Men's Work and Family Reconciliation in Europe

Abstract

Changes from breadwinner masculinities towards caring masculinities are described on the basis of European labour market trends and a recent 6-country study of men in part-time work. Although gender ideals are changing, working life shows a persistent trend towards preservation of breadwinner masculinities, connected to devaluation of men's caregiving. The results highlight the economic and material aspects of change and how work-related gender sanctions operate against men in new roles. Men develop more relational forms of masculinity linked to caregiving and family participation but often face a traditional and deeply ingrained organizational masculinity in their job. However, there is also considerable variation among companies, and some may even take proequality initiatives when the state is passive. Finally, the article presents a broader change model with three main stages (initial, middle, and advanced) and discusses possibilities for more change-oriented research.

Breadwinning as care? The meaning of paid work in mothers’ and fathers’ constructions of parenting

“…However, fathers seem to ultimately prioritise the provider role and continue to organise their caregiving responsibilities around the demands of their workplaces (Braun, Vincent, & Ball, 2011;Gatrell, Burnett, Cooper, & Sparrow, 2015). Prioritising employment is connected to notions of fathers as ideal workers (Holter, 2001), to structural constraints and attitudes (Steiber & Haas, 2010) and to ideals of masculinity (Charlebois, 2012;Holter, 2007;Schmidt, Rieder, Zartler, Schadler, & Richter, 2015). Fathers seem to be required to develop fatherhood identities separately from the traditional male breadwinning identity (Höfner, Schadler, & Richter, 2011;Larsson & Björk, 2017).…”

Consecuencias del permiso de paternidad en el reparto de tareas y cuidados en la pareja

“…Although this is the case, while women's incorporation into the labor market has been massive, men are still far behind in the level of their involvement in domestic tasks. (Bianchi et al, 2000;De Castro, 2008;Holter, 2007;Jurado-Guerrero et al, 2012;Meil Landwerlin, 1997). However, the employment situation of women in the labor market is still far from being equal to that of men in Spain 2 (Eurostat, 2013).…”

“…Existe una relación positiva entre la incorporación de la mujer al trabajo remunerado y el aumento de la implicación del hombre en las tareas domésticas (OECD, 2011). Aunque esto parece ser así, el alcance del trabajo en el hogar por parte del hombre es menor que el alcance de la mujer en el trabajo remunerado (Bianchi et al, 2000;De Castro, 2008;Holter, 2007;Jurado-Guerrero et al, 2012;Meil Landwerlin, 1997). No obstante, la situación laboral de la mujer en el empleo remunerado todavía se encuentra distante de la paridad por género en España 2 (Eurostat, 2013).…”

¿Hacia un nuevo modelo de paternidad? Discursos sobre el proceso de implicación paterna en la España urbana

“…The types of fatherhood analysed, especially the logistical, reveal that ideological factors and external conditions (employment, custody, maternity leave, etc.) are key aspects in the level of fathers' involvement, as already noted by Holter (2007). However, how these factors interact and the direction they may take, can be an impediment to the development of involvement.…”

“…Los tipos de paternidad analizados, en especial el logístico, revelan que los factores ideológicos y los condicionamientos externos (laborales, custodia, permisos de maternidad, etc.) son dos factores clave para la implicación paterna, como señala Holter (2007). Sin embargo, cómo interaccionan y si toman direcciones distintas puede suponer un impedimento al desarrollo de la implicación.…”