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THE DEVELOPMENT OF EU EQUALITY POLICIES: BUREAUCRATIC EXPANSION ON BEHALF OF WOMEN?
Author(s) -
MAZEY SONIA
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
public administration
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.313
H-Index - 93
eISSN - 1467-9299
pISSN - 0033-3298
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-9299.1995.tb00848.x
Subject(s) - parliament , commission , legislation , bureaucracy , public administration , scope (computer science) , opposition (politics) , political science , european commission , european union , law , economics , economic policy , politics , computer science , programming language
This article critically evaluates the impact of European Community equal opportunities policies on behalf of women. It is argued that the European Commission, supported by the European Parliament, women's organizations and European Court rulings, has consciously sought to extend the scope of Community legislation and policies in this sector. The article highlights the various strategies used by the Commission in pursuit of this objective, including the cultivation by the Commission of a number of policy networks which are actively involved in the formulation and monitoring of EU equal opportunities policies. A central theme of the article is the growing opposition to further EC legislation in this sector among employers and some national governments. In this situation, the Commission has been forced to adopt alternative 'soft’policy instruments.