Family and work in France: innovative experiences in care services

Blanche Le Bihan (1) , Claude Martin (1)

1 ARENES - Arènes: politique, santé publique, environnement, médias

In the work / life balance debate, France is generally considered as one of the more « family friendly » European Welfare State, between the universal regime of the Scandinavian countries, where public services are the main childcare providers, and the corporatist ones, characterized by a compromise between market, third sector and family solidarity as the way to conciliate family responsibilities and work life. Nevertheless, France is confronted with important challenges: one of the highest fertility rate and female labour force participation in Europe, a high division of caring and domestic tasks between genders, a more and more flexible labour market with atypical working hours compared to a standardized offer of childcare services. After a short presentation of the main characteristics of the French childcare system, this chapter focuses on local experimentations that aim to complement this formal offer of services toward parents confronted to non-standard hours of work.

Mots clés: family; work; reconciliation; family policy

Domaines: Sociologie; Science politique

Blanche Le Bihan, Claude Martin. Family and work in France: innovative experiences in care services. Giovanni Rossi. Reconciling Family and Work: New Challenges for Social Policies in Europe, Franco Angeli, pp.101-118, 2006, 9788846475954. ⟨halshs-01297178⟩