{"id":1814155,"date":"2026-03-06T16:02:25","date_gmt":"2026-03-06T13:02:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1814155"},"modified":"2026-03-06T16:02:25","modified_gmt":"2026-03-06T13:02:25","slug":"iceland-how-families-are-closing-the-gender-care-work-gap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1814155","title":{"rendered":"Iceland: How families are closing the gender care work gap"},"content":{"rendered":"

[analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/76183492_6.jpg”]<\/p>\n

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https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/59lk8<\/span><\/div>\n<\/section>\n
Image: Markus Schreiber\/AP Photo\/picture alliance<\/small><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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The goal of many young parents in Germany<\/a>\u00a0is for both partners to be able to work, spend time with their children and share household responsibilities.\u00a0In practice, however,\u00a0patterns often persist that favor men in mixed-gender couples. Women\u00a0are still significantly more likely to work part time; men are more frequently the primary earners.<\/p>\n

This imbalance is reflected in the latest gender pay gap data from Germany’s Federal Statistical Office. The figures for 2025 show that the gap remains wide.<\/p>\n

German sociologist Jutta Allmendinger said\u00a0the discrepancy was not for a lack of good intentions. Allmendinger is an honorary professor at Free University of Berlin and sits on several advisory bodies, including the German Ethics Council; she\u00a0served as president of the WZB Berlin Social Science Center until 2024. “When we ask couples what would happen if they had a child now, 80% of men say they would reduce their working hours and they would want an equal split,” Allmendinger said. “In the end, though, things often turn out differently.”<\/p>\n

\"A
Though many couples say they want to share household responsibilities, women often end up bearing the burdenImage: Wavebreak Media LTD\/Zoonar\/picture alliance<\/small><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Financial incentives send the wrong signal<\/h2>\n

There are several reasons why traditional divisions of labor in the home persist.\u00a0One is the fact that men still earn more than women on average. That means that women are more likely to take parental leave or shift to part-time work, which incidentally makes\u00a0them less likely to advance into leadership positionsk. What’s more, Germany’s tax system favors married couples in which one partner earns significantly more than the other.\u00a0“That leads to couples\u00a0dividing their responsibilities in response to tax rules, not according to any principles of fairness they themselves had agreed on,” Allmendinger said.<\/p>\n

In her view, this is where policymakers must step in and take action. If the goal really is equality, she said, then such tax concessions need to be abolished. Allmendinger is not the only one to voice criticism:\u00a0Germany’s approach to splitting married couples’ income has been hotly debated in recent years.<\/p>\n

Germany’s East-West divide<\/h2>\n

When it comes to gender equality, Germany still shows a clear East-West divide. In the eastern German states \u2014 the area that used to be in\u00a0the German Democratic Republic (GDR)<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 fewer women work part time, and career breaks tend to be shorter, even with the usual structural challenges.<\/p>\n

Cultural habits play a big role, Allmendinger said. “In West Germany, the model was the single-earner marriage. A \u2018good family\u2019 was one where the husband worked and the wife didn\u2019t have to \u2014 with the emphasis on \u2018have to,'”\u00a0she said. In the former East, by contrast, it was normal and socially accepted for both parents to work. That legacy still shapes choices today.<\/p>\n

Jutta Allmendinger stands by a sign that says \"Frauen 100\" - \"women 100\"
Allmendinger suggests a 33-hour work week for men and womenImage: Annette Riedl\/dpa\/picture alliance<\/small><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The differences even shows\u00a0up in pensions. Women in the East tend to have smaller gaps in retirement income compared with men;\u00a0in\u00a0West Germany<\/a>, the gap is much wider, reflecting\u00a0different work patterns over a lifetime.<\/p>\n

When it comes to trying to balance career and family, young parents across Germany \u2014 and mothers in particular \u2014 face similar pressures. The strain can be considerable, and that takes its toll, Allmendinger said. Over the past two to three years, she has observed growing polarization among women who are no longer able to manage a constant balancing act. Some are embracing the so-called tradwife\u00a0movement and electing to stay at home full time. Others are focusing solely on their careers and are\u00a0choosing not to have children<\/a>. “While that’s not the majority,” she said, “it’s a growing trend.”<\/p>\n

\n

Iceland: How families are closing the gender care work gap<\/h2>\n

Rethinking working hours<\/h2>\n

What would help to make choices about career and family better for both parents? Allmendinger said\u00a0the solution must be sustainable. The standard 40-hour workweek for everyone, with no concession made for unpaid child care, isn’t realistic, she said; quite the opposite, in fact.<\/p>\n

