Pledge 6 – Vienna

On 8 January 2019, Vienna became the 6th city to sign a pledge to the EU Pillar of Social Rights with a strong commitment to principle 2 on gender equality.

Vienna has a long-standing tradition of gender equality policies for over 25 years. Equality between women and men is a key priority mainstreamed in all areas of the city administration, including human resources, urban planning, education, women’s health and labour market policies.

Vienna is committed to continue and step up its work for gender equality by investing in:

• A fifth safe shelter for women and children who have experienced domestic violence (to be built in 2020 with 50 places).
• Advice centres with 24-hour women’s emergency helpline.
• Free childcare for all children from birth to six years of age (currently 90% of children aged 3-6 attend childcare) with a focus on gender-sensitive education.
• Support participation of over 3,000 girls and 160 businesses each year to the ‘Take Our Daughters to Work Day’ to empower girls from an early age to overcome gender-role stereotypes and explore careers in all fields of work.
• Vienna Employment Promotion Fund supports women to enhance their skills and qualifications.
• Vienna Business Agency supports career development of women in traditionally male-dominated sectors by granting bonuses for women in top jobs.
• Integrating gender clauses in public procurement

Vienna’s councillor for women’s issues and housing, Kathrin Gaal, stated: “We are convinced that we can only achieve equality if it is perceived as a cross-cutting topic that concerns us all. In the next years, we will focus on gender and digitisation, working with girls and boys to overcome gender stereotyping and taking prevention efforts to achieve equality in the labour market”.