Ekonomski položaj žena u Hrvatskoj
Economic Status of Women in Croatia

Summary/Abstract: The author questions the economic status of women in Croatia analyzing numerous statistical data from the 2001 census in Croatia. By means of correlating the earned income, pension, education, employment and unemployment, the author concludes with the fact that women are in a far more unfavorable position. She also presents the results of a research conducted in Zagreb in 2003 entitled Sexual Non-Discrimination and the Equality of Wages, which shows the significant inequality in wages up to 13% to the disadvantage of women. These results also point to the inequality in employment access (again at the expense of women), as well as to little chances for full-time employment, especially in private firms. It ends with the information that the work of women is far less valued than the work of men. The project instuments show the impossibility of explaining the gender difference in wages even in superior firms/institutions. In such Croatian firms, which spare no joint working and organizational effort, these differences are not so dramatic but they are important for almost all factors that were analyzed - ownership, skills and education structure. These differences are much bigger in the society. A greater business involvement of women is an economic necessity and not just a factual issue of equality of sexes and chances and women's emancipation, due to the growing age of the working class. It is an estimation that approximately one-fifth of the yearly growth of the GDP, out of 2,3% in the European Union, is due to the growth of women's business activities. However, there are hardly any public policies that could grant privileges to employed family members, help balancing business and family responsibilities, alleviate reintegration in business sector after absence from the labor market, etc. Women in Croatia should definitely incline towards Zagreb and its surroundings, since women living on islands or in rural areas have even less chances for employment. The position of women on some labor markets is almost without prospects and demands a more involved commitment of regional and national authorities. An employed woman in Croatia often earns insufficiently for covering basic life human needs. A guaranteed principle of equality of wages regardless of gender is yet to be incorporated. The current differences in wages are apparent, but it is not completely clear as to what extent they are gender-conditioned. It is therefore much to be done: it is necessary to stop the current employment and unemployment trends, underpayment of women's labor, inadequacy of national and private (financially accessible) services, further deterioration of social welfare networks. Otherwise, women could expect an even worse tomorrow.

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