The first half of 2020, when Croatia holds the Presidency of the EU Council for the first time, will be marked, as far as women's policy is concerned, by the publication of the gender equality package, including mandatory measures on pay transparency. According to a draft short-term work programme circulated before the holiday recess, the package of measures will be published by the European Commission on 26 February.
In another longer-term document, the Commission states that it intends to present a strategy on gender equality within the first 100 days of its mandate. In this way, it intends to address the new challenges and opportunities that have emerged and to present a coordinated EU approach on different aspects such as new forms of employment, artificial intelligence, online violence, etc. “Targeted and mainstream actions must be pursued in key areas of the strategic commitment to gender equality”.
For its part, Croatia, which recently published the work programme that will guide its Presidency, has indicated that it will organise a conference to analyse existing obstacles to the full participation of women in the labour market. This, taking into account elements such as “the lack of accessibility to quality care for dependent and suffering family members, the lack of specific skills on the labour market, precarious and atypical forms of employment and the risk of harassment in the workplace”. At the ‘Employment and Social Affairs’ EU Council on 11 June, Zagreb will submit conclusions to the other Member States on the correlation between women's participation in the labour market and long-term care obligations for family members. (Original version in French by Sophie Petitjean)