Gender mainstreaming childcare policy: barriers in a Confucian welfare society

Abstract

This paper examines the extent to which the influence of Confucianism on the welfare of women erects barriers to the gender mainstreaming (GM) of childcare policy in Hong Kong. GM is a global strategy adopted by the Beijing World Conference on Women in 1995. Adopting a context-sensitive approach in understanding the translation of the international concept of GM in the policy formation and practice in Hong Kong, we find that the Confucian welfare model has profound impact on women's welfare and the effectiveness of GM in Hong Kong. First, childcare support for the family is far from adequate due to the perception of childcare as the individual family's responsibility rather than as a citizen right. Second, the gender-neutral discourse commonly accepted by the policy-makers in Hong Kong reflects the inadequate gender-sensitivity training of government officials. Third, GM has been “watered down” as a technical tool instead of transforming gender inequality in the society.

Is cash allowance a way to ease child care burden? Views of carers in Hong Kong

“…Providing financial assistance to carers who care for children may be possible but still has a long way to go. Leung (2014) explains that gender mainstreaming child care policy requires three social factors, namely, welfare orientation, gender sensitivity of policymakers and political commitment of the government in policymaking processes.…”

Using defamilisation typologies to study the Confucian welfare regime

“…Moreover, she points out that married women in South Korea are commonly expected to be more responsible for caring for their parents-in-law rather than their own parents (Sung, 2014). The Confucian ideas are to some extent reinforced by government policies (Leung, 2014;Walker & Wong, 2005). In Hong Kong, there is no provision of parental leave.…”

“…Studies show that East Asian women still bear the major caring responsibilities in the family (Chau & Yu, 2013;Leung, 2014;Sung & Pascall, 2014;Wu, 2014). For example, Sung and Pascall (2014) point out that men in South Korea spend only around a fifth of the time spent by women on unpaid work.…”

Defamilisation and familisation measures: Can they reduce the adverse effects of pro-market pension reforms on women in Hong Kong and the UK?

“…Owing to their commitment to domestic roles, it is not unusual for women in Hong Kong to have a long career break or change to work on a part-time basis after marriage. Women aged between 25 and 29 years have the highest rates of labour force participation indicating that relationship status and children have long-term implications for their employment status (Leung, 2014). Disrupted career trajectories give women less chance to earn as much as men.…”

“…The most important public care services for very young children are those provided by day childcare centres and the Neighbourhood Service Community Care Project. However, Leung (2014) provided evidence showing that these services are generally not effective in meeting working parents' needs. Most of the day childcare centres close by 6:00 pm.…”