Older people with care needs in Norway during the COVID-19 pandemic

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A Review of Family Demographics and Family Policies in the Nordic Countries

-Family policies in the Nordic countries gain international attention.1 An important reason for this is that they appear to produce good results: the Nordic countries combine comparatively high levels of fertility with high female employment rates and low rates of child poverty. Feminists, anti-poverty activists, and social liberals generally tend to look to the Nordic countries with curiosity and admiration (Lister, 2009). Recently it has also been argued that the Nordic countries not only produce social equality and high levels of living, but also enact active policies targeted at families that enhance productivity and lay the foundation for economic success (e.g. Esping-Andersen, 2002). Such policies simultaneously encourage women to work outside the home, and create good conditions for children’s early education. Working mothers improve economic efficiency, broaden the tax base, and improve household income, thus reducing child poverty. It is hoped that early childhood education will create more equal life chances for children and secure a productive labour force for the future (cf. Esping-Andersen, 2002; Morel, Palier, & Palme, 2012). Whether viewed from the perspective of gender equality, child welfare, or social investment, then, Nordic family policies appear to have some very useful features

Is There a Gender Gap in Support for Distributive Principles in Old Age Pension Schemes?

A number of studies have identified a gender gap in social attitudes, but few have studied the phenomenon in the context of old age pension schemes. Using data from a 2019 Norwegian survey, we examined patterns of support for three distribution principles in pensions (anti-poverty, merit, and equality). Compared to men, women are more supportive of the anti-poverty and equality principles, and less supportive of the merit principle. The gender difference for the anti-poverty principle persists in multivariate analyses, but disappears for the merit and equality principles when we control for socioeconomic factors, particularly income. Analyzing men and women separately revealed that partnership status and health interact with gender. Income however appears to affect men and women equally; high-income women are as likely as high-income men to support the principle of merit and reject the principle of equality.Is There a Gender Gap in Support for Distributive Principles in Old Age Pension Schemes?publishedVersio

Prioritising care services: Do the oldest users lose out?

Population ageing is a major concern in most European countries. Demands for health- and care services will increase, as older people typically have a higher need for such services. What is often overlooked, however, is that older users increasingly compete with younger users for the same limited care resources. We ask: How do employees in the Norwegian care sector make decisions regarding the allocation of services to younger and older users? To answer this question, we interviewed decision-makers in Norwegian municipalities. Despite providing for equal rights to services, laws allow for an interpretation of needs and this can result in the unequal distribution of services. Our study indicates that needs are defined differently for younger and older users, which affects the amount, type and content of the services allocated to younger and older people. When resources are scarce and priorities must be established, the services to the oldest suffer.måsjekke

A REVIEW OF FAMILY DEMOGRAPHICS AND FAMILY POLICIES IN THE NORDIC COUNTRIES

The aim of this article is to review key aspects of family demographics and family policies in Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Iceland, and discuss similarities and differences between the five countries. After a brief historical sketch, some aspect s of family demographics – union formation and dissolution, fertility, and female employment rates – are presented. The main part of the article reviews family policies: family benefits, parental leaves, public child-care and financial support for home-based care. The article ends with a discussion of future challenges for Nordic family policies, and the potential for policy transfer. It is emphasised that the “Nordic model” of family policy is a model with at least four faces: the “low-key” Finnish version, the maximalist equality-and-choice-oriented Norwegian version, the Swedish dual earner/dual carer version and the universal employment-oriented Danish version

Combining Work and Pension in Norway: Gathering Information and Imagining the Future

The Norwegian pension system has provided unprecedented flexibility to combine work and pension drawing from the age of 62, and this has become a popular option. Using qualitative interviews with 28 older workers, we explore their information strategies and motivations. We find that many informants struggle to understand the various options and their consequences and use different strategies to shield themselves from insecurity: they downplay the issue or point to factors beyond their control. Two key motives for early pension take-up are the desire to secure the money for one’s family in the event of early death and to get the money while still vigorous. Informants typically imagine life after 80 as quiet and with fewer material demands. In conclusion, the analysis shows how adaptations to the flexible pension system are embedded in notions of ageing, institutional trust, and a newfound sense of ownership regarding one’s retirement savings

