Developments in the European women's movement

11

DEVELOPMENTS IN THE

EUROPEAN

WOMEN’S MOVEMENT

Changing Structure of the Workforce During the sixties and seventies equali- Ly legislation was introduced by wai ious ropean governments in line with the anging socialfeconomic position of wee. © | hese however, have nel TE elfcets al the economic crisis in the capitalisl countries sand Loday are laws, Protected [rom the Women more cxploited. However, it's not like the is when women were pushed out of the workplace Altogether. On the centrary, the number of women carners has increased, employed in part-time, temporary work and mainly schor andl service indust— wane hut many are casual and km Che pe iblic = f hers. During the Last Lvenk¥ years Lhere lhe been an increaso in this Lype of work. Lt is: low pesid-and largely non=unionised., Married women and single parents, Lied Lo domestic responsibilities, are forced to: take these kind of jebs and they are preferred by cm ployers who sec thea as o more Clexible able — wor cEorce, = that is more pana therefore, are faced parmins. The desire a eeeel employment by women is risi Lheir atus din the labour market is falling. Women Form a greater percentage of the low-paid than m This situation is aggravated by cuts in socthal welfare - for example the wtlioan afl childcare and hospital sion. Lwese increase women's bhur= al home, making it even more diflfito enter the labour markel on wil basis with men, Trade Union Response Unfortunately, the trade union leaders have let this situation go on. To Fight apoinst it it's necessary that woeen he on an en footing with men aa workers: The following demands been proposed: have ®* fights for +omen's por ced jobs must be supno 6 hour day with no loss of pay * part-tise workers sould be unionised union etetings to be held in work Lime 4 women encouraged to be stewards * maternity! paternity loave for all equal pay and « guaranteed wage 07 cn Lesed fer people with dependents * no seaual/racioal harrassment at work * positive action in training and re cruitment * free daycare for all children to age > The War of Ideas apainst Ween Leaders ploy— racism, The Esilure of the trade union to challenge governments on unc ment hos Jed to an sexism and anti-pay people 'softened-up' increase in hysteria. Working through fear of inyed @re more ready to the blame on ‘foreigners", gays and = women he latters ‘real place is in the home"! ‘oliticians like ag) and are determined to “dhe puted be expen diture, to "turn he clock back" tr pre-wellare do this they need to place ly centre-stage.. A family, er cares fo the children, the sick ond the old unpaid; a family which is ‘stable’ and can control the intreasing - soc ial oon! Liet cancel hy unemployment ; a i ly responsible for imposing Street moral ¢ on he children. This is Lhe Lye Temi Ly posed by thie Group set up hy Lor Por Special Family | cher in irilain. Caring family. ia women‘s primary role.

hig is their most lhey are told 1 the: idea that Lan jal, they ore only secondary, ot marginal ,ir

12 the workforce. This then justifies the cut-backs; the reduction and privatisation of secial services, of nursery facilities; the reduction of maternity leave and the testriction on unemploy= ment benefits. Fertility Control To fulfill the aim of keeping women subordinate the fight winged forces internationally have been trying systomatically to remove abortion and reproductive rights, In Britain, Cor example, the 1957 Act has been challenged since its introduction. There have been battles in the majority European cities around abortion legislation.

Reagan gave Cull backing to the Pro-Life Movement during his last election campaign. - A whole ‘Pro-Life’, pro motheralternative has t 1 promoted, ing on the legitimate dowbts women ive expressed aboul the Pill and reproductive bochnology. Foul Buch of the movement through the to the present activity of the women's seventies and up has focussed on defending this ‘bas ‘right to choose’. Women know that to control their lives they need conkrol over their fertility.

Containing the Women's Liberation Movt.

liberation movement, like is being prevented The women's he labour movement, from making further progress by monetarist governments and has to spend much of its energy nowadays defending these few rights which have been won.