Allmendinger has proposed a new standard: a\u00a033-hour workweek for all. “My concept is for men to slightly reduce their average working hours, and for women to slightly increase theirs,” she said. “Not only would that not reduce the overall total work volume compared to what we have now,\u00a0it would actually increase it.” In her model, both parents would have the time and flexibility to share child care and household responsibilities.<\/p>\n

Greater flexibility throughout one’s\u00a0career is also essential, she said. “We all know there are phases when you may need to work just 28 hours, and other periods when you can work much more. I think it’s absurd that in Germany the time to start a family coincides with\u00a0the peak phase of career advancement.”<\/p>\n

Child care is another crucial factor, of course \u2014 not just day care centers, but schools, too. “I see more and more women choosing to homeschool their children, because Germany’s school system is getting worse,” she said.<\/p>\n

\n

Who pays the bill? Exploring gender, money & relationships<\/h2>\n

Iceland leads the way<\/h2>\n

Countries such as\u00a0Iceland<\/a>have proved\u00a0that change is possible. For the past 16 years, Iceland has ranked first in the Global Gender Gap Report. In recent years, it has made headlines for studies testing\u00a0shorter working hours.<\/p>\n

Allmendinger said advances in artificial intelligence would make\u00a0reduced\u00a0working hours even more feasible. She points to the growing number of full-time positions that are structured as job-sharing arrangements. “It works marvelously,” she said. “And this would also be a much more sustainable model.” Even if Germany is still struggling to achieve gender equality, she remains optimistic. “In international comparisons, we can see what needs to be done to make things better,”\u00a0she said. “As long as we have those examples, we know the diagnosis isn’t terminal.”<\/p>\n

This article was translated from German and edited by Sarah Hucal.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n

\n

The goal of many young parents in Germany<\/a>\u00a0is for both partners to be able to work, spend time with their children and share household responsibilities.\u00a0In practice, however,\u00a0patterns often persist that favor men in mixed-gender couples. Women\u00a0are still significantly more likely to work part time; men are more frequently the primary earners.<\/p>\n

This imbalance is reflected in the latest gender pay gap data from Germany’s Federal Statistical Office. The figures for 2025 show that the gap remains wide.<\/p>\n

German sociologist Jutta Allmendinger said\u00a0the discrepancy was not for a lack of good intentions. Allmendinger is an honorary professor at Free University of Berlin and sits on several advisory bodies, including the German Ethics Council; she\u00a0served as president of the WZB Berlin Social Science Center until 2024. “When we ask couples what would happen if they had a child now, 80% of men say they would reduce their working hours and they would want an equal split,” Allmendinger said. “In the end, though, things often turn out differently.”<\/p>\n

\"A
Though many couples say they want to share household responsibilities, women often end up bearing the burdenImage: Wavebreak Media LTD\/Zoonar\/picture alliance<\/small><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Financial incentives send the wrong signal<\/h2>\n

There are several reasons why traditional divisions of labor in the home persist.\u00a0One is the fact that men still earn more than women on average. That means that women are more likely to take parental leave or shift to part-time work, which incidentally makes\u00a0them less likely to advance into leadership positionsk. What’s more, Germany’s tax system favors married couples in which one partner earns significantly more than the other.\u00a0“That leads to couples\u00a0dividing their responsibilities in response to tax rules, not according to any principles of fairness they themselves had agreed on,” Allmendinger said.<\/p>\n

In her view, this is where policymakers must step in and take action. If the goal really is equality, she said, then such tax concessions need to be abolished. Allmendinger is not the only one to voice criticism:\u00a0Germany’s approach to splitting married couples’ income has been hotly debated in recent years.<\/p>\n

Germany’s East-West divide<\/h2>\n

When it comes to gender equality, Germany still shows a clear East-West divide. In the eastern German states \u2014 the area that used to be in\u00a0the German Democratic Republic (GDR)<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 fewer women work part time, and career breaks tend to be shorter, even with the usual structural challenges.<\/p>\n

Cultural habits play a big role, Allmendinger said. “In West Germany, the model was the single-earner marriage. A \u2018good family\u2019 was one where the husband worked and the wife didn\u2019t have to \u2014 with the emphasis on \u2018have to,'”\u00a0she said. In the former East, by contrast, it was normal and socially accepted for both parents to work. That legacy still shapes choices today.<\/p>\n

