Activities of Eugenia RODRÍGUEZ PALOP related to 2021/2170(INI)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on women’s poverty in Europe
Amendments (26)
Amendment 7 #
Draft opinion
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
Aa. whereas, according to Eurostat, the risk of poverty and social exclusion in the EU was, in 2020, higher for women than for men, affecting 51,4 million women (22.9 %) compared to 45 million men (20.9 %)1a; _________________ 1aEurostat. Living conditions in Europe. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics- explained/index.php?title=Living_conditi ons_in_Europe_- _poverty_and_social_exclusion&oldid=54 4210
Amendment 12 #
Draft opinion
Recital A b (new)
Recital A b (new)
Ab. whereas gender-sensitive data regarding poverty is still insufficient in the EU and the Member States, hindering the analysis and the policy-making process at all levels;
Amendment 13 #
Draft opinion
Recital A c (new)
Recital A c (new)
Ac. whereas, in relation to poverty data, the statistical household unit defines poverty within households, and does not consider the gender inequalities in the internal distribution of resources, making it difficult to obtain reliable gender disaggregated data;
Amendment 18 #
Draft opinion
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas the COVID-19 crisis exacerbated structural inequalities, has had a severe impact on labour income and wealth, has aggravated the situation of people experiencing poverty, impacting disproportionally on women, and is halting improvements in AROPE; whereas support measures have cushioned the negative effects of the crisis in the short run;
Amendment 21 #
Draft opinion
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas inequalities may increase when the support measures are progressively phased out; whereas the medium-term impact of the crisis will depend on the degree of inclusiveness of the recovery; whereas social protection policies are vital elements of national development strategies to reduce poverty and vulnerability across the life cycle and to support inclusive and sustainable growth; whereas gender mainstreaming has to be fully implemented to ensure gender equality and to support the recovery for the most vulnerable women;
Amendment 29 #
Draft opinion
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas women are over- represented in non-standard and often precarious, underpaid and undervalued forms of work, in the hardest- hit sectors and among frontline workers in healthcare and essential sectors, such as care and retail; whereas more women than men are in occupations that can be carried out remotely;
Amendment 41 #
Draft opinion
Recital E
Recital E
E. whereas low pay and low career prospectsthe gender and pension gap in the EU, low pay and low career prospects, as well as the burden of unpaid care and domestic work are barriers to achieving equal economic independence for women and men and can lead to higher risks of poverty and social exclusion for them;
Amendment 48 #
Draft opinion
Recital E a (new)
Recital E a (new)
Ea. whereas the alarming high rate of the gender pension gap in the EU results in higher poverty rates among older women;
Amendment 53 #
Eb. whereas women's experience of homelessness is differentiated by gender; whereas women suffer homelessness and precarious housing as a result of discrimination, poverty and gender-based violence;
Amendment 60 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Calls for an overarching European anti-poverty strategy that integrates the gender perspective, with ambitious targets for reducing poverty and a focus on breaking the intergenerational cycle of poverty risks; underlines that women’s poverty is closely linked to child poverty, that single-parent households are at greater risk of poverty and social exclusion and that those headed by women are the majority;
Amendment 68 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Amendment 70 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 b (new)
Paragraph 1 b (new)
1b. Points out that, to prevent and tackle poverty among women, adequate minimum income schemes should be an integral part of an EU multidimensional, integrated anti-poverty strategy; takes note of Commission’s commitment to propose a Council Recommendation on minimum income in 2022, but underlines the need for a Framework Directive with a strong gender dimension to combat the feminization of poverty;
Amendment 71 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 c (new)
Paragraph 1 c (new)
1c. Recalls its resolution of 21 January 2021 on the EU Strategy for Gender Equality1a and asks the Commission to put forward a Care Deal for Europe, taking a comprehensive approach towards all care needs and services, and setting minimum standards and quality guidelines for care throughout the life cycle, including for children, elderly persons and persons with long-term needs; _________________ 1a https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/doc ument/TA-9-2021-0025_EN.pdf
Amendment 78 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to reduce the burden of unpaid care and domestic work carried out mainly by women by ensuring affordable andhigh- quality public care and services for people with disabilities, the elderly and other dependantdependent people and by increasing men's take-up of caring responsibilities; calls on the Commission and the Member States to adequately fund public services and social infrastructure, as this would allow more women to participate in the labour market and would also contribute to reducing the risk of women falling into poverty;
Amendment 87 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Highlights that universal access to public, solidarity-based and adequate retirement and old age pensions must be granted to all and particularly to women considering that the average gender pension gap in the EU is 30% ; underlines the importance of public and occupational pension systems that provide an adequate retirement income above the poverty threshold and allow pensioners to maintain their standard of living; asks the Member States to consider factoring child-raising and other care responsibilities into pension schemes when women are not able to undertake paid work and make suitable contributions during such periods, such as in the form of care credits;
