SPEEDING UP OR HOLDING BACK?: INSTITUTIONAL FACTORS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHILDCARE PROVISION IN SPAIN

ABSTRACT

This paper looks at childcare provision in Spain from the perspective of policies for the reconciliation of work and family life. The goal is to understand how social care – and childcare in particular – has been placed within the different policy domains of the welfare state, and how this condition affects its opportunities for policy development and innovation. As a point of reference, the study takes into consideration the recent EU benchmark regarding childcare provision in the context of the European Employment Strategy. The investigation looks at the impact of the institutional configuration of the welfare system and the labour market on the development of childcare provision and policies for the reconciliation of work and family. The paper suggests that, given a strong policy legacy in family policy and social services, childcare provision is expanding under the decentralized education system although it has not been articulated in terms of policies for the reconciliation of work and family life, which impacts on female employment. Legislative changes improving the conditions of female employees who give birth have recently been introduced in labour law, although the structure of the labour market and practices in employment relations pose obstacles to their effective implementation.

Keywords:

• childcare
• Spain
• welfare state
• work/life balance
• gender
• policy change

Notes

¹The two largest trade unions at national level are: UGT (Union General de los Trabajadores) and CC.OO. (Comisiones Obreras)

²The male activity rate decreased from 79 per cent in 1986 to 75.5 per cent in 1993 while female activity rate increased form 34 per cent in 1986 to 43 per cent and 49 per cent in 1993 and 1999, respectively (Eurostat, Labour Force Survey 1993, 1999).

³In 1985 the female youth unemployment rate was 20 per cent in Spain; 14 per cent in Portugal; 14.5 per cent in Italy; 14 per cent in France; and 11 per cent in the UK. In 1990 the figures were 17 per cent in Spain; 6 per cent in Portugal; 13 per cent in Italy; 9.5 per cent in France; and 6 per cent in the UK (EC 1999).

⁴Female long-term unemployment (% of the labour force) 1985: Spain 16 per cent; Portugal 7 per cent; Italy 9 per cent; France 6 per cent; Germany 4 per cent; and the UK 4. per cent. In 1990: Spain 15 per cent; Portugal 3 per cent; Italy 10 per cent; France 5 per cent; Germany 2.5 per cent; and the UK 1.5 per cent (EC 1999).

⁵This is the case for instance of the non-contributory retirement and invalidity pension scheme where the socio-economic situation of the household is taken into account for the determination of income threshold and degree of disability, and where incentives are in place to encourage pensioners to cohabit with their relatives.

⁶‘Infant Education’ as it is now called (to stress the educational character--nursery schools were renamed as infant schools after the 1990 national law on education) is divided in two phases. The first goes from 0 to 3 years old; and the second from 3 to 6.

⁷However, the division between public and private institutions needs to be nuanced given the fact that a large part of the privately managed schools (escuelas concertadas) are publicly subsidised and access is, in principle, also free. The difference lies more on the character of the institution (private schools are almost all religious (Catholic in character) and the extra-curricula activities.

⁸For 2003, the average female employment rate in Spain was 36 per cent; In Catalonia it was 43 per cent; 40 per cent in the Basque Country and 41 per cent in the Autonomous Community of Madrid (MTAS 2003).

⁹The allowance went from 14 weeks in 1989 to 16 weeks in 1994. The amount of the benefit increased from 75 per cent of the reference wage in 1989 to 100 per cent in 1994.

¹⁰In 2003, a total of 34.116 workers benefited from the main measures of the 1999 law for the reconciliation of work and family. Reduction of working week for taking care of children under 6 (with a proportional salary reduction) was taken up by 19.609 workers (of which 18.940 were women and 669 were men); the next most demanded measure was work absence for the care of dependant children (14.381 persons, of which 502 were men). (El Pais 09/03/2004)

¹¹C. Martinez Ten, Director of the Instituto de la Mujer from 1991 to 1993 (Madrid, 14 of February 1999).

¹²Interview with Lola Liceras (Secretary of Employment); Carmen Bravo and Pura García, trade union CC.OO. (Madrid, 21 December 2004)

¹³The potential beneficiaries of the law are 205.000 civil servants from the local and regional administrations of Catalonia (El Pais 18/04/2002).

¹⁴The new plan ‘Concilia’ was introduced in December 2005 by the centre-left government PSOE. The plan grants additional paternity and maternity rights to civil servants working for the central administration.

¹⁵Alfonso Prieto, General Directorate for Labour Market Studies, Ministry of Labour. (Madrid, 21 December 2004)

¹⁶Lola Liceras, Secretary of Employment, CC.OO. (Madrid, 21 December 2004)

¹⁷As in other places, the issue of low fertility has often been linked to migration issues. Although it is certainly true that birth rates are lower in Italy and Spain than anywhere else in Europe, the difference is however not that striking. In 1997 Spain had 1.15 and Italy 1.22 of fertility rates and countries such as Germany and Austria had 1.36 (Eurostat 1999). The ‘uniqueness’ of Southern Europe in this respect is the speed of change from relatively high levels to a rapid decrease, a phenomenon which is common to Catholic countries such as Ireland. The latter had the strongest variation since 1960.

¹⁸Given the high presence of the grey economy in this sector, ‘real numbers’ are well above official percentages. According to the 2001 census, the number of foreign women actually working as domestic minders is actually 30 per cent higher than those registered with social security that same year (CES 2003: 110).