Theme: Gender Inequalities in Employment and Pensions

Helsinki, 18 May 2018 | Finnish Centre for Pensions 

Despite recent efforts to equalize the treatment of men and women in the pension system design in many countries, the gender gap in pensions persists. This gap contributes to old-age income inequality in Europe and beyond.

The interplay of pension and family policies has a major impact on mitigating the gender gap in pensions. This one-day conference, organized by the Finnish Centre for Pensions, will gather timely analyses on gender differences in employment and pensions.

Keynote speakers

Francesca Bettio (University of Siena)
Katja Möhring (University of Mannheim)
Rense Nieuwenhuis (University of Stockholm)
Kati Kuitto (Finnish Centre for Pensions)

Panelists

Anna Rotkirch (Family Federation of Finland)
Ilkka Kaukoranta (The Central Organization of Finnish Trade Unions SAK)
Juhana Vartiainen (National Coalition Party)
Chair: Mikko Kautto (Finnish Centre for Pensions)

Watch the presentations on YouTube

Watch interviews with keynote speakers (YouTube):

Read the presenters’ slides in SlideShare:

2018 Conference Program Flyer (pdf)

As women still bear the main responsibility for childcare, breaks in career due to parenting and unstable labour market attachment are much more common for women than for men. As a result, women’s careers tend to be shorter, which means that their average lifetime earnings, and thus accumulated pensions, are lower than men’s are.

Recently, international organizations such as the EU and the OECD have emphasized the need to tackle gender inequality in old-age income.

The interplay of pension and family policies has a major impact on mitigating the gender gap in pensions. Taking stock of life course factors influencing the gender gap in old-age income, researchers will discuss the institutional impact of pension rules, parental leave policies and career trajectories from both an international and a Finnish perspective.

12:00

13:45 Coffee break

14:15

15:30 Panel discussion: How to tackle gender inequality in pensions?

  • Anna Rotkirch (Family Federation of Finland), Ilkka Kaukoranta (The Central Organization of Finnish Trade Unions SAK), and Juhana Vartiainen (National Coalition Party)
  • Chair: Mikko Kautto (Finnish Centre for Pensions).

16:00-17:00 Closing remarks and reception

Francesca Bettio (Professor of Economics, University of Siena) is an expert on determinants of gender gaps in pension income. She has a long record of accomplishments working as an expert for the European Commission on matters relating to female labour market and gender equality.


Katja Möhring (Interim Professor of Sociology of the Welfare State, University of Mannheim; Visiting Scholar, Center for European Studies, Harvard University) focuses on labour markets, pension systems and gender equality in her work.


Rense Nieuwenhuis (Associate Professor at the Swedish Institute for Social Research SOFI, Stockholm University) is an expert on family policy outcomes and the role played by social policies and demographic trends in economic inequality.


Kati Kuitto (Senior Researcher, Finnish Centre for Pensions) works with a comparative focus on the interplay of employment, social security and pension systems.

Related news

Working for equality – Interview with Franscesca Bettio

No easy way to bridge gender gap in pensions – Interview with Kati Kuitto

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