Childcare and Elderly Care: What Occupational Opportunities for Women?

As the population in OECD countries ages and requires longer periods of care and as more children are cared for outside their homes, there is growing recognition of the significance of caring services both economically and socially. Up to now the policy discussion has focussed mainly on two central issues: quality of care and cost of care. These issues are closely inter-linked with how employment in the caring sector is expanding and developing, an issue which has however received relatively little attention. The demand for caring workers has increased dramatically in the past twenty-five years. Caring occupations are major employers of women across OECD countries and their working conditions, career opportunities, and earnings patterns have a significant impact on women’s overall situation in the labour market. This report examines caring occupations in the childcare and the elderly care sectors and the opportunities they offer women as these occupations are changing with respect ... Du fait que la population des pays de l’OCDE vieillit et a besoin de soins de plus longue duree et que la garde des enfants est plus souvent assuree en dehors du foyer familial, l’importance economique et sociale des services personnels est de plus en plus largement reconnue. Jusqu’ici, le debat politique a porte essentiellement sur deux questions primordiales : la qualite des services et leur cout. Ces questions sont intimement liees a l’expansion de l’emploi dans les services personnels, expansion dont toutefois on s’est encore relativement peu preoccupe. Au cours des vingt-cinq dernieres annees, la demande de travail pour les services personnels a considerablement augmente. Dans les pays de l’OCDE, les services personnels emploient beaucoup de femmes et les conditions de travail, les perspectives de carriere et les salaires offerts jouent un grand role dans la situation des femmes sur le marche du travail. Ce rapport examine les metiers des services personnels destines aux jeunes ...