This policy report critically examines work-life balance policies in six countries included in the rEUsilience project: Belgium, Croatia, Poland, Spain, Sweden, and the UK, highlighting how their policies may envision, shape, and affect decisions and behaviours regarding labour market and care engagements in families. The focus is on care leaves (including parenting leaves and carers’ leave) and flexible working arrangements, and the analysis is guided by two central questions: 1) how inclusive are policies (i.e. to what extent are the rights available to all parents/carers, but also to what extent do the available rights respond to the specific needs of various groups of parents/carers and their situations); and 2) how much flexibility do policies allow families (i.e. to what extent does the policy enable people to make a change, e.g. to increase or decrease working hours).
Authors: Ivana Dobrotić & Anja Iveković Martinis