Amendment 96 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Stresses that the recovery efforts should boost jobs and growthtake a gender-sensitive approach, invest in the care sector, promote sustainable growth, decent work, and the resilience and fairness of our societies, and should be complemented byhave a strong social dimension, paying attention to women who have a disability or who stay at home to carare particularly at risk of poverty, such as women in single for a family member, as they are particularly at risk of falling into povertyno-earner households, women with disproportionate care and other household responsibilities or women with disabilities;
Amendment 122 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to submit initiatives to promote women’s empowerment through formal, non formal and informal education, vocational training and lifelong learning, as well as access to finance, female entrepreneurship and women’s representation in future-oriented sectors with a view to ensuring access to high- quality employment; calls for greater promotion of STEM subjects, digital education, artificial intelligence and financial literacy in order to ensure that more women enter these sectors and contribute to their development.; highlights also the need to adopt measures to involve men in caring careers;
Amendment 128 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Highlights that skilling, upskilling and re-skilling play a key role to reduce the gender gap in employment and calls on the EU and the member states to ensure that women access quality lifelong learning and training, particularly after periods of absence for care reasons, taking strong measures to overcome the lack of time and resources, as well as the digital gap, addressing gender stereotypes and increasing women’s representation in education, training and employment in STEM subjects and occupations;
Amendment 132 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 b (new)
Paragraph 6 b (new)
6b. Recalls that narrow definitions of homelessness exclude women experiencing homelessness and housing exclusion as they use informal and often unsafe arrangements, such as rough sleeping and emergency accommodation, and only try to access homelessness support services when those other options are exhausted; points out that, as a result, women are not considered and are underestimated in homelessness data and therefore their experiences and needs are overlooked;
Amendment 135 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 c (new)
Paragraph 6 c (new)
6c. Calls on the Member States to introduce in their national homelessness strategies comprehensive, evidence-based and gendered approaches; highlights the link between discrimination, poverty and gender-based violence and calls on the Commission and the Member States to invest in programs that address homelessness together with women’s housing needs and gender-based violence;
Amendment 138 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 d (new)
Paragraph 6 d (new)
6d. Welcomes the establishment of the European Platform on Combatting Homelessness and its person-centred, housing-led and integrated approach; asks to implement gender mainstreaming throughout its work, to include women's rights organisations and to carry out a study on the situation of women’s homelessness in Europe;
Amendment 139 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 e (new)
Paragraph 6 e (new)
6e. Highlights that, given the higher share of women in low-wage jobs and sectors, improvements in the adequacy of minimum wages not only reduce in-work poverty but also support gender equality and reduce the gender pay gap; insists thus on the need to set poverty-proof minimum wages at a level above a decency threshold; calls for a coordinated approach at EU level in order to achieve real wage growth;
Amendment 142 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 f (new)
Paragraph 6 f (new)
6f. Highlights that the European Green Deal and the Just Transition have to pay particular attention to energy poverty, supporting adequate income, promoting fair prices, decent and affordable housing and affordable access to essential goods and services, including energy and water, and increasing public investment in social affordable and energy efficient housing;
Amendment 143 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 g (new)
Paragraph 6 g (new)
6g. Underlines the gender dimension of energy poverty, which disproportionately affects single women, single-parent and female-headed households, as well as the need to pay attention to the specific situation of women when analysing the increasing risk of inequalities and poverty deriving from climate policies; points out to the need to better account for gender justice in the field of housing and urban renewal, and regrets that the implementation of the Green Deal, through the Renovation Wave Initiative, the Commission Recommendation on Energy Poverty and the revision of the Energy Efficiency Directive does not consider the gender impact of energy poverty; reiterates its call on the Commission and the Member States to establish a definition of energy poverty which takes into account gendered aspects of the phenomenon, as well as to ensure a more ambitious action to tackle energy poverty1a; calls on this regard for Member States to report on the gender dimension of energy poverty in their National Energy and Climate Plans; _________________ 1aEuropean Parliament resolution on Poverty: a gender perspective. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/doc ument/TA-8-2016-0235_EN.pdf
Amendment 146 #
6h. Recalls its resolution of 21 January 2021 on access to decent and affordable housing for all and points out that women are particularly exposed to the housing crisis1a; calls on the Commission and the Member States to develop a gendered approach in their housing policies, particularly by supporting women who face specific situations such as single parenthood; _________________ 1a https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/doc ument/TA-9-2021-0020_EN.pdf
Amendment 147 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 i (new)
Paragraph 6 i (new)
6i. Regrets that the current poverty data reveals only a part of the gender gap, as at-risk-of-poverty indicators are measured through household data that don’t reveal the intra-household distribution and access to resources; reiterates its calls on the Commission and the Member States to further develop and improve the collection of gender- disaggregated data, statistics, research and analysis, as well as support for and measures to improve institutional and civil society organizations capacity- building as regards data collection and analysis; calls in particular to the EU Energy Poverty Observatory to offer gender-disaggregated data in its publicly accessible set of indicators;