Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality Ordinary meeting
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FEMM European Parliament
Follow its sittings
Katrin Langensiepen
First, we support reinforcing the employment and social innovation strand, investing in quality employment, equal opportunities, social inclusion, and reducing the gender pay and pension gaps. We are strongly support reinforcing funding for sexual and reproductive health and rights under EU for Health. Universal access to sexual and reproductive health care is fundamental to women health, autonomy, and equality, and the budget should clearly reflect that commitment. On gender-based violence, we fully support strengthening the Daphne program, and our objective is to secure a substantial and protected increase in funding for Daphne and related programs. We also support strengthen the equality and rights program, and finally we strongly support increasing funding for civil society organizations, particularly women's rights and feminist organizations.
They are all partners in defending fundamental rights. These amendments provide a balanced and practical way to strengthen the gender dimension of the 27 budget. They reinforce existing EU commitments, invest three needs are greatest, and ensure that the FEMM opinion sends a clear message: gender equality must remain a genuine budgetary priority in the 27 EU budget. Thank you.
Hanna Gedin
Yes, I'm so sorry our shadow is not present, but thank you so much, rapporteur.
Lina Gálvez
Okay, thank you. So we move to ESN, Irmhild Boßdorf, the floor is yours for two minutes.
Irmhild Boßdorf
Vielen Dank. Ich werde auf Deutsch sprechen. Ich finde es immer wieder interessant, wenn wir Daphne mehr Geld geben, um Daphne auszustatten, um gegen Gewalt gegen Frauen anzugehen, finde ich das schön. Ich erinnere mich aber, dass wir eine Lesung hatten zum Thema Gewalt gegen Frauen und da ging es nur um Incelsphere und nicht um die wahren Themen. Ich wundere mich auch immer wieder, wie wir hier für die bessere Gesellschaft für Frauen und Mädchen kämpfen wollen, indem wir einfach nur Abtreibung für alle möglich machen.
Ich würde mich freuen und hätte mich auch gefreut, wenn in diesen Finanzthemen auch endlich mal eine bessere Ausstattung für Frauen, die sich für Kinder entscheiden und nicht gegen Kinder entscheiden, zum Tragen gekommen wäre und man eben das viele Geld, das man jetzt in Abtreibungsprojekte und in Daphne steckt, dann eben vielleicht mal genommen hätte, um Mütter zu unterstützen. Vielen Dank.
Thank you. Thank you very much. Are there other members who wanted to take the floor on this topic? Anyone else? If not, we'll give the floor back to the rapporteur, Raquel García Hermida-Van der Walle.
The floor is yours.
Raquel García Hermida-Van Der Walle
Thank you to all the colleagues for sharing your opinion. Thank you also for your spirit of compromise and your support in a clear majority for the compromises and the opinion that we have suggested. I think it's extremely important that we have a solid majority for all of these priorities and all of these goals. I really appreciate, I'm sorry that Mr. Furlas has left, but I really appreciate also the spirit of compromise from the colleagues of the EPP. I think it's fundamental that we show the world that gender equality is, per definition, not an ideological question, but something that we should all be supporting, as a colleague from the S&D said, not only for the sake of girls, but for the sake of all of the society, and it's something that affects all of us.
Raquel García Hermida-Van Der Walle
I think it's extremely important that the budget reflects the horizontal principles of the Union, among them is gender equality. I'm very happy that we have included a gender spending target in the opinion that we voted this morning for the performance regulation. I think that this is a very good example of how the pro-European, pro-democratic, pro-all of society forces can work together in this Parliament. To finish, I would like to also commend the team, the secretariat, my own team, the team of Renew for your great work on this one. And I'm sure that we can show in the last year of this European Union budget that we have a very solid base for the seven years ahead.
I also would like to remind us of this, also referring to the opinion which we just voted on this morning.
Thank you.
Lina Gálvez
Thank you, thank you very much for all your work and indeed it is, it is the best way to show our priorities and our principles. So the vote, both the for the FEMM opinion to the budgetary resolution and the FEMM amendments to the budget will take place 1st September, so just after holidays. So this is a very holiday sandwich file because we are discussing before going on holidays and we will be voting just after.
