LH Deputy Astrid Eisenkopf: What has been achieved is impressive – some adjustments still need to be made
March 8th is International Women’s Day – the day that represents women’s long struggle for equal participation in a just society. “On the one hand, it is impressive what has been achieved in the area of women’s policy in recent years, but on the other hand, some adjustments still need to be made in order to eliminate inequalities,” said Eisenkopf. LH Deputy Astrid Eisenkopf took International Women’s Day as an opportunity to take stock two years after the presentation of the Burgenland women’s strategy with the FH Burgenland. At the same time, current figures and facts from the Burgenland Women’s Report 2024, which will be published soon, were also presented. The report analyzes the living situations of women and girls in Burgenland and is a good data basis for further women’s policy work in the country.
Positive effects for women through measures in Burgenland
With initiatives such as the introduction of the minimum wage, the free kindergarten or the employment model for caring relatives, groundbreaking measures have been brought to life in recent years that at first glance do not seem like “women’s projects” – but have many positive effects specifically for women. Because they are the ones who benefit above average from political initiatives that have been implemented in Burgenland, explained Eisenkopf. A significant impact of these measures can be seen in the gender pay gap: Burgenland takes second place in a federal state ranking, which can be attributed to the very good childcare options or the introduction of the minimum wage.
In the area of violence prevention, Eisenkopf calls for better support from the federal government. Burgenland has put the women’s shelter on a long-term, secure footing and has massively expanded the range of services in the women’s advice centers. As a further milestone, the “Burgenland Action Plan against Violence” was presented in April 2023, in the development of which all organizations active in violence protection in Burgenland were involved.
Burgenland Women’s Report 2024
“In order to continue working on measures for women and girls in Burgenland, we still need a well-founded and meaningful basis that analyzes the current situation of women in Burgenland and from which necessary political steps can be derived,” said the state governor. Deputy. The FH Burgenland – specifically the Department of Social Affairs – was commissioned to prepare the women’s report. The new, sixth Burgenland women’s report is scheduled to be presented in 2024. “The women’s report creates good data on a scientific basis in order to determine future areas of social action,” said Elke Szalai from the Department of Social Affairs at the Burgenland University of Applied Sciences, who presented the first results at the press conference.
Selected central topics in the women’s report:
- Childcare quota in Burgenland. In a federal state comparison, Burgenland far exceeds the childcare rates in western Austria.
- Part-time quota for women: Burgenland is better positioned in this area than the other federal states.
- Pension gap: In Burgenland, the income of women in retirement is around 10,000 euros less than that of men.
- Unemployment and income: Studies broken down specifically by gender and age are presented by district in the report.
Measures already implemented
Eisenkopf also presented measures that have already been implemented in the women’s strategy, which are intended to help enable women and girls in Burgenland to lead a self-determined and equal life.
Examples of this are:
- Qualification measures in the areas of digital skills, financial education, personality and health education as well as coaching
- Female founder projects
- “Income and women’s poverty” – financial education workshops entitled “Let’s talk about money”
- MINT area with “Mach MINT website”, “Mach MI(N)T workshops” and researchers’ day
- “Unique. Particularly. Father’s leave” – information about the general conditions and advantages of father’s leave
- Girls’ advice center MonA-Net – gender equality and gender-sensitive career orientation in kindergarten
- Project “Women and Participation in Southern Burgenland”
- Burgenland action plan against violence
- KO drop information campaign
- Feminina – information centers for women’s health in Burgenland: with projects on “Mental Health of Women” and “Body Images”
You can find more detailed information about the women’s strategy “Equal*into the Future” in the link here!
Photo for download: Int_Frauentag_2024_001
Am Foto (v.l.n.r.): Claudia Maier, BA, MA (Head of Gender & Diversity, FH Burgenland), DI.in Elke Szalai, MA (Department of Social Affairs, FH Burgenland) and LH Deputy Mag.a Astrid Eisenkopf.
Image source: Burgenland State Media Service
Mag. Christian Frasz, March 7, 2024
Burgenland State Media Service
7000 Eisenstadt, country house, Europaplatz 1
Tel: 02682/600-2134
Fax: 02682/600-2278
post.oa-presse(at)bgld.gv.at