Elainna Simpson

Dr. Grinde

Cross-Cultural Psychology

3/27/2020

Region Journal #1: Gender in the Czech Republic

From what I have learned so far about the Czech Republic (Czechia) is that it appears to be very

traditional and rooted in family. For this reason, I decided to research gender in their culture. Czechia

may seem like an equal country, yet there appears to be hidden discrimination against women. This

discrimination is due to their long-time emphasis on traditional gender roles that are still evident today.

When comparing the Czechia’s gender equality score to the rest of the European Union (EU), the Czech

Republic is 6th to last out of 28 countries. Most of the other countries in the bottom 6 appear to have an

increasing level of gender equality, but Czechia’s score has stayed constant since 2005 (Spark, 2017).

This data represents the gender inequality within the Czech Republic and how despite some efforts,

there is little change over the years in their culture within terms of gender.

Czechia’s gender roles are ingrained in their society so much that it is affecting gender equality

in the workplace. There are very sexist standards from their society where males are the primary

breadwinners and that women are meant to take care of the home, family, and the needy. These jobs

are primarily unpaid work that can then affect the income of women (Krchova, 2015; Spark, 2017). Yet,

to be a modern woman, Czechia females are expected to have a job but also maintain their housewife

duties (Krchova, 2015). These trends are also seen in the European Institute of Gender Equality Index for

2017, where 67% of Czech women do at least one hour of cooking and housework a day and only 16% of

Czech men reported the same. Couples who have children reported that 70% of women are involved in

their child’s daily care, in comparison to only 48% of the men (“European Institute of Gender Equality

Index for 2017”, 2018). If Czechia women do have jobs, the same gender roles still apply to what jobs

they are most likely to pursue and receive. About 24% of Czechia women have jobs in education, human
health, and social work activities, compared to only 5% of Czech men. Work within STEM occupations is

highly comprised of men (44%) compared to only 9% of Czech women (“European Institute of Gender

Equality Index for 2017”, 2018). This gender role difference is thought to stem from the country’s heavy

influence on the family, so much that it often takes precedence over their social lives (Tori, 2017). To

supplement this gender role disparity, women in the Czech Republic often take a long maternity leave

where they have the choice to stay 1-4 years at home with their child (Expatova, 2017; Tori, 2017). One

blogger, who is from the US but now lives in Czechia with her family, shares the discrimination she often

receives from the Czech people, particularly Czech mothers. She communicates this through a quote

onto her blog, “‘But surely you're not on the way to work?' one of our neighbors asked me last week, as

Smallest and I waited for the bus. 'And full time? No, he's much too young.' [Looking at Smallest and

sucking at her teeth.]” (Smallest is what she calls her youngest son on her blog). It is not only her

neighbor that is disdainful, but she states she has lost count of people from all areas of her life who are

“loudly shocked and disapproving” of her decision to work. This constant judgment has caused her

negative feelings and to even question her mothering (Expatova, 2017).

Due to the gender differences within careers in the Czech Republic, there is also a large gender

pay-gap that affects the demographics who usually experience poverty. Since men are more likely to

have jobs in STEM, the government, and other top employment positions they often have economic

superiority compared to women (Spark, 2017). The gender pay gap for Czechia is 6% behind the rest of

the EU and women earn around 23% less than men per month, the struggle for equality in Czechia is

clear (“European Institute of Gender Equality Index for 2017”, 2018; Tori, 2017). The extended maternity

leave can have large effects on economic independence and often causes women to become

economically dependent on their husbands. This can cause a domino effect after a divorce and the

mother becomes the caregiver and the provider. In the article “The Battle for Gender Equality Rages on

in the Czech Republic”, a single Czech mother is interviewed and explains she does not receive any child
support and had recently lost her job because they expected her to work longer hours but she was

unable to as a mother of two kids. The article reports that single mothers are more likely to be in low-

paid work and twice as likely to be unemployed, indicating the struggles that this demographic has on

staying out of poverty. In Czechia, women, in general, are twice as likely to be poor compared to men

(Spark, 2017). Women are unlikely to get a job outside of the stereotypical female jobs that don’t pay

well and even if they were able to get a different job, it is often that there would be a pay gap. These

cultural norms cause a destructive cycle for women where they are unable to choose to be economically

independent or to get out of poverty.

Another common issue for Czech women is violence. The European Institute for Gender Equality

2017 Index (2018) reported that “32% of women have experienced physical and/or sexual violence at

least once since the age of 15” and “17% of women who have experienced physical and/or sexual

violence by any perpetrator in the past 12 months have not told anyone; this is much higher than the EU

average of 13%”. This culture of sexual violence is even more toxic since sometimes in Czechia victims

are seen as co-responsible in rape. The author Marketa Mottlova is quoted in the article “The Battle of

Gender Equality Rages on in the Czech Republic”, “There’s an unwillingness [among government

officials] to recognize that violence is gender-based and mirrors gender relations in society. In most

cases, women are victims and men are perpetrators (Spark, 2017).” Gender discrimination and violence

is an ingrained aspect of the Czech culture that it almost seems normal to them. A blogger from the US

was studying in Prague and was amazed that the Czech Easter celebration involves men whipping

women at the ankles. He said that there seemed to be no harm intended, but states that if he were to

take part in something like this within the US he would have been arrested (Fed, 2017).

Based on my research on the Czech Republic, gender roles and inequality are a large part of

their culture. Yet, this inequality appears to be pretty hidden and women appear to have a lot of the
same rights and abilities as men. A comment on a blog post stated that they live in the Czech Republic

and they have not seen any gender inequality, especially in younger generations, and they claimed that

they should not compare the Czech Republic to the US (Krchova, 2015). Even if these gender differences

do not seem to affect all women, they do need to be corrected for the women that they are hurting. The

Czech Women’s Lobby is working to lobby the government to fix the gender inequality issues, but it is a

slow process (Spark, 2017).

 References

Krchova, A. (2015, February 26). Retrieved from http://akrchovaczech.weebly.com/blog/gender-roles-in-

czech-republic

Fed, A. (2015, April 27). Retrieved from https://blog.foreigners.cz/culture-shock-in-the-czech-republic/

Speak, C. (2017, May 16). The battle for gender equality rages on in the Czech Republic. Retrieved from

https://www.equaltimes.org/the-battle-for-gender-equality#.XnvHnohKg2w

Tori, A. (2017, August 24). Retrieved from https://www.praguepost.com/travel/czech-culture-tips-for-

americans

Expatova. (2017, November 26). Retrieved from http://expatova.blogspot.com/2017/11/dealing-with-

advice-of-others.html

European Institute of Gender Equality. (2018, September 26). Gender Equality Index 2017: Czech

Republic. Retrieved from https://eige.europa.eu/publications/gender-equality-index-2017-czech-

republic