By Barbara Matera MEP - 7th December 2011
The major problem, if the European Union does not intervene to help this category of women, is the high risk of poverty and social exclusion to which single mothers are exposed
Barbara Matera MEP
Barbara Matera is calling on the EU to do more to support Europe’s single mothers.
The report on the situation of single mothers in Europe, adopted in October’s Strasbourg plenary session is intended to identify measures to support a neglected group of women.
The perceptions and policies regarding single mothers are different in different European countries, but I would like to highlight a fact that in my view cannot be underestimated: at the moment, five per cent of the female population is made up of single mothers, and in some member states including Estonia and Latvia, this percentage is as high as nine per cent.
Single mothers are often falsely stigmatised as irresponsible young girls; in fact, 85 per cent of them are aged between 25 and 64.
The measures identified in this report are aimed at vulnerable women who have not chosen to be single mothers, for example priority access to day-care, to temporary accommodation, or to some form of part-time work to give them a better balance between work and family life.
We also need to introduce financial breaks for businesses that offer facilities for children on their premises or more flexible working terms so that single mothers can look after their children. Single mothers are a neglected demographic group.
Geographically throughout Europe, perceptions and policies regarding single mothers are different. In Southern Mediterranean countries (Italy, Portugal, Spain, Greece), it is generally accepted that the extended family will contribute to the upbringing of children of single-parent families on a voluntary basis, without any payment.
In Northern and Nordic countries (France, Sweden, Germany, Denmark) government welfare systems are in place to help single mothers with social service benefits and policies. In eastern European countries there is a mix of policies, some connected to the strong family values of communist regimes, and some with a combination of policies from the north and south of Europe.
The health of single mothers is statistically less stable than that of married women. Single mothers are under more stress because they have duties normally covered by two parents. They can often not afford adequate medical care, and neither do they have enough time to rest.
Statistically, single mothers throughout Europe are not as well educated as their married counterparts, and so their employment opportunities are seriously compromised. Many of the jobs available for single mothers are often only part-time positions with low pay rates.
The major problem, if the European Union does not intervene to help this category of women, is the high risk of poverty and social exclusion to which single mothers are exposed.
It is important that the EU sends a strong message in support of this category of women who are all too often overlooked.
Barbara Matera was parliament's rapporteur on an own-initiative report on the situation of single mothers
