The standard MP’s job description might appear gender-neutral, but as research conducted for the global survey Gender-sensitive parliaments suggests, this is not the case. Particular aspects of the parliamentary routine and infrastructure affect men and women members in different ways.

Like any other place of work, parliaments need to adapt to the needs of their workforce. Increasing numbers of young parliamentarians starting families are lobbying for parliaments to consider the introduction of childcare facilities and flexible working hours, so that parents can balance work and family life more easily.

The greatest gender equality challenge highlighted by respondents was the extent to which both men and women parliamentarians are able to balance work and family obligations. An unfortunate side effect of a parliament’s peculiar and hectic work schedules is that members have less time to spend with their families. While difficult for men, it was widely agreed, this situation is doubly so for women members.

“A prerequisite for parliamentary work is that you are single and childless. If I had not been able to devote all my time to my work, as I do now, it would have been very disadvantageous.” Woman parliamentarian, Sweden

“[Work/life] balance?! I try to spend as much quality time as I can with my children, and it does mean that there are some party events that I say no to. And there are some who say, ‘where’s your dedication?’ And I say, ‘well, you know, my dedication is to my family as well as my party and my country’, and I think you have to have that balance.” Man parliamentarian, New Zealand

Parliaments are beginning to make family-friendly changes, but slowly. Parliamentarians tended to regard their parliaments’ sitting hours as slightly above “average”, but in fact, parliaments have not always taken steps to make their hours more family-friendly. Fewer than 40 per cent of the parliaments surveyed align sitting schedules with the school calendar, for example. Few parliaments allow their members to spend more time in their districts, to be closer to their families, or have discontinued night sittings in favour of more “flexible” hours. Some good practices, however, do exist. The Parliament of Denmark, for example, does not allow voting after 7 p.m. on sitting days and in Spain, plenary sessions take place on Tuesday afternoons until 9 p.m. and on Wednesday and Thursday mornings.

It is encouraging to see that childcare centres on parliamentary premises are becoming more common. Just over 20 per cent of the parliaments surveyed noted that there was a childcare facility on site. Where these exist, however, it has been because of sustained pressure exerted mostly by women.

Maternity and paternity leave are provided to varying extents across parliaments. While members of some parliaments do not benefit from maternity or paternity leave at all, those that do often enjoy the same conditions as prescribed for all government officials, under national law. In all countries where it is offered, paternity leave is much shorter than maternity leave.

Policy tends to be inconsistent on whether an MP on maternity or paternity leave should be replaced for the period of absence. The principle of temporarily replacing a person for the duration of (entitled) leave has worked well for many paid positions, but its application to the world of competitive politics is not quite as straightforward. Parliamentarians fight for their positions, and it is not easy to simply transfer their responsibilities to others.

Ultimately, work-family life balance remains more of an aspiration than a reality. When asked how parliament could contribute to improving the reconciliation of work and family life, parliamentarians tended to focus more on the private sphere than on measures that could be taken at the parliamentary level.

“I think that women have moved from the private to the public sphere, with very little help and very little cooperation from men. As long as there is no shared responsibility between men and women [in both private and public spheres], it will be complicated.” Woman parliamentarian, Spain