The coronavirus has not forgiven women: there has never been such a sharp fall

Women’s pandemic: unemployment and domestic violence

According to MEP Vilija Blinkevičiūtė, the COVID-19 pandemic has a major impact on women: “Women work in the front ranks of the COVID-19 front. In the EU health sector, around 76% of employees are women: doctors or nurses. Second, women account for more than 90% of childcare. employees, at the same time teachers. About 95 percent. Housewives, cashiers, social workers – the majority of women around the world are directly affected by COVID-19. “

Women during the pandemic, says V. Blinkevičiūtė, suffer not only because they work in areas where there is a lot of direct contact, such as hospitals or social work, but also because a large proportion of women are also employed in the tourism, hospitality or hospitality sector. catering., and these areas faced extremely severe restrictions during the pandemic.

Finally, according to politicians, people face psychological stress during the pandemic, and the number of cases of domestic violence has increased: “Women are really victims of domestic violence, both in the EU and in Lithuania, there are thousands of reports per month when women seek help. And how many different cases remain silenced, whether of physical, psychological or financial violence ”.

The European Parliament has expressed concern that the COVID-19 crisis has exacerbated existing gender inequalities. “A pandemic could have a lasting impact on more than 47 million people. Women around the world, pushing their standard of living below the poverty line,” the EP announced in an official statement.

Gender equality in Lithuania: and by doing it at the end of European countries, we were able to take four steps down

With regard to gender equality in the EU, says V. Blinkevičiūtė, it is appropriate to refer to the annual index of gender equality. Lithuania is far from here: “In terms of equality between women and men, Lithuania is ranked 22nd out of 27 countries. So far, we are just ahead of Greece, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia and the Czech Republic. The result, I would say, will not be. If we compare the recent period, Lithuania has dropped four places. This shows once again that investment in gender equality in Lithuania is necessary ”, says the politician.

According to the MEP, the Gender Equality Index assesses the situation of women and men in six areas: the employment of women in the labor market, working conditions and the financial resources of women and men in the monetary sphere. The differences between women and men in education and training, opportunities to reconcile work and family responsibilities are also examined. The participation of women in decision-making is also evaluated at various levels. Finally, the differences in health levels between women and men are evaluated.

According to these evaluations, Lithuania is seen better in terms of gender equality in the field of health and employment, but the bad situation due to the power of women, decision-making, not only in politics, but also in the businesses, boards of directors, etc. , where the participation of women is really insufficient. Bad situation and time for self-determination, balance between work and personal life: most of the family responsibilities fall on women. Here, Lithuania is also in one of the last places compared to other EU countries, ”says the interlocutor.

According to the MEP, the indicators of the Gender Equality Index show that progress towards gender equality is slow, and progress is far from sufficient: “Progress is very slow, and Lithuania is even going backwards, not forwards. . It has dropped four positions ”. The search for gender equality, according to politicians, is an endless process, and the change in the situation depends on a number of factors, including openness and transparency:

The European Commission has presented a draft directive on the pay gap between men and women for the same job and the transparency of remuneration. Women earn between 12 and 13 percent at the same job. less than men. This is a big problem that also exists in Lithuania. Consequently, we have to make several decisions to prevent an employer from paying a different salary than men or women. If they do the same job, and the salary should be the same. That is simply not justified. “

In the European Parliament, there are important decisions to make a real difference

In some cases, says V. Blinkevičiūtė, good practices or recommendations from the European institutions are sufficient, but sometimes directives are also needed as mandatory provisions to change the situation. One of these directives adopted by the EP in the last legislature was the reconciliation of work and family life.

These provisions, the politician points out, must now be transposed into the Lithuanian legal system by establishing provisions on the division of child or family care between a man and a woman, payment for such care, etc. Along the way, says V. Blinkevičiūtė – and another directive on transparent remuneration.

2020 In December, MEPs called for a new format for the Council, which would bring together ministers and secretaries of state responsible for gender equality. The new Council is expected to contribute to important gender equality initiatives, such as the ratification of the Istanbul Convention.

Meanwhile, in 2021. In February, the EP adopted a resolution to take stock of progress on women’s rights over the last 25 years: “MEPs have expressed concern about the reaction of member states and the risk of that gender equality is not a priority on the EU agenda. Parliament also called on the Commission to ensure that all proposals take into account women’s rights, to draw up concrete plans to reduce women’s poverty and to redouble efforts to reduce the gender pay gap, “according to the report. of the PE.

According to V. Blinkevičiūtė, the European funds from various funds are also intended to tackle the problem of gender inequality: “This is the Recovery Fund, the European Social Fund, the European Globalization Fund, where I had to be the main speaker and negotiator on behalf of the EP. All this is a financial injection for the Member States and women as workers, so that they can stay and return to the labor market. “