WP 110 - Over- and underqualifi ction of migrant workers. Evidence from WageIndicator survey data

Are overeducation and undereducation more common for migrants compared to domestic workers? If so, is overeducation and undereducation similar across migrants from various home countries and across various host countries? This paper aims at unravelling the incidence of skill mismatch of domestic and migrant workers employed in 13 countries of the European Union, namely Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Italy, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. Here migrants are defined as workers not born in the country where they are currently living. They originate from more than 200 countries, thereby reflecting a heterogeneous group, ranging from migrants for economic reasons and refugees, to expats, intercultural married, and others. Concerning overeducation, most of the literature points to explanations related to job allocation frictions. The theoretical explanations for overeducation all refer to job allocation frictions. They apply to workers in general at first job entry, to particular groups of workers at fi rst job entry such as re-entering housewives or workers who have experienced unemployment spells and involuntary quits, to workers accepting a lower-level job if the probability of promotion is higher, to imperfect information from the employer’s side associated with a lack of transparency of diplomas or of transferability of credentials, to poor abilities of individual workers, and to labour market discrimination. Six hypothesis have been drafted for empirical testing. One hypothesis has been made for undereducation. This is assumed to be the case for workers with higher abilities, here defined as workers in supervisory positions. This paper builds on statistical analyses of the data of the large _WageIndicator_ web-survey about work and wages, posted at all national _WageIndicator_ websites and comparable across all countries. Using the pooled annual data of the years 2005-20010, we used 291,699 observations in the analysis. The large sample size allows a break-down of migrant groups according to country of birth in order to better capture the heterogeneity of migrants. Logit analyses have been used to estimate the likelihood of being overqualified compared to having a correct match or being underqualified. Similar estimations have been made for underqualification compared to having a correct match or being overqualified. One of five workers asseses to be overqualified (20%). When comparing the domestic and migrant workers, overqualification occurs less often among domestic workers than among migrant workers (19% versus 24%). The analyses show that overeducation occurs indeed more often among migrant workers. Yet, the analyses also reveals that the overeducation occurs substantially more often in the old EU member states compared to newly accessed EU member states, regardless being a domestic worker or a migrant. The model shows that the heterogeneity of the migrant groups should be taken into account. Of all migrant and domestic groups, the odds ratio of being overqualified is highest for migrants working in EU15 and born in EU12. The odds ratio decreases for the migrants from USA, Canada and Australia. The odds ratio of being overeducated increases with educational attainment. It decreases with hierarchical level within the occupation, with the the corporate hierarchical levels, and with the skill level of the job. The hypothesis regarding job allocation frictions are confirmed. The odds ratios of being overqualified increase for recent labour market entrants, for workers with an employment spell, for female workers, for migrants who arrived at an adult age thus challenging the transparency of credetials in the host country, and for for 1st and 2nd generation migrants and ethnic minorities thus challenging discrimination in the labour market. No support was found for the hypothesis that workers with presumably poor language abilities are more likely to be overeducated. Concerning undereducation, the analyses confirm that having a supervisory position increases the odds ratio of being underqualified. This suggest that underqualified workers with higher capabilities provide internal career ladders. This study in part confirms the existing literature, in particular the job allocation frictions for the entire labour market. It expands existing empirical findings concerning the reasons why migrants are more likely to be overeducted.

WP 7 - Teleworking policies of organisations - The Dutch experience

The over-all picture concerning the diffusion of telework stemming from research undertaken in 2000 and 2001 is rather negative. Teleworking policies of organisations hardly go beyond the minimal definition that we used in analyzing Dutch surveys from these years (organisations offering the opportunity for teleworking and, if they were asked for, paid for the necessary facilities). The conclusion is not exaggerated that a large majority of Dutch organisations are playing a waiting game on teleworking, even in sectors where jobs show a rather high ‘teleworkability’. The few exceptions (Interpolis, TNO Arbeid), mainly seizing the opportunities of building new offices or relocate their businesses, to combine flexible offices with teleworking policies, soon get nation-wide attention. Meanwhile, various surveys indicate a further growth of telework in the Netherlands in the 1999-2001 period, although this expansion seems to concentrate on multi-site telework by mainly self-employed – largely a ‘new economy’ phenomenon (Van Klaveren and Van de Westelaken, 2001). In this country, teleworking is apparently spreading rather informally and implicitly, leaving a wide gap between the policies of organisations and the preferences of many workers.

WP 2 - Substitution or segregation: explaining the gender composition in Dutch manufacturing industry 1899-1998

This paper focuses on the role of substitution or segregation in the demand for female labour. Based on an extensive overview of detailed studies, fluctuations in the gender composition of the labour force in four major sectors of Dutch manufacturing industry have been examined over the past hundred years. Women’s share in employment has been stable in clothing industry, fluctuated in textiles, increased in food production and decreased in Philips Electronics. Changes in the share of women were primarily explained by segregation that is by fluctuations in employment in the male respectively female domains. Only few examples of substitution were traced, primarily driven by labour market shortages, but the numbers of workers involved were small. Overwhelmingly, employers preferred to act within gender boundaries.

