Ahead of International Women's Day on Saturday, they called for the upgrading of female-specific professions, equal sharing of unpaid care work, and an expansion of childcare at a press conference. The Greens see positives and negatives in the government program, while the FPÖ did not hold back with criticism.

Ultimately, there will still be no real equality in 2025, criticized Tödtling-Musenbichler. Women take on almost twice as much unpaid care work - such as caring for relatives or raising children - as men. Women's pensions are also about 40 percent lower than those of men for this reason. And in the workforce, according to Eurostat, there is a gender pay gap of around 18 percent, highlighting the problem. Six out of ten people seeking help at Caritas social counseling centers are women.

"The Women's Chapter Remains Very Vague in the Implementation of Measures"

"The women's chapter remains very vague in the implementation of measures" - for example, in strengthening the economic independence of women, said Anderl. The Chamber of Labor wants to actively participate in the design. A good measure against the gender pay gap is pay transparency, and the implementation of the corresponding EU directive is also found in the black-red-pink program.

Tödtling-Musenbichler called for equal sharing, the expansion of institutionalized care facilities, and comprehensive childcare. "How is a single mother in the countryside supposed to work full-time if, on the one hand, kindergarten is only possible from the age of three and, on the other hand, closes at noon?" she asked. It is commendable that this expansion is a topic in the government program, but it must also be financially secured. Also positive is the planned development of parental leave models for more father involvement - what specific measures will be taken remains to be seen.

Measures Against "Part-Time Trap" and Poverty Demanded

Anderl demanded a legal right to a childcare place from the first birthday, which did not make it into the government program. On the positive side, however, is the mandatory second kindergarten year anchored there. To get women out of the "part-time trap," businesses must be prevented from offering women only part-time positions - for example, by increasing the overtime surcharge for part-time work. Furthermore, higher salaries are needed for female-specific professions and rapid assistance for women living in poverty, Tödtling-Musenbichler urged for an increase in the compensatory allowance, i.e., the minimum pension, to the level of the poverty risk threshold.

The Greens also find that the government program remains vague - "this applies particularly to the financing of important gender equality policy projects," said Federal Women's Chairwoman Meri Disoski. She criticizes the abolition of educational leave and a lack of improvement in maternity protection in cases of miscarriage and stillbirth. Vienna Greens leader Judith Pühringer supports the inclusion of "long-standing green demands" such as tax exemption on contraceptives and wage transparency in the government program.

FPÖ women's spokesperson Rosa Ecker is more dissatisfied with the "loser traffic light" program; she misses concrete measures to close the income gap as well as on the topics of old-age poverty, freedom of choice, and equality in the workplace. "The more than vague declarations of intent will have no effect in practice." Improved recognition of care times and the upgrading of typical women's professions in the low-wage sector are necessary, while Ecker simultaneously spoke out against a "gender craze."

ÖVP family spokesperson and Family Association President Johanna Jachs, meanwhile, demanded to "leave old role models behind and give women and men the same opportunities - in the workplace and in the family." Equal pay for equal work is also needed. Women's Ring Chairwoman Klaudia Frieben appealed not to save on women - such as on violence protection organizations or women's and girls' counseling centers - in view of Austria's budgetary situation.

(APA/Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.