The Impact of the EU Social Investment Package on Childcare: Going Beyond the Economic Imperative? Annick Masselot Associate Professor in Law, University of Canterbury EUCN conference November 2015 AUT Auckland

: EU work-family reconciliation policies had become an integral part of employment-led social policies The Leave provisionsThe Time provisionsThe Care Strategy To grant time off to parents to spend time with dependants To alter working patterns to combine care and work To enhance flexibility To provide care whilst the carer is at work maternity leave paternity leave parental leave leave for family reasons (time off for family related reasons) part-time fixed-term working time regulation tele-working Child care facilities (eg nurseries, after school clubs; day care centres for adults) Financial benefits

time Children/adults /dependants care Leave

A care strategy? “traditional care”: to provide for a child, “unspoken care”: dependent adult/elder or sick child; often informal: arrangements taking place within private households (private sphere); excluded from regulation of (paid) work (public sphere) no or little market value; It has a clear gender dimension 4

Market > Care EU economic and social provisions entanglement C-270/97 Deutsche Post v Sievers: “The economic aims are now only secondary to the social aims”

Childcare:  Childcare Recommendation (1992) & Barcelona objectives (2002) Others: Social Agenda (COM(2005) 33 final) Communication on Promoting Solidarity between the Generations (COM(2007) 244 final) European Pact for Gender Equality (COM(2006) 92) Commission’s Roadmap for equality between women and men ( ) Communication on Work-Life Balance (COM(2008) 635) the Commission states its commitment to monitor this area and promote adequate measures  Potential of the Court: Case C-303/06 Coleman v Attridge Law (2008)? Soft law, incoherent legal framework and rhetoric Prior to the Crisis

7 In December 2013, the European Commission decided not to designate 2014 as the European Year for Reconciling Professional and Private Life. Proposed amendments to the Pregnant Workers Directive, COM(2008)637 was rejected Dec 2010 and axed on 19 June 2014, arguably because it is considered “red tape”.

Post Crisis Social Investment Package (SIP) Supporting participation in employment and social life. Key policy areas include quality childcare Commission Recommendation, Investing in children: breaking the cycle of disadvantage COM(2013) 778 support parents' access to the labour market and make sure that work 'pays' for them improve access to affordable early childhood education and care services step up access to quality services that are essential to children's outcomes – improve access to early childhood education and care including for children under 3, eliminate school segregation, enhance access to health, housing, social services

Cultural stereotypes Durable transformed structure: Women in Employment