European Regulations on Social Inclusion and Citizen Participation of Migrant Women
The migrant women should often face a “double disadvantage” related to their status as women and immigrants. Research indicates that migrant women still face difficulties in participating in the education system and at the labour market, as well as in obtaining decent housing and accessing healthcare. They are at greater risk of poverty or social exclusion than host country nationals, even when they are employed.
Since several years, great attention has been paid to gender equality at the EU level, as shown by the 2020-2025 EU Gender Equality Strategy. We can observe an increasing recognition of the importance of taking a cross-cutting intersectional approach when it comes to the inclusion of women, and the awareness of particular challenges and barriers that migrant women should overcome in the EU. Precisely, in the EU policies on the gender inequalities, four main issues are identified: labour market participation, deskilling and the informal economy; family reunification; international protection; and gender-based violence.
- The EU Action Plan on Integration and Inclusion (2021-2027)
This plan integrates the gender dimension in EU integration policies and emphasizes the need to have more concerted action in the aims to strengthen the integration of migrant women. It takes mainstreaming gender as a key principle and value to guide the plan actions. The priorities are given to promote women’s participation in the labor market and to support migrant women when accessing healthcare. A greater importance of equal opportunities is given to the migrant women’s participation in the society on terms of social integration and participation. The plan put forward an integrated approach to the inclusion of migrants, which includes connecting employment promotion programs with initiatives providing access to social services, health or childcare and logistical support. It aims to combine different focus when it comes to the integration of migrant women: labour market integration, social integration, and discrimination and access to rights. Additionally, it has the ambition to connect with other EU strategies such as the European Pillar of Social Rights, the EU’s Anti-racism Action Plan and the Gender Equality Strategy.
- The EU’s Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2025
This multi-annual political strategy has priority to integrate a gender perspective in all EU policies and processes and promotes an intersectional approach in gender equality policies. It plans to fund and support women and girls in the asylum and integration process and those who are victim of violence.
- The European Pillar of Social Rights (EPSR)
This commitment fosters equal opportunities in the labour market and for all to benefit from their rights and participate in society, regardless of their gender and their background.
- The European Semester and recovery and resilience plans
The actual pandemic has provided clear evidence of the persistent inequalities between women and men and the key role played by the migrant workers, especially migrant women on the front line in the basic services such as care workers, nurses, shop workers etc. The worrying increase in domestic violence, the disadvantage of gender in the labour market for women has also been highlighted very concretely since the beginning of the pandemic.
The European Semester and recovery and resilience plans intend to support female labour market participation, including the migrant women.