Meanwhile the political establishment b Lo absorb the impetus of the the Movement, whose chal— ideas reflected the deep social women were undergoing. ye of Wanen hove increasingly been able to enter the lields of higher education the Media. Sociol services which cater uliy for women's needs, such battercd wives’ refuges and sore centres, have received state funding. The effect has been to undermine the independence of these projects and incorporate them into the system.

Women "5 departments and ministries have been get up in countries like Ireland and France to advise the governnent how toa) c ain women's demands, In Europe overall there has been an lecrease in the number of women in rl it and local councils, partly of quotas and positive action.

poste in health and social services are bring re: rved for women Eeminist organisations receive funding from labour councils.The danger, however, if that women entering a poli- Lore rmnnn whi le tical ‘career’ may lose touch with women in the unions and the community who they @re suppos to represent.

Policy of the EFuroecomunists The left ‘of the Lak been slow to respond to women Eor equality. ir movement has the demands This has left the way who have open for the Eurocommunists influenced the radical feminists and the socialist-feminist wing of the Women's Liberation Movement Since the «id-seventles. They claim the labour movement is a ‘menk mowement' with no interest in women's rights and that women are disadvantaged in pay and opportunities because of the ‘privileged' male workers. They ignore the restrictions placed on the labour movement asa whole by governments. An exam— ple from Britain shows where this disastrows policy leads. Following a "feminist incomes policy’ argument the TOC resolved on «a mininum wage for all workers tied to a wages (freeze on the "high-paid' workers! This policy turns worker against worker and drives down the Living standards of the labour movement -at a whole.

It presenta oo challenge to the governmont, whose policies are responsible for unemployment , low pay, ele.

The Feminization of Poverty Governments are aware of radical feminist resentment towards the sale—dominated world of work so they use this to encourage women to ‘rediscover’ the ‘world of women’ - the world of the home. The radical feminist call For recognition and appraisal of what women do at home has been taken up by govern— ments like the Christian Democrats in Germany who issued a policy document encouraging women to ‘see che world from oa women's Viewpoinl ... Lo forego aivantages ... to make do with scarcer meons ... caring for people's needs.'

In other words: to surrender their rights. The right; and the "Moral Majority’ have no interest in progress for women as 8 sex. But they are prepared to ube the grievances of the women's movement to advance their own policies.

To remain truly liberationist, to guard against adapting to backward governennt policy, Feminists must see their oppres- Sion in its social context and ally themselves with the labour movement.

New Forces anid the Recomposition of the Women "ss Li beration Bovement The woaen"s movement throughout Europe has unieipgone a4 transformation since the early seventies when there were Structured national Feminist networks.

These hove now declined although the ideas of the Women's Liberation Movement romain influential, Despite this women have organized massively ar ound polltical issues like abortion and nuclear disarmament. They have fought for increased political representation and have promoted the self-organization of women within these organisations as « means of securing women's interests. Large numbers of feminists have entered organized politics, unions and social democratic parties. They have taken with them the debates and forms of organization of the Women's Liberation Movement - raising issues like abortion and sexual harassment. Overall the labour movement has gained from this as the trend has been for women cto wote increasingly in favour of left parties and within those parties to advance radical policy. In Britain, for example, the Labour Party Women's Conference has been adopting radical policies on issues like Ireland, HATO, the Falklands War ctc. in opposi tion to the bureaucracy. In the unions women have played a vital role in the battle against austerity and to defend jobs. In Britain they formed « national movement - Women against Pit Clos ures - to defend tt Hiner 's strike. In Germany, the SPD has been forced, through the "Women's Lists", to increase the oumber of women on its national leadership while in the Greene thers are autonomous women's caucuses anil currently an all women leadership in their Parliamentary Fraction.

Mack and immigrant women are organizing in Lritain and in Germany and their ingights on issues like colonial exploitation, the police and abortion enrich the understanding of the Women's Libera- Lion Movement overall. a

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