And now we move to another important opinion, which is on boosting skills in the Union, opportunities for vocational education and training in times of transition. The committee responsible is EMPL and the rapporteur is Brigitte van der Berg from Renew and the rapporteur for the opinion is me, is myself, but as a FEMM chair. So you allocate to, you decided to allocate to me this file as a chair. So the draft opinion that we are considering today is composed of 10 amendments aiming at affirming the absolute and urgent need for the vocational education and training to take into consideration the women's rights and gender equality perspective. It is in fact essential that Member States integrate gender mainstreaming into the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of vocational education and training programs to ensure equitable access to training opportunities, challenge persistent gender stereotypes and segregation across sectors and support women's economic empowerment and equal participation in Europe's green and digital transition.
If you want to have a real test of what I'm saying, just ask to a teenager the orientations they still receive in some schools and you will see that stereotypes, gender stereotypes are still very much in place, with sometimes a class bias as well, very clear, and a territorial bias, very clear. So this is something that we really need to fight against, we really need to end with, and why we are also making this opinion from the FEMM committee. So now we start the consideration of amendments for our FEMM opinion. Please note that the deadline for amendments was set on Tuesday, 7th of July, and 130 amendments have been tabled by members. And once said that, I would like to give the floor, of course, to the different political groups, starting by EPP.
I hope this time, Janna Marsulakis-Valsak, two minutes and a half. If I have not pronounced, next time I will promise to pronounce much better.
Jagna Marczułajtis-Walczak
Thank you, Chair. I will speak in Polish.
Szanowna pani przewodnicząca, drogie koleżanki i koledzy. W imieniu grupy EPL chciałabym podkreślić, że kształcenie zawodowe i uczenie się przez całe życie to nie tylko odpowiedź na pilne potrzeby pracodawców. Dla nas to przede wszystkim sposób na wyrównywanie szans, budowanie niezależności i otwieranie nowych możliwości rozwoju, tak ważne z punktu widzenia prac naszej komisji praw kobiet i równouprawnienia. Powrót na rynek pracy nie może oznaczać konieczności zaczynania od zera. Dlatego musimy inwestować w kształcenie zawodowe i możliwości podnoszenia kwalifikacji przez całe życie, aby każda kobieta była finansowo niezależna i realizowała swój potencjał.
Jest to szczególnie ważne dla kobiet, które z powodu obowiązków opiekuńczych często przerywają swoją pracę, bo w okolicy nie ma żłobka czy nie ma usług społecznych dla członków rodzin z niepełnosprawnością. Musimy również przełamywać stereotypy dotyczące wyboru ścieżki zawodowej.
Dziewczynki i młode kobiety powinny wiedzieć, że mogą zostać inżynierkami, programistkami czy wykwalifikowanymi rzemieślniczkami. Równowaga między kobietami i mężczyznami na rynku pracy oznacza wybór możliwości rozwoju, by nie zamykać dziewcząt na sfeminizowane zawody opiekuńcze czy edukacyjne, często niedoceniane i gorzej płatne. W swoich poprawkach jako sprawozdawca cień z ramienia grupy EPL podkreśliłam również, że kształcenie zawodowe odgrywa kluczową rolę w zachowaniu europejskiego dziedzictwa kulturowego. W regionach o wyjątkowym znaczeniu historycznym i kulturowym, takich jak Podhale, Kraków czy województwo świętokrzyskie, to właśnie dzięki przekazywaniu tradycyjnych zawodów i rzemiosła kolejnym pokoleniom chronimy lokalną tożsamość, wspieramy rozwój regionalnej gospodarki i tworzymy miejsca pracy.