Jutta Allmendinger stands by a sign that says \"Frauen 100\" - \"women 100\"
Allmendinger suggests a 33-hour work week for men and womenImage: Annette Riedl\/dpa\/picture alliance<\/small><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The differences even shows\u00a0up in pensions. Women in the East tend to have smaller gaps in retirement income compared with men;\u00a0in\u00a0West Germany<\/a>, the gap is much wider, reflecting\u00a0different work patterns over a lifetime.<\/p>\n

When it comes to trying to balance career and family, young parents across Germany \u2014 and mothers in particular \u2014 face similar pressures. The strain can be considerable, and that takes its toll, Allmendinger said. Over the past two to three years, she has observed growing polarization among women who are no longer able to manage a constant balancing act. Some are embracing the so-called tradwife\u00a0movement and electing to stay at home full time. Others are focusing solely on their careers and are\u00a0choosing not to have children<\/a>. “While that’s not the majority,” she said, “it’s a growing trend.”<\/p>\n

\n

Iceland: How families are closing the gender care work gap<\/h2>\n

Rethinking working hours<\/h2>\n

What would help to make choices about career and family better for both parents? Allmendinger said\u00a0the solution must be sustainable. The standard 40-hour workweek for everyone, with no concession made for unpaid child care, isn’t realistic, she said; quite the opposite, in fact.<\/p>\n

Allmendinger has proposed a new standard: a\u00a033-hour workweek for all. “My concept is for men to slightly reduce their average working hours, and for women to slightly increase theirs,” she said. “Not only would that not reduce the overall total work volume compared to what we have now,\u00a0it would actually increase it.” In her model, both parents would have the time and flexibility to share child care and household responsibilities.<\/p>\n

Greater flexibility throughout one’s\u00a0career is also essential, she said. “We all know there are phases when you may need to work just 28 hours, and other periods when you can work much more. I think it’s absurd that in Germany the time to start a family coincides with\u00a0the peak phase of career advancement.”<\/p>\n

Child care is another crucial factor, of course \u2014 not just day care centers, but schools, too. “I see more and more women choosing to homeschool their children, because Germany’s school system is getting worse,” she said.<\/p>\n

\n

Who pays the bill? Exploring gender, money & relationships<\/h2>\n

Iceland leads the way<\/h2>\n

Countries such as\u00a0Iceland<\/a>have proved\u00a0that change is possible. For the past 16 years, Iceland has ranked first in the Global Gender Gap Report. In recent years, it has made headlines for studies testing\u00a0shorter working hours.<\/p>\n

Allmendinger said advances in artificial intelligence would make\u00a0reduced\u00a0working hours even more feasible. She points to the growing number of full-time positions that are structured as job-sharing arrangements. “It works marvelously,” she said. “And this would also be a much more sustainable model.” Even if Germany is still struggling to achieve gender equality, she remains optimistic. “In international comparisons, we can see what needs to be done to make things better,”\u00a0she said. “As long as we have those examples, we know the diagnosis isn’t terminal.”<\/p>\n

This article was translated from German and edited by Sarah Hucal.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

The goal of many young parents in Germany<\/a>\u00a0is for both partners to be able to work, spend time with their children and share household responsibilities.\u00a0In practice, however,\u00a0patterns often persist that favor men in mixed-gender couples. Women\u00a0are still significantly more likely to work part time; men are more frequently the primary earners.<\/p>\n

This imbalance is reflected in the latest gender pay gap data from Germany’s Federal Statistical Office. The figures for 2025 show that the gap remains wide.<\/p>\n

German sociologist Jutta Allmendinger said\u00a0the discrepancy was not for a lack of good intentions. Allmendinger is an honorary professor at Free University of Berlin and sits on several advisory bodies, including the German Ethics Council; she\u00a0served as president of the WZB Berlin Social Science Center until 2024. “When we ask couples what would happen if they had a child now, 80% of men say they would reduce their working hours and they would want an equal split,” Allmendinger said. “In the end, though, things often turn out differently.”<\/p>\n

There are several reasons why traditional divisions of labor in the home persist.\u00a0One is the fact that men still earn more than women on average. That means that women are more likely to take parental leave or shift to part-time work, which incidentally makes\u00a0them less likely to advance into leadership positionsk. What’s more, Germany’s tax system favors married couples in which one partner earns significantly more than the other.\u00a0“That leads to couples\u00a0dividing their responsibilities in response to tax rules, not according to any principles of fairness they themselves had agreed on,” Allmendinger said.<\/p>\n

