We would not be discovering hot water if we said that aligning work and private life is not simple, and even less so if we added that it is more difficult for women than for men. In the society we live in, women are still often perceived as those who sacrifice for the family, and they often have to choose between fulfilling their roles as mothers or advancing in their careers.
No matter how much we convince ourselves that men and women are equal, practice shows that this is not always the case, and women themselves feel less fulfilled in their careers, as if they have fewer opportunities for advancement and that they miss more opportunities for career development due to family.
These claims were once again highlighted by the research ‘Re-create Life and Work for Women and Men’, presented today at the conference ‘Redefining Work and Life: The Future of Work for New Generations’, and when we add the poor demographic picture of Croatia, it is clear that something needs to be applied if we want to have a workforce, young families, and fulfilled, successful, and happy women who want to have families without having to sacrifice their careers.
Ivan Vidiš, State Secretary of the Ministry of Labor, Pension System, Family and Social Policy, emphasized at the conference that it is alarming that at the level of the European Union we have been losing population for the last two years. For comparison, the EU lost the number of inhabitants equivalent to the entire city of Split last year, which is a call to action, he adds. However, what is important – change will not happen by itself. At the same time, if we do not work on the demographic picture of Croatia, we will be in big trouble, Vidiš believes, and in this employers, working conditions, and the support of society as a whole play an important role.
– People who do not have support from their employers will find it difficult to reconcile their professional and private lives. It is important for all of us to raise awareness of the importance of adapting work to family and private life because that is the only way to have satisfied workers. People are much happier and more productive when they do not have to choose between work and private life. Also, we still live in a society where many expect women to ‘carry’ the household. I believe we must make huge strides to raise awareness that it is normal for men to participate in raising their children – said Vidiš.
Promoting Social Justice
Diana Kobas Dešković, director of the Croatian consulting company Spona Code, which helps companies implement the Mamforce standard, pointed out that in the last three years of research, they have monitored the implementation of the Directive on the Balance of Private and Professional Life, which was introduced into our legislation through at least two laws. What they observed in the field, as she pointed out, is that there is a significant space for further informing about what all the changes brought by the Directive mean – for both employees and employers.
– All of this is an important part of European values that promote social justice and, very importantly, gender equality – said Kobas Dešković.
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General Dissatisfaction
The research was conducted on a sample of 500 women in four counties in Croatia that are demographically quite different. Nevertheless, Iva Pintauner Šmit, from the Croatian Association of Counties, pointed out that the research shows that regardless of where women come from, more or less all have the same problems.
– The main findings of the research showed that women are generally dissatisfied with the balance of private and professional life. Some other findings of the research are that women (59 percent of them) are too tired after work to do household chores, and 60 percent of respondents state that work obligations affect their private lives. Also, women pointed out that flexibility at work would help them, and it is interesting that when choosing employers, they consider the alignment of family and professional life – emphasized Irena Starman Frančić from the research agency Hendal.
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The project itself had five goals: reducing the impact of gender stereotypes on the employment opportunities of young women and parents, raising awareness among employers and the public about culturally conditioned different expectations of men and women at work and in the family, reducing unconscious bias among employers, improving the position of mothers and women in the workplace, and improving the awareness of mothers and fathers about existing legal solutions.
Organizations Can Do a Lot
Starman Frančić added that the research shows that by increasing the opportunities and quality of public care, women generally become more satisfied with the balance of private and professional life. Also, another very important finding is how much employers, or the work climate, affect satisfaction. Namely, it has been shown that women who are more satisfied generally have secure home arrangements and more flexible working conditions and feel supported by colleagues.
All of this shows that organizations can do a lot within their systems, believes Kobas Dešković, and it is important to raise awareness of the role of a supportive environment in which employees feel a sense of possibility.
– In the labor market, we have experienced incredible changes in the last few years. From having the lowest number of employed people ever – which is a call for employers to offer good working conditions – to the Covid situation that changed the way we work, live, and generally all our habits. Even before the pandemic, we talked about the need to change the way we work to better align private and professional life, but while that seemed futuristic at the time, it has become normal since the pandemic for part of the work to be done online. I think this is a step in the right direction – concluded Vidiš.
