Lenka Formánková

Mothers or Institutions? How Women Work and Care in Slovenia and the Czech Republic

This article considers womens and mens roles in the labour market and the different ways in which care-work is shared in Slovenia and the Czech Republic. Effective policy measures can prevent parenting of young children becoming one of the greatest risks of falling into poverty. The authors discuss to what extent the prevailing ideals of care influence the policies in relation to parenting as a source of social risks. The two post-communist countries—Slovenia and Czech Republic—show different trajectories in the development of childcare policies. The article shows that Czech social policies have reproduced the traditional ideal of full-time mother-care without preventing poverty and social exclusion of families with young children of pre-school age. In contrast to this, policies in Slovenia support female employment, with the ideal of professional childcare alongside parental care-sharing, which also helps to improve the economic situation of families with small children.

Flexibility trap – the effects of flexible working on the position of female professionals and managers within a corporate environment

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to analyse the experience of female part-time professionals with employee and managerial positions with the utilisation of flexible work arrangements in a corporate environment in the country with a full-time dominated work culture. The data represent a rare case study of the work environment in a Czech branch of one multinational company. This paper focusses on the position of female employees working part-time in professional and managerial positions. The reason for such an arrangement is their attempt to combine career and care for pre-school children. This paper evaluates the effects of flexible work policies in an environment where part-time work for female professionals is rarely available and, therefore, precious. In particular, this paper discusses conditions under which these arrangements are available and its impact on gender equality. Design/methodology/approach – The paper represents a rare case-study of an organisational environment. The seven analysed inter...