Co więcej, silne szkolnictwo zawodowe buduje przewagę konkurencyjną Europy, zapewniając przedsiębiorstwom wysoko wykwalifikowanych pracowników, wspierając innowacyjność oraz umożliwiając rozwój lokalnych i rodzinnych firm, które są fundamentem naszej gospodarki. Inwestując w umiejętności, inwestujemy jednocześnie w konkurencyjność Europy. I właśnie o ten aspekt konkurencyjności i możliwości rozwoju zawodowego kobiet zadbam w pracy nad poprawkami kompromisowymi. Dziękuję za zaufanie i liczę na współpracę w tej ważnej opinii.
Lina Gálvez
Thank you. Thank you very much. We move now to S&D, Marian Vind, the floor is yours for two minutes and a half.
Marianne Vind
Thank you, Chair, and thank you to the FEMM Secretariat for the work on this draft opinion. This is an important report. Vocational education and training is central to Europe's competitiveness and to addressing labor shortage. We cannot meet Europe's future skills needs if educational and occupational choices remain shaped by gender stereotypes. Gender segregation in VET limits individual freedom, wastes talent, and narrows recruitment.
Gender equality is not a side issue. It is a condition for using Europe's full skills potential.
Therefore, stereotypes must be challenged early through gender-sensitive guidance and practical exposure to crafts, care and green technology. We need stronger attention to well-being and drop-out, especially for students who are the underrepresented gender in their program. Gender-based harassment should never be tolerated. Access matters, but completion matters too. And it is also fair that Europe's young women and men have equal opportunities.
Thank you, I really look forward to good cooperation on this important file. Thank you.
Lina Gálvez
Thank you, thank you very much indeed, we will have it. Margarita de la Pisa from Patriots, two minutes and a half.
Margarita de la Pisa Carrión
Gracias, presidente, señorías. Lo primero que debemos hacer para impulsar las oportunidades y la formación profesional es dignificar las profesiones que de ella dependen. Europa necesita profesionales de oficios: electricistas, fontaneros, carpinteros, agricultores, ganaderos y profesionales de los cuidados.
Actividades esenciales que, sin embargo, hoy sufren una grave escasez que está provocando dificultades para garantizar servicios básicos como construir viviendas, mantener infraestructuras y que quienes necesitan atención la reciban. Debemos reconocer el valor de cada profesión por su contribución a la sociedad, valorando el esfuerzo, la experiencia, el conocimiento y la excelencia. Muchos de estos oficios siguen transmitiendo el saber hacer de generación en generación, preservando una cultura de trabajo que queremos proteger. Sin embargo, el informe vuelve a situar en el centro la transición verde y digital, relegando profesiones esenciales que no encajan con esta visión, como si su valor dependiera de su contribución a estas prioridades políticas. Las mujeres desempeñan un papel esencial en muchos de estos oficios, aportando su talento, su dedicación y su experiencia.
La tecnología, el contar con mejores herramientas, hoy da oportunidades de profesiones de acceder a profesiones donde la mujer no ha estado presente por falta de capacidad física.
La formación profesional debe ofrecer nuevas oportunidades a quienes libremente deseen desarrollar o retomar un proyecto profesional, especialmente interesante para madres que quieran reincorporarse al mercado laboral tras la maternidad o después de un tiempo dedicado al cuidado de sus hijos o de otros familiares, así como las madres que afrontan solas el sostenimiento de su familia o las mujeres que viven en el entorno rural, donde el autoempleo ofrece una flexibilidad de horarios y ubicación que pueden convenirles, pero cuyas condiciones no proporcionan la seguridad laboral suficiente, a la vez que se les exige una contribución fiscal desmedida que hace la actividad inviable. Y acabo. Para que esta oportunidad sea real, las políticas de formación deben favorecer la conciliación, ofrecer una formación flexible y accesible, cercana al lugar donde viven las personas, y reforzar la colaboración con las pequeñas empresas, los negocios de familia, las explotaciones agrarias, los talleres artesanales, y crear empleo transmitiendo conocimiento entre generaciones para sostener el tejido económico y social de nuestros pueblos. Muchas gracias.
Lina Gálvez
Gracias Margarita. And Isiar Beatriz Tinges, please, the floor is yours for two minutes and a half.
