The time credit system: the panacea for a lifecourse approach?
(2019) Parental leave and beyond: recent international developments, current issues, future directions — ISBN: [978-1447338772], published
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- Abstract
- This chapter focuses on a type of leave system that developed in Belgium from the mid-1980s on, and discusses in particular its developments since the year 2000. The ‘career break’ system (later renamed the ‘time credit’ system in the private sector) gradually extended and developed into an opportunity for employees to develop in principle a kind of time management over the entirety of their working life course. The chapter starts by examining the introduction of this system in Belgium, including the political rhetoric and the narratives legitimizing the initial measure and its subsequent adaptations, and its stated aims and objectives. The use made of this type of leave is also examined. The chapter then considers various inequalities within the time credit system, with a specific focus on gender, age, region of residence, migrants, and labour market positioning. The conclusion reflects on current (and growing) inequalities in access to the time credit system due to the weakening of the wage society, and the challenge of creating a more inclusive system, not only in terms of gender, but also class, employment status and ethnicity.
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