In her view, this is where policymakers must step in and take action. If the goal really is equality, she said, then such tax concessions need to be abolished. Allmendinger is not the only one to voice criticism:\u00a0Germany’s approach to splitting married couples’ income has been hotly debated in recent years.<\/p>\n

When it comes to gender equality, Germany still shows a clear East-West divide. In the eastern German states \u2014 the area that used to be in\u00a0the German Democratic Republic (GDR)<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 fewer women work part time, and career breaks tend to be shorter, even with the usual structural challenges.<\/p>\n

Cultural habits play a big role, Allmendinger said. “In West Germany, the model was the single-earner marriage. A \u2018good family\u2019 was one where the husband worked and the wife didn\u2019t have to \u2014 with the emphasis on \u2018have to,'”\u00a0she said. In the former East, by contrast, it was normal and socially accepted for both parents to work. That legacy still shapes choices today.<\/p>\n

The differences even shows\u00a0up in pensions. Women in the East tend to have smaller gaps in retirement income compared with men;\u00a0in\u00a0West Germany<\/a>, the gap is much wider, reflecting\u00a0different work patterns over a lifetime.<\/p>\n

When it comes to trying to balance career and family, young parents across Germany \u2014 and mothers in particular \u2014 face similar pressures. The strain can be considerable, and that takes its toll, Allmendinger said. Over the past two to three years, she has observed growing polarization among women who are no longer able to manage a constant balancing act. Some are embracing the so-called tradwife\u00a0movement and electing to stay at home full time. Others are focusing solely on their careers and are\u00a0choosing not to have children<\/a>. “While that’s not the majority,” she said, “it’s a growing trend.”<\/p>\n

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video<\/a><\/p>\n

What would help to make choices about career and family better for both parents? Allmendinger said\u00a0the solution must be sustainable. The standard 40-hour workweek for everyone, with no concession made for unpaid child care, isn’t realistic, she said; quite the opposite, in fact.<\/p>\n

Allmendinger has proposed a new standard: a\u00a033-hour workweek for all. “My concept is for men to slightly reduce their average working hours, and for women to slightly increase theirs,” she said. “Not only would that not reduce the overall total work volume compared to what we have now,\u00a0it would actually increase it.” In her model, both parents would have the time and flexibility to share child care and household responsibilities.<\/p>\n

Greater flexibility throughout one’s\u00a0career is also essential, she said. “We all know there are phases when you may need to work just 28 hours, and other periods when you can work much more. I think it’s absurd that in Germany the time to start a family coincides with\u00a0the peak phase of career advancement.”<\/p>\n

Child care is another crucial factor, of course \u2014 not just day care centers, but schools, too. “I see more and more women choosing to homeschool their children, because Germany’s school system is getting worse,” she said.<\/p>\n

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video<\/a><\/p>\n

Countries such as\u00a0Iceland<\/a>have proved\u00a0that change is possible. For the past 16 years, Iceland has ranked first in the Global Gender Gap Report. In recent years, it has made headlines for studies testing\u00a0shorter working hours.<\/p>\n

Allmendinger said advances in artificial intelligence would make\u00a0reduced\u00a0working hours even more feasible. She points to the growing number of full-time positions that are structured as job-sharing arrangements. “It works marvelously,” she said. “And this would also be a much more sustainable model.” Even if Germany is still struggling to achieve gender equality, she remains optimistic. “In international comparisons, we can see what needs to be done to make things better,”\u00a0she said. “As long as we have those examples, we know the diagnosis isn’t terminal.”<\/p>\n

This article was translated from German and edited by Sarah Hucal.<\/em><\/p>\n

[analyse_source url=”https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/international-womens-day-workplace-equality-needs-action\/a-76210160″]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/76183492_6.jpg”] https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/59lk8 Image: Markus Schreiber\/AP Photo\/picture alliance The goal of many young parents in Germany\u00a0is for both partners to be able to work, spend time with their children and share household responsibilities.\u00a0In practice, however,\u00a0patterns often persist that favor men in mixed-gender couples. Women\u00a0are still significantly more likely to work part time; men are […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[226,74],"class_list":["post-1814155","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-crawlmanager","tag-dw-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1814155","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1814155"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1814155\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1814155"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1814155"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1814155"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}