Rasmus Juul Møberg

Stress testing the Nordic models: Manufacturing labour adjustments during crisis

This article discusses how the actors in the internationally exposed sectors of four Nordic economies responded to the economic crisis of 2008. Though Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden are commonly viewed as similar countries, there are important variations in the regulation of workers’ rights and the available measures of labour market adjustment such as short-time working and temporary lay-offs. We find that such differences produced significant differences in adjustment patterns, in the cooperation and influence of trade unions during these processes and in institutional adaptation.

Tensions Related to the Transition of Elderly Care from an Unpaid to a Paid Activity

The family has always been a major source of care for frail, elderly individuals, and women have traditionally held the primary responsibility for providing care within the family framework. Long-term care has thus been an informal, unpaid task carried out by daughters, daughters-in-law or other family members. Family structures have shifted dramatically in recent decades, however, and women have increasingly participated in the labour force; that is, women have assumed a new role as wage earners along with the emergence of new family forms. These changes have increased the demand for alternative forms of care, and most industrial societies have restructured their elderly care policies.

Explaining differences in women’s working time in European cities

ABSTRACT Women’s work-time pattern in Europe is highly heterogeneous; some women work short or long part-time hours, while others work full-time. Few studies, however, have analysed the factors constituting women’s work-time pattern. The article aims to explain why women’s working time differs in five relatively big European cities, which represent an urban environment that is particularly supportive to women’s employment, and the study is based on a new original telephone survey from 2013 among women 25–64 years of age. It is hypothesized and analysed how women’s work-time pattern is the result of women’s family-cultural orientation, individual and family characteristic, the gendered division of household task, women’s position in the vertical and horizontal division of labour, and city of residence. Findings support the theoretical assumptions that there is a significant relationship between family-cultural orientation and work practices.

Gender and Volunteering in Scandinavia

In this chapter, we try to outline some of the dynamics determining the pattern of volunteering among women and men in Scandinavia. These countries have a high level of gender equality in terms of social and economic conditions. There are high levels of labour market participation for both women and men. Having said this, the Scandinavian countries seem in contrast to most other European countries able to combine high levels of gender equality in the labour market with involvement in voluntary work. Men still have a slightly higher probability of doing voluntary work than women, but these gender differences have declined, primarily during the last decade. Furthermore, the male domination in volunteering is concentrated in one sector – sport activities. If we exclude this sector, we find not only gender equality but even more women than men currently doing voluntary work in all three Scandinavian countries. The growing gender equality in volunteering has many causes but two trends appear highly important: first, the general development in societies with growing gender equality in public appearance and in allocation of resources, second, a reconfiguration of the non-profit sector from sport, recreation and politics towards welfare services and local community activities. Both trends have increased volunteering among women, thus diminishing male domination.

Does women’s employment enhance women’s citizenship?

ABSTRACT The EU discourse on increasing female employment holds promise. The integration of women into the labour market supposedly supports economic growth, social cohesion, and citizenship. The question is, however, whether the expected consequences of female employment are consistent with reality. Using the EU discourse as a point of departure, this paper scrutinises the effects of female employment from a citizenship perspective in three European cities: Aalborg (Denmark), Leeds (England), and Bologna (Italy). Using survey data collected in the three cities, it quantitatively analyses whether employment counteracts poverty, supports social and political participation, and increases social trust. It also analyses whether there are spill-over effects from the different dimensions of citizenship; that is, whether poverty leads to social isolation, political apathy, and low levels of social trust. We find that unemployment is important for citizenship but that the differences between employed women and women outside the labour force are rather limited. We also find that the effect of a woman’s position in the vertical and horizontal division of labour is rather limited, and no spill-over effects from economic hardship on other dimensions of citizenship exist. What matters for citizenship are personal and family characteristics as well as the city of residence.

Who cares? Male and female careers in the health‐ and eldercare sector in Denmark

This study investigates labour market fluctuations and gender issues in the health and care sector. A large data set from public registers has allowed us to compile a comprehensive picture of the job categories that particularly attract men. We find a polarisation of men in the upper and lower positions in the job hierarchy. In the metropolitan area, men tend to be discouraged from taking jobs in the health and care sector, as opposed to the peripheral region, where alternative job offers may be more scarce. A logistic regression analysis shows that (young) age is the major explanatory factor for leaving the health and care sector to find occupation elsewhere. However, gender (male), wage levels (low), marital status (single) and education (none) are also significant. The study discusses seven theoretical perspectives for male and female careers in the health and care sector: The need for flexibility. Destandardising of jobs. Devaluation of feminised work areas. Human capital as a stabiliser. Feminisation. The prospects of boundaryless careers. The spatial dimension.