Gender aspects of economic transition: attitude towards female labour participation in the new member states of the European Union

Studies show that – compared to Western European Economies – women played a major role in the labour force of Eastern European Countries before the transformation process started. The question that arises is whether the position of female workers has changed throughout the transformation process and converged to a more western profile of female work participation with a stronger emphasis on household work and part-time work. According to the level of development and the kind of transformation process conduced, the New Member States are divided into four subgroups. Employment gap, wage gap and recognition gap serve as indicators for the quality and quantity of female labour participation.