NRP consults with its stakeholders regularly. Here you will find a number of statements by personalities from politics, business, authorities, education and science on NRP 60 and gender equality.
Maria Roth-Bernasconi
Inequality between men and women? That doesn’t exist anymore! This is what many people think, in particular a lot of young girls. By establishing an objective survey on gender equality in Switzerland the NRP 60 makes us aware of what has already been accomplished and what has still to be done. In order to be able to react and act with full knowledge of the facts.
Maria Roth-Bernasconi
National counsellor, co-president swiss socialist women
Thomas Daum
Regarding equality between men and women at work, there are two important and interwoven factors: the traditional conditioning of the working world and the social role models. The NRP 60 is to show how these two factors influence each other and what has to be done to use the potential of women in the labour force as effectively as possible.
Thomas Daum
Director of Swiss Employers’ Confederation
Kathrin Amacker
The road to achieving gender equality is strewn with obstacles. We have come to expect opposition, prejudices and false statements. A wide variety of research activities helps to pave the way with scientific facts and figures. NRP 60 contributes significantly to this process.
Dr. Kathrin Amacker
Head of Corporate Communications and Member of the Swisscom Group Executive Board
Yves Flückiger
Equity between women and men, particularly with regard to pay, is a vital factor in making the economic system more efficient and encouraging its growth. We still have a long way to go before equity is achieved. The paths we need to travel to arrive there have not yet been cleared sufficiently. This is precisely the purpose of the NRP 60. It will allow new approaches to be developed and their possible effects on gender equality to be evaluated so that the authorities at the federal and cantonal levels can adopt the right policies.
Yves Flückiger
Professor at the Department of economics at the University of Geneva
Paul Rechsteiner
Since 1981, gender equality is anchored in the federal constitution. Yet we are far from reaching the goal of real equality. A good example of this is equal pay. The latest available figures were provided by the Earnings Structure Survey 2008, which showed that wage differences and discriminations are increasing rather than decreasing. There is an urgent need for measures to combat wage discrimination. Similarly, paid employment and unpaid work within the family need to become more compatible. We expect NRP 60 to provide the basis that will propel gender equality forward.
Paul Rechsteiner
President of the Swiss Federation of Trade Unions
Peter Duwe
There seems to be a long way to go before we achieve true gender equality in the work place and in family life: women have to justify the pursuit of a career while having a family, men have to do the same if they decide to take more responsibility in their family life. As a consequence we renounce a considerable amount of knowledge and skills in both areas. We won’t be able to afford such a loss much longer. The projects of NRP 60 will help us understand how the actual situation is being reproduced – and how we can change it.
Dr. Peter Duwe
Consultant and Project Manager, CSP AG