Beatrice Timgren
Thank you. On behalf of MEP Lina Donasson, I will say a few words, but I will take it in Swedish. Så, yrkesutbildningar är inte en andrahandsväg till arbete. Det är en grundpelare för Europas industriella styrka.
Alltför länge har en kulturell föreställning placerat akademiska utbildningar högre än yrkesutbildningar. För EU:s konkurrenskraft och för vår ekonomiska attraktivitet anser ECR-gruppen att den snedvridningen måste övervinnas. Yrkeskvalifikationer på eftergymnasial nivå bör behandlas fullt likvärdiga med akademisk examen. En andra prioritering är omsorgsansvaret. Det är fortfarande det enskilt största hinder som håller mödrar utanför arbetsmarknaden, ofta just inom de sektorer som lider av den största kompetensbristen.
ECR föreslår konkreta åtgärder: flexibel och familjevänlig utbildning samt lika lön för lika kvalifikationer för kvinnor och män. Vi respekterar också subsidiaritetsprincipen. Organiseringen och finansieringen av yrkesutbildning ska i första hand förbli medlemsländernas ansvar.
Slutligen uppmärksammar vi landsbygdsområden och andra missgynnade regioner och efterlyser en minskad regelbörda för yrkesutbildare, särskilt för kvinnor som vill bli företagare. När det gäller föredragarens ändringsförslag instämmer vi i att yrkesutbildning kan användas för att stödja kvinnor som väljer utbildningar inom STEM samt i att främja kvinnors entreprenörskap. Det finns dock områden där vi inte delar uppfattning. Det första motsätter vi oss alla bindande instrument, konsekvensbedömningar, budgetkrav eller övervakningsskyldigheter som skulle binda medlemsländerna centralt och åsidosätta subsidiaritetsprincipen. För det andra kan vi inte stödja att kvinnor med mycket olika livssituationer förs samman som en enda grupp av utsatta personer.
Att sammanblanda så skilda omständigheter bidrar inte till en träffsäker och effektiv politik. Tack.
Thank you. Renew, Raquel García, please, the floor is yours for two minutes and a half.
Raquel García Hermida-Van Der Walle
Gracias, presidenta. Thank you so much.
It's very, very fine for me to be presenting the notes and the opinion of my colleague Valérie Hayer, who unfortunately could not be here today and sends her apologies, but also because my colleague from D66, Brigitte van den Berg, is the rapporteur in EMPL, so it's very nice to be contributing to this opinion. For Valérie, she would like to make three main points. First, skills are also about equality. If we want the Union of Skills to succeed, we need to make sure that women and girls have the same opportunities to benefit from vocational education and training. This is why our amendments emphasize that access to education and training is a fundamental right.
They also highlight the importance of gender-sensitive education to tackle stereotypes and open opportunities for everyone. We have made progress, but the reality is that women are still underrepresented in STEM, while men are still too rarely found in sectors like health, education, and care. This is why we welcome the dedicated chapter in the Gender Equality Strategy.
It should help encourage more women into STEM, but also more men into sectors where they are still underrepresented. Second, we also need to recognize that everyday barriers that the everyday, sorry, the everyday barriers that many women continue to face. Caring responsibility still make it harder for many of them to access training or return to education. That's why we are calling for better childcare, more flexible learning opportunities and targeted upskilling programs for women re-entering the labor market. And finally, vocational education needs to prepare people for the future.
That means not only digital, AI and green skills, but also entrepreneurial and financial literacy skills, where women still face a clear disadvantage. In the end, a more inclusive skills agenda is not just fairer, it also makes Europe stronger, more competitive and more innovative. We therefore hope these amendments will be taken on board in the committee's opinion and later in the EMPL report. Thank you.
Lina Gálvez
Thank you, thank you very much. I don't see anyone from Greens, so I move to the left, Hanna Gedin, the floor is yours for four minutes.
