Gender pay gap is a big issue in the disability care and support sector, both formal and informal care. A gender transformative approach is needed to understand the underlying causes and find solutions that promote equal opportunities, fair working conditions, and improved work-life balance for formal and informal carers alike. EQUAL CARE project will look into tailored and innovative tools, training and awareness-raising initiatives which will inform and empower workers, managers, employers, and HR professionals

Aims

The project aims to: 

• identify barriers and best practices for promoting gender equality in care support services.
• strengthen the competencies of employers and workers in gender equality in the workplace.
• assess care stereotypes and gender gaps in formal and informal care, finding new approaches through surveys with target groups and society at large.
• challenge stereotypes and recognise care as valuable work through focus groups and interviews.

Main target groups

• Workers in disability care
• Employers & HR professionals
• Informal carers and communities
• National and EU policymakers
• Social partners

Activities

• Develop a gender equality training program for disability care providers on gender inclusive workplaces withing the disability sector. 
• Create a community of practitioners. 

Project Results 

• Insight report on gender stereotypes in care work.
• Report executive summary of the Insight report on gender stereotypes in care work.
• Training and Awareness raising Manual "Empower Care: Promoting Gender Equality in Disability Care".
• Toolkit for to promote Gender Equality in the disability care and support sector.
• Policy recommendations addressing the root causes of the gender care gap and promoting gender equality, work-life balance, inclusive workplace cultures in the disability care sector.

Duration

1 January 2025 - 31 December 2026

Partnership

• European association of service providers for persons with disabilities – EASPD (Belgium)
• Eurocarers-association europeenne travaillant avec et pour les aidants non-professionnels – Eurocarers (Belgium)
• Federation of european social employers (Belgium)
• Cesie Ets (Italy)
• Asociacion Fress (Spain)
• Panevėžio socialinių pokyčių centras – PSPC (Lithuania)
• Vocational training centre margarita (Greece)
• Institut antona trstenjaka za gerontologijo in medgeneracijsko sozitje – IAT (SIovenia)
• Tukena-Saatio sr (Finland)
• Chance B (Austria)

Contact 

Tiziana Fantucchio, Senior Project Officer  at EASPD

Irene Bertana, Senior Policy Officer and EU Parliament Liaison at EASPD

Funding

Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or DG Justice and Consumers (DG JUST). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.