 29.4% 5 AST 23 85.2% 14.8% 4 AST/SC 0 0.0% 0.0% 0 AST/SC 2 100.0% (broken down by function group) (broken down by function group)
Staff on leave on personal grounds
AD 32 58.2% 41.8% 23 AST 20 83.3% 16.7% 4 AST/SC 1 50.0% 50.0% 1 (broken down by function group)
Staff on occasional teleworking (as a proportion of all staff broken down by function group)
43.8%
43.5% 31.7% 44.6% 37.5% 55.2% 35.5% 25.0% 28.9% 7.9% 74 77 541 364 688 209 41 3 1344 653 AD management AD AST AST/SC All staff
Duration of approved occasional teleworking requests (broken down by function group)
0.5 to 1 day 8057 1.5 to 2 days 6774 2.5 to 3 days
860 908 773 63 24 261 189 299 28 7 n e non m n e AD management AD AST AST/SC
Equality, Inclusion and Diversity Unit – Directorate-General for Personnel 11 WOMEN IN THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
GENDER EQUALITY STRUCTURES There are a number of bodies and structures within Parliament’s administration that deal with gender equality. Although they have different tasks, it is vital that they work closely together in order to take Parliament forward as an equal opportunities employer and to achieve tangible results.
Equality, Inclusion and Diversity Unit (EIDU) The EIDU is part of Directorate C in DG PERS. Its roles include:
uu Implementing equality, inclusion and diversity policy formulated by Parliament’s Bureau;
uu Devising projects to promote participation and inclusion of people with disabilities;
uu Drawing up reports, analysing data from a gender perspective, and preventing discrimination in accordance with Article 1d of the Staff Regulations;
uu Encouraging a safe and inclusive working environment, devising projects that promote a good work-life balance, and implementing policies designed to ensure dignity at work, aiming to eliminate workplace harassment;
uu Organising awareness-raising events and training and giving assistance on equality and diversity issues.
The EIDU provides support to the chair of the High Level Group (HLG) on gender equality and diversity. It also advises and assists the Appointing Authority (AIPN), the Committee on Equal Opportunities and Diversity (COPEC) and other internal bodies within Parliament’s Secretariat.
Equality and Diversity Coordinators The Equality and Diversity Coordination Group (made up of the coordinators and the EIDU) may draw up documents, notes and proposals for the Secretary-General and Directors-General on issues and matters of interest falling within its remit. The EIDU coordinates the group and acts as its secretariat.
The heads of the resources unit/service of each DG are members ex officio of the Group. Furthermore, the Group liaises with the Human Resources Inter-DG Steering Group in order to pool resources.
Committee on Equal Opportunities and Diversity (COPEC) Chiara MALASOMMA, Chair
COPEC’s eight members and Chair are proposed by the Director-General for Personnel and the Staff Committee, and are subsequently appointed by the Appointing Authority. In 2019, its composition respected a complete gender balance.
COPEC aim to promote a tolerant and inclusive working environment, through participation in awareness raising events and other activities. COPEC proposes actions to ensure non-discrimination, issues opinions on rules stemming from the Staff Regulations, and monitors the proper implementation of measures taken, in particular by sending observers to sit on various advisory committees.
Staff Committee Parliament has made progress regarding the proportion of working women. Our conversation should however not be limited to numbers/grade. Let us also push for a cultural change! A respectful approach to working women requires a constant and educational effort. We need to reach the stage where gender is irrelevant.
We have great faith in the younger generations, but all of us must be vigilant to ensure that there is no regression on mentalities or acquired rights. Our institution should be a leader in this field and reflect fundamental European values.
International Women’s Day – 8 March 2020 12