A structural look at the employment of women with young children shows that this group is marginalized in the labour market when it is unable or only with difficulty is able to find employment in the labour market, as the current labour market revolves around the principle of independent, fully flexible individuals unencumbered by any obligations outside work. What significance in their lives do these women ascribe to being mothers and what significance do they assign to work? How does the perception of the relationship between work and family influence how they define for themselves the combination of these two spheres of life? How does this group of women see their opportunities for finding work in the labour market? Answers to these questions were sought from an analysis of 29 semi-structured interviews carried out in 2006 with women on parental leave or women just returning to work from leave, who had taken a requalification course. Their view is the view from “below”, which is a legitimate one, but given that it mainly relates to their own experiences or the experiences of others in their social surroundings there may be limitations to it. The potential limitations in this view are pointed out in the article’s conclusion., Hana Maříková., and Obsahuje bibliografii
In a European comparison, the Czech Republic is one of the countries where motherhood has the biggest negative impact on women’s employment participation. Some researchers explain this situation as resulting from Czech mothers’ preferences for a long-term interruption to their labour market participation. Others stress that preferences are structurally and culturally embedded and identify barriers to the return of Czech mothers to the labour market. In this article, the author first introduces a critique of the theories that focus on preferences in work-life balance studies. Second, inspired by the critique and based on a representative survey of the Czech adult population from 2010 focused on life course histories, the author analyses changes in the length of women’s employment interruptions caused by motherhood since the 1950s and describes the current refamilization model applied in Czech society. Subsequent analysis of biographical interviews with mothers of small children provides an insight into their decision-making about returning to the labour market, and the analysis also shows that statistical evidence of the increase in the economic inactivity of Czech mothers often relates to their involvement in unpaid or unofficially paid economic activities. These strategies are the result of their structurally and culturally constrained decision-making and limited opportunities to achieve work-life balance. At the end of the day, these factors strengthen long-term gender inequalities in the society., Hana Hašková., 3 tabulky, Poznámky na str. 39 (11), Biografická poznámka o autorce článku na str. 52, Obsahuje bibliografii, and Resumé o klíčová slova anglicky na str. 40
The article provides information on parental leave taken by fathers in the Czech Republic in comparison with the situation in other European countries. Above all, a concrete assessment based on the experience of families in which men have already taken advantage of parental leave are described; only briefly are mentioned attitudes of Czech parents generally towards parental leave taken by fathers. It introduces life-style of Czech families with fathers using parental leave on the basis of conducted qualitative research. The main stress is put on the actors´ point of view, which is presented in relation with broader social context, especially in the field of gender roles and reconciliation of family and work life. As an example, one case study was presented to point out the trends of new fatherhood and life-style of the families where father is taking parental leave. It has been found that families in which fathers have used parental leave for some period of time appreciate the experience on the whole.