Hanna Gedin
Thank you so much. Thank you, Chair, and thank you for this draft opinion on this very important topic. Gender equality has still not been achieved in education or in the labor market, and vocational education and training is one of the key areas where we actually can make real progress. We need to strengthen vocational education by improving its quality, making it accessible to more people and ensuring that it serves the public interests.
We also believe that vocational education should be treated as a public good, not as a source of profits. Vocational education should help break down gender segregation in the labour market by encouraging more women and girls to enter sectors where they remain underrepresented, while at the same time improving the attractiveness, status, and working conditions of female-dominated professions. And of course, vocational education should be a harassment-free environment. At the same time, vocational education should not only respond to labour market needs, it should also in itself promote social inclusion, gender equality, equal opportunities throughout working life, and high-quality public services. I do think that trade unions should be closely involved in both the design and the implementation of vocational education and training policies.
They are essential partners in ensuring that training reflects both workers' needs and quality employment. And we also need to recognise that labour shortages cannot be solved through skills policies alone.
Fair wages, decent working conditions, collective bargaining, and public investment in health, care, and education services are equally important. But with these words and the amendments that we have put forward, I really do look forward to working together on this important opinion. Thank you.
Thank you, Hanna. Isen.
Irmhild Boßdorf
Ja, vielen Dank für das Wort. Ich werde auf ich werde auf Deutsch sprechen und ich bin immer wieder erstaunt, mit welchen Argumenten hier gearbeitet wird. Wenn wir Geschlechterstereotype bekämpfen wollen und an das Wohlergehen der Schüler denken, was hier die S&D gerade vorgeschlagen hat, und die geschlechtsspezifische Belästigung auf Schulhöfen vermeiden wollen, ich glaube, dann brauchen wir nicht mehr Fördergelder der EU, dann brauchen wir einfach weniger kulturfremde Einwanderung auf den Schulhöfen. Das würde, glaube ich, schon helfen. Wenn wir immer darüber reden, dass Frauen alle Möglichkeiten haben sollen und vor allem in MINT-Fächern gefördert werden sollen, warum können wir Frauen nicht einfach dort fördern, wo sie gerne gefördert werden möchten?
Und wenn Frauen nun einmal, was alle Statistiken schon seit Jahrzehnten belegen, nicht so sehr den MINT-Fächern zugewandt sind - ich habe übrigens einige Töchter, die das schon sind - warum fördern wir sie nicht in den Fächern, in denen sie gefördert werden möchten? Dann wurde hier auch gerade noch mal von den Grünen erzählt über den Arbeitskräftemangel. Dafür haben wir ja die Masseneinwanderung. Das waren ja die Fachkräfte, die uns versprochen worden sind. Und jetzt sehen wir, dass das offenbar nicht die Fachkräfte sind.
Jetzt müssen die Frauen wieder dran glauben und diese Lücken schließen. Und ich verwahre mich einfach dagegen, dass die Frauen oder diese Gleichstellungspolitik immer wieder missbraucht wird, um Frauen in Bereiche zu drängen, wo sie einfach gar nicht rein wollen. Also Geschlechter, Frauen Bildungsmöglichkeiten in allen Bereichen eröffnen, bin ich absolut dafür. Aber es bringt nichts, wie jetzt gerade der PECH-Ausschuss zum Beispiel es betrieben hat, eine verpflichtende Fischereiquote für Hochseefischerinnen zu schaffen. Jetzt müssen 30 Prozent der Hochseefischer weiblich sein.
Es gibt nicht mal männliche Hochseefischer. Und ich glaube nicht, dass Frauen unbedingt Hochseefischer werden wollen.
Also bitte lassen Sie uns doch Frauen dort fördern, wo sie gefördert werden möchten, damit Frauen gut qualifiziert, gut ausgebildet sind und eben auch in der Lage sind, für eine Familie, die sie dann hoffentlich irgendwann gründen, zu sorgen. Vielen Dank.
Lina Gálvez
Thank you. I have two more petitions for the floor for one minute each. Paulo do Nascimento Cabral from EPP and then Elisabeth Grossmann from S&D. So the floor is yours for one minute, please.
