Gender equality and parental leave policies in Switzerland: A discursive and feminist perspective

Abstract

Taking a discursive and feminist perspective, this paper aims to understand policy changes as well as gendered outcomes in two policy areas within the Swiss welfare state: gender equality and parental leave policies. We conduct a discourse analysis from a social science perspective of policy documents and interviews from 1996 to 2011. Our results show similar discourses concerning welfare responsibility between the two case studies. Specifically, there are opposing state-and economic-oriented discourses, which reveal different gendered assumptions. However, the time period under study shows an increasing mobilisation of discourses arguing for nonstate, negotiated solutions between social partners or within work organisations. We discuss the potential risks of gender and class inequalities as well as scenarios for further policy change. Our findings call for an integrative approach to discourse and gender for welfare state analysis in general.

"The Swiss leave scheme at crossroads. Gender equality implications of parental and paternity leave proposals"

“…Collective agreements and company-based leave solutions are viewed as suitable alternatives to federal state regulation by leave opponents. This result reflects the traditional influence of social partnership in Swiss policy making, as well as the fact that the right-wing opposes welfare state expansion (see also Lanfranconi & Valarino, 2014). Voting results in Parliament show a sharp divide between left-and right-wing political actors, but they also indicate a growing support from centre MPs.…”

“…An important finding of this study is that only very few leave policy proposals, if they were to be implemented, would influence parenthood in a more gender equal way. This is striking considering that parental and paternity leaves are generally a priori considered as pursuing gender equality objectives (Häusermann & Kübler, 2010) and that leave supporters mobilize this argument to claim the implementation of such policies (Lanfranconi & Valarino, 2014). The content analysis reveals the potential risks entailed in many leave proposals, depending on their set-up.…”

“…Another recent study analysed the way the issue of parental leave policies was framed and debated in Parliament between 1996 and 2011 (Lanfranconi & Valarino, 2014). Authors noted that the main dimension on which political actors opposed each other concerned the policy legitimacy of parental and paternity leaves.…”

“…Proposals submitted by members of the Parliament are important objects of study since they contribute to the frame of policy debates (Lanfranconi & Valarino, 2014) and, in the event a political majority is reached, they may have direct and concrete consequences on the new leave scheme in Switzerland.…”

Switzerland

“…These groups argued that the solution to the gender pension gap should come from reducing the gender pay gap, improving child-care provision and thus the career prospects of women across the life-course, rather than through an increase in their legislated pensionable age. Feminist opposition to the reform highlighted the fundamental ambivalence of Swiss politicians with regard to gender equality issues, since the Federal Council that was arguing in favour of a gender-neutral, 'adult worker' model for the future of the Swiss pension system had previously voted against the adoption of two weeks of statutory paternity leave (Lanfranconi and Valarino 2014) and had also refused to increase the very modest federal budget allocated to the provision of public pre-school childcare, thus making it virtually impossible for mothers to adopt a continuous, full-time employment pattern. This stalled pension reform provides an interesting example of the difficulties and dangers associated with the adoption of extended working life measures based on an egalitarian ideal, whilst the historical structural framing of national gender norms is left largely untouched.…”