Økonomene har overtatt pensjonspolitikken

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Nasjonal veiledningsfunksjon i saker om mindreårige ofre for menneskehandel – følgeevaluering av oppstart og innretning

Menneskehandel med barn er en alvorlig form for kriminalitet. Sakene som barnevernet håndterer, er ofte komplekse og vanskelige å identifisere. De som utnytter mindreårige, har gjerne en relasjon til barnet, for eksempel som forelder, nær familie, kjæreste, ektefelle eller reisefølge. I denne rapporten evaluerer vi oppstarten og innretningen av Nasjonal veiledningsfunksjon i saker om mindreårige ofre for menneskehandel. Veiledningsfunksjonen ble opprettet i 2019 etter politisk initiativ og lagt til Barne-, ungdoms- og familiedirektoratet (Bufdir). Veiledningsfunksjonens arbeid i denne perioden har særlig handlet om kompetanseheving i barnevernet og andre instanser. Siden oppstarten har funksjonen veiledet i 20 enkeltsaker, som er svært forskjellige med hensyn til hvilke forhold som førte til henvendelsen. De har også revidert rundskrivet og veilederen for barnevernstjenestens arbeid. Periodens sammenfall med covid-19-pandemien har påvirket innretningen av veiledningsfunksjonens arbeid, og følgelig også følgeevalueringen. Institutt for samfunnsforskning anbefaler at Bufdir øker synligheten til og informasjonen om veiledningsfunksjonen på nettsider og gjennom skriftlige kanaler til barnevernstjenestene. Vi anbefaler også at veiledningsfunksjonens plass og ansvar i organiseringen av innsatsen på menneskehandelfeltet avklares, og at innholdet i mandatet utdypes.publishedVersio

Kjønnsgap i holdninger til pensjonssystemet – verdikamp eller økonomisk egeninteresse?

Det finnes mye forskning om «kjønnsgapet» i politiske holdninger som innebærer at kvinner slutter sterkere opp om en generøs og omfordelende velferdsstat enn menn. Derimot er det lite kunnskap om et eventuelt kjønnsgap i holdningene til utformingen av pensjonssystemet, et tema som har stor betydning for kvinners økonomiske velferd i pensjonsalderen. Basert på en survey fra 2019 finner vi stor støtte i befolkningen til sentrale omfordelingsmekanismer i pensjonssystemet og at kvinner er enda mer positive enn menn. Kvinner mener oftere at minstepensjonen er for lav, og at taket for opptjening er for høyt, og de er mer positive til omsorgsopptjening og nøytrale delingstall. Kjønnsforskjellene modereres imidlertid betydelig når vi justerer for sosioøkonomiske og demografiske forhold i multiple regresjonsanalyser. Resultatene gir grunn til å problematisere forskningslitteraturens funn om et moderne «kjønnsgap» i velferdspolitiske holdninger. Når spørsmålene knyttes til en konkret ordning, ser vi at både kvinner og menn i hovedsak støtter ordninger de har fordeler av selv.publishedVersio

Family-oriented policies in Scandinavia and the challenge of immigration

The social political debate on immigration as a challenge to the welfare states has been remarkably silent on gender and family issues. This article argues that immigrants’ use of welfare benefits targeted at families may be particularly problematic, because such benefits embody certain normative tensions that other social policies do not. It is suggested that tensions may be particularly high in Scandinavia, given the Scandinavian countries’ long-term commitment to facilitating employment for women. What happens when immigrants in the Scandinavian countries use policies targeted at families to maintain gender-complimentary family practices and home-based motherhood? Will such practices be met by reforms that streamline benefits around the principle of universal employment? The article highlights policy arrangements that have been described as detrimental to immigrant women’s employment in Norway, Sweden and Denmark, and reviews whether they have been reformed in recent years and, where relevant, what arguments have been used to motivate reforms. The analysis shows that many of the relevant benefits recently have been reformed to become less accommodating of home-based care work. However, politics clearly matter, and it is not given that immigrants’ use of benefits will always be a trump card. Also, dynamics vary according to how controversial the welfare arrangement in question was before it was highlighted as an immigrant issue. A third finding is that even when benefit arrangements that have been highlighted as particularly detrimental to immigrant women’s employment are targeted, politicians often downplay the integration issue when arguing for reform