GCU 114 Status of Women in Finland While Finland can be considered a very forward thinking country because of their

concern with the environment and the welfare of their people, it was only in the last twenty-five years or so that a law ensuring gender equality was passed. Since then, the amount of women working has been on the rise. Currently, women make up 52% of the workforce in Finland. This is a bit higher that the average for the European Union in which women makes up 45% of the workforce. Finland strives to take care of its people and gender equality has become a major priority. The Act on Equality between Women and Men was passed in 1987 and has three major goals. The first is the prevention of sex discrimination. The second is the promotion of equality between women and men. The third is the improvement of womens status, especially in working life. Other measures have been taken to ensure fairness in the workplace for women. In 1992, it was prohibited to discriminate based on pregnancy or family care responsibilities. Another measure passed in 1995 was to make all employers with a workforce of thirty people or more are asked to include opportunities to promote equality in training programs and that each sex should be represented in the workplace with the amount of either sex being no less than forty percent. While there have been many additions to law that make it easier for women to work, there is still a large disparity when it comes to part time employment. More than double the amount of women only work part time compared to men in Finland. This can

have an effect on their incomes as well as social security and pensions. The chart below shows the differences for all member of the EU. Finland is shown near the middle represented by FI.

Women in Finland were granted suffrage in 1906 and in the beginning they lagged behind men in terms of voter turnout and candidates for election. This has changed since then and in the 2004 elections, voter turnout among women was four percent higher than men. Even though women have been coming out to vote, they still continue to win fewer seats than men. The chart below shows the difference between men and women in terms of seats in Parliament. Finland is better than average but the number is still low. This is especially concerning when the fact that Finland has a higher population of men to women is taken into account.

Despite there still being some areas where men still outshine women, Finnish women have a very way of life compared to women in other parts of the world. The status of women in Finland will continue to improve so long as the Finnish government keeps it an important social issue and women continue to permeate the workforce.

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2. Overview of gender equality issues in Finland. (n.d.). Overview of gender equality issues
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3. Employment in Europe 2010 - EU. (n.d.). Employment in Europe 2010 - EU. Retrieved
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4. Hellsten, V. (n.d.). Centenary of women's political rights in Finland. Centenary of

women's full political rights in Finland. Retrieved October 23, 2013, from http://www.helsinki.fi/sukupuolentutkimus/aanioikeus/en/statistics/elections.htm

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http://www.portrayingpolitics.net/research.php

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