Paulo do Nascimento Cabral
Thank you, Chair. I'll speak in Portuguese. Agradecer, claro, aqui o relatório muito importante que nós acabamos de ouvir. E, de facto, as qualificações e educação são um verdadeiro capital da União Europeia, são um verdadeiro elevador social porque esbatem aquelas que poderiam ser as diferenças sociais entre europeus. Não há competitividade, nem inovação, nem prosperidade sem qualificações dos europeus.
E não podemos desperdiçar talentos, como nos alertou também o relatório Draghi. No entanto, as mulheres ainda representam apenas 22 % dos cientistas e engenheiros nos setores da alta tecnologia e apenas 15 % dos graduados em cursos profissionais de nível médio nas áreas STEM. E aqui destaco os Açores, que têm um nível, um índice bastante elevado e é uma das maiores regiões a nível europeu com maior presença feminina nestas áreas da ciência.
As qualificações são base para que as mulheres possam aceder a empregos mais qualificados e melhor remunerados. E o ensino e a formação profissional são instrumentos decisivos e temos que assegurar a sua continuidade investindo na requalificação da aprendizagem ao longo da vida e no acesso às profissões do futuro, do digital, da inteligência artificial. Por fim, quero salientar que uma verdadeira união de competências tem de chegar a todos os territórios e as especificidades das zonas rurais e das regiões ultraperiféricas como os Açores e a Madeira exigem também medidas adaptadas e financiamento específico. Investir em competências é investir na União Europeia, na sua competitividade e na sua resiliência. Muito obrigado, senhor presidente.
Elisabeth Grossmann
Danke vielmals. Ja, ich danke für den wertvollen Bericht. Ich spreche da aus Erfahrung. Ich habe in Österreich über 20 Jahre eine Qualifizierungseinrichtung geleitet für arbeitsuchende Frauen. Und wir haben hier maßgeschneiderte Qualifizierungsprogramme angeboten.
Also das wird noch immer gemacht, aber ich bin ja jetzt hier und nicht mehr in diesem Bereich unmittelbar tätig. Aber wir haben hier großartige Erfolge erzielt mit maßgeschneiderten Programmen gemeinsam mit Betrieben, die Arbeitskräfte gesucht haben in speziellen Bereichen. Es hat sich das Einkommen der Frauen sprunghaft erhöht. Die Verbleibedauer der Frauen war gegeben, teilweise ja bis zur Pension.
Und insgesamt wurden auch die Regionen gestärkt. Also es ist ganz wichtig, dass diese Qualifizierungsprogramme regional aufgestellt sind, wohnortnah und dass während der Ausbildung auch der Lebensunterhalt der Frauen gedeckt ist. Und das ist ein absolutes Erfolgsmodell für alle, eine Win-Win-Win-Situation für die Frauen, für die Wirtschaft und für die Gesellschaft insgesamt. Und das möchte ich all jenen mitteilen, die hier von irgendwelchen Zwängen und atypischen Rollenverständnis oder irgendwelchen Dingen gesprochen haben, die einfach der Realität absolut nicht entsprechen. Bitte schauen Sie sich solche Programme an und Sie werden überzeugt sein, dass es wirklich etwas bringt.
Lina Gálvez
So thank you, thank you very much and also for adding good practices. So thank you for this exchange.
I think it is very important what we are dealing now is not, we know very well, is not only a question of fairness, which it is also a question of fairness and obviously because women should not continue to be segregated in low wages, low recognition, low, very bad labor conditions sectors. But it's also a question of competitiveness, especially now that we have a shortage of human capital in many sectors. So I hope we are able really to build up a very good compromise in this file, a very good opinion from the FEMM committee in order to be taken into consideration from the EMPL committee. The vote has been scheduled for our meeting of the 10th of September. So I would like to thank the secretariat very much for their work and have a very nice rest of the morning and see you back at 3 o'clock to discuss the priorities of the Irish presidency of the Council.
Thank you and thank you to the interpreters as well. Thanks.
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