Work-life balance in the context of changing families and labour market in Greece

Project facts

Project promoter:
FAMILY AND CHILDCARE CENTRE
Project Number:
GR07-0018
Target groups
Enterprises, social partners and other representatives of working life cooperating with accredited educational institutions
Status:
Completed
Initial project cost:
€180,000
Final project cost:
€174,112
From EEA Grants:
€ 147,995
The project is carried out in:
Greece

Description

The proposed project aims to assess women’s needs and expectations and to identify how they experience reconciliation of work-life balance in Greece in times of crisis. Aditionally, it provides empirical evidence for the needs and expectations of specific categories of women, while it explores methods and good practices to promote women’s effective life-work balance in Greece.The research utilise mixed method approach comprising of both qualitative and quantitative methods. The project results will reveal updated information about the influence of economic crisis on family change and the work-family conflict. It will provide evidence-based knowledge on categories of women, assessing their work-life balance strategies and identifying their real needs and expectations for the future. The research results will disclose the inefficiencies of the current work-life policies in Greece and provide a baseline for developing a gender equality and social justice. Going beyond the results of previous studies, we aim to identify family change in particular during the years of the economic crisis. Thus the project will feed into recommendations about effective policies to reinforce the work-family life reconciliation.A

Summary of project results

During the last decades changes have been observed in family demographic data affecting gender relations, such as: reduction in births, increase in divorces, absence of men from the upbringing of their children, increase in recomposed families, massive entrance of women in the labour market etc. Through these changes new family models arise, affecting gender relations and intensifying the need for political initiatives for the reconciliation or balancing of work, family and personal life. The overall objective of the project was to assess women’s needs and expectations and to identify how they experience reconciliation of work and family-life in Greece in times of crisis. Throughout the research conducted, the project succeeded in achieving the following objectives: (1) to describe the changes brought in women’s lives and to family structures by the economic crisis as well as to identify the factors that have influenced their employment and family life, (2) to provide empirical evidence for the needs and expectations of specific categories of women and to go deeper into their personal experiences describing their needs and strategies in order to get integrated into the labour market and (3) to map the nature of policy development in Greece for work-life reconciliation and to explore methods and good practices to promote women’s effective life-work balance. The project succeeded in achieving the aforementioned objectives, by implementing a comprehensive research methodology The project’s outcomes are extensively presented to the respective publications, supporting its long-term goal, namely to provide a concrete understanding of women needs and expectations towards work-life balance in times of crisis and also to map the framework for effective reconciliation policies in the particular context. Overall the project’s outcomes allow for new scholar understanding about the effect of economic crisis on family structures and on work-life balance. Disclosing the inefficiencies of current policies and providing evidence-based knowledge of women’s needs and expectations, the project succeeded in developing the baseline for effective reconciliation and gender equality policies; particularly in times of crisis.According to the projects’ outcomes, the partner scheme, as a unit, fully succeeded the target values were set in the proposal.

Summary of bilateral results

Project implementation was a great chance for the consortium to establish and strengthen its ties with the bilateral partner. Experts from University of Island visited Greece twice in order to have in-person meetings on the progress of the project and to provide their valuable input and expertise on the research topic. Moreover they participated in two more skype meetings being held among partners. All these meetings and in general the collaboration in the project implementation, strengthened our relations. Bilateral speakers were the key note participations of the final conference of the project’ as described in the respective deliverable, presenting research data regarding reconciliation in Europe as well as policies and practices adopted in Iceland and other Scandinavian countries to support work-life balance. The actual implementation of the project has thus helped partners develop solid ties with the University of Island and to consider each other a potential collaborator /partner hereafter. The cooperation with the donor partner will definitely continue after the completion of the project. Actually the prospect of establishing joint research activities has already been investigated between the Social Science Research Institute of the University of Iceland and the domestic partners of the current project. Moreover, partners have already jointly developed proposals for other projects and have introduced each other to their network of contacts when requested for project submission. Hence all parties involved share the mutual benefit of expanding their network through the particular collaboration for WORLBAL project. Last but not least, the project partners have agreed to establish informal communication periodically to update each other about latest activities and to explore new areas of cooperation.