WP 85 - Multinationals versus domestic firms: Wages, working hours and industrial relations

This Working Paper aims to present and discuss recent evidence on the effect of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) on wages, working conditions and industrial relations. It presents a. an overview of the available literature on the effects of FDI on wages, particularly in developed countries; b. the outcomes of own research comparing wages, working conditions and workplace industrial relations in Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) versus non-MNEs or domestic fi rms. These outcomes include seven EU member states: Belgium, Finland, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, and the United Kingdom, and fi ve industries: metal and electronics manufacturing; retail; fi nance and call centres; information and communication technology (ICT), and transport and telecom. The data stem from the continuous WageIndicator web-survey, combined with company data from the AIAS MNE Database. The analysis took place in the framework of the socalled WIBAR-2 project, funded by the European Commission under the Industrial Relations and Social Dialogue Program (VS/2007/0534, December 2007-November 2008). The project was led by the AIAS, with the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC); the European Metalworkers’ Federation (EMF); Ruskin College (Oxford); WSI im Hans-Böckler-Stiftung (Düsseldorf), and the WageIndicator Foundation as partners. Both from others’ and our own evidence, the picture emerged that the wage advantages emanating from working in an MNE in Northwestern Europe recently have become rather small, with our evidence for Germany, where we found considerable MNE wage premia, as the exception. In the majority of Polish and Spanish subsidiaries of MNEs these premia were still considerable. By contrast, in the retail trade and in transport and telecom MNEs seemed to exert outright wage pressure in some countries. Besides pay, workers mostly perceived advantages in working in an MNE where these were to be expected, in training and internal promotion, but also –rather unexpectedly-- in workplace industrial relations. Here, on all three yardsticks used (union density, collective bargaining coverage and the incidence of workplace employee representation) MNEs scored higher than domestic fi rms. MNEs scored less favourably on overtime compensation, working hours, and experienced and expected reorganisations. Where MNE wage premia show up, they have much in common with ‘effi ciency wages’, meant to buy higher productivity and extra commitment from (skilled) workers.

WP 40 - Boxing and dancing: Dutch trade union and works council experiences revisited

h3. English summary This paper contains a quantitative analysis of approaches and results of 67 projects of Dutch company union groups and Works Councils to influence technological and organisational change, in three generations between 1975 and 1996. The effectiveness of problem-solving activities jointly undertaken with management (‘dancing’) in realizing advances in quality of working life proved to be higher than that of own activities solely undertaken by union groups and Works Councils. Yet, such activities were more effective in improving their own position vis-à-vis their constituency and/or vis-à-vis management. The scores on own activities were on average substantially higher than on joint problem-solving: even in these projects, active union groups and Works Councils mostly chose for a strong own profile, related to ‘boxing’ practices. This has notably been the case in manufacturing, in larger organizations and where relatively high union densities prevail. h3. Nederlandse samenvatting Dit paper bevat een kwantitatieve analyse van benaderingen en resultaten van 67 projecten die door Nederlandse vakbondsgroepen en Ondernemingsraden zijn ondernomen om technologische en organisatorische veranderingen te beinvloeden, in drie generaties van 1975 tot 1996. De effectiviteit van activiteiten gericht op het gezamenlijk met management zoeken naar oplossingen (‘dansen’) bleek ten aanzien van het verbeteren van de kwaliteit van de arbeid groter dan die van louter eigen activiteiten van bondsgroepen en OR’en. Daarentegen waren zulke eigen activiteiten effectiever voor het versterken van de eigen positie tegenover de achterban en/of tegenover het management. Gemiddeld kwamen de scores op eigen activiteiten hoger uit dan die op gezamenlijke probleemoplossing: zelfs in deze projecten kozen bondsgroepen en OR’en er meestal voor om zichzelf flink te profileren, een praktijk die verbonden is met ‘boksen’. Dit blijkt vooral het geval te zijn geweest in de industrie, in grotere organisaties en bij een relatief hoge organisatiegraad.

WP 100 - Low wages in the retail industry in the Netherlands

This Working Paper is basically a “source book”, accounting the results of over five years of research into the retail industry and the sources used for that research. It originates from the Future of Work in Europe research project of the New York-based Russell Sage Foundation (RSF), in which the AIAS and STZ advies & onderzoek (consultancy & research) carried out the Dutch part, resulting in the monograph Low-Wage Work in the Netherlands (RSF, 2008). It also incorporates sources for the retail part of the project that subsequently compared low-wage developments in Europe and the US, resulting in the volume Low-Wage Work in the Wealthy World (RSF, 2010). The Working Paper shows the development of Dutch retailing as an industry in which in the 2000s nearly half of all workers earn less than the low-wage threshold, that is, less than two-thirds of the national median gross hourly wage. In the 1980s and early 1990s retailing already moved towards low pay in the Netherlands. From the mid-1990s on, major factors worked toward the persistence of low pay, in particular in the supermarkets, where three in five workers earned less than the threshold: the slowdown or even decline of disposable income growth and the low consumer-spending share; price wars and the spread of discounting; economies of scale and deregulation of zoning regulations and opening hours, and the development of supply-chain management systems. The longer opening hours allowed by the 1996 Opening Hours (Shops) Act initiated changes in the logistical chain. The food chains replaced adult shift workers with young shelf-stackers; the long “tail” of low youth rates, also applied for prospective checkout operators, proved to constitute an exit option for employers maintaining a low-wage orientation. The supermarket price war of 2003-2006 strengthened employers’ orientation on deploying youngsters, in particular secondary and tertiary education students, (initially, in 2003-04) at the expense of adult women and, structurally, at the expense of those youngsters who want to earn a living wage after leaving school. The official facility to combine work and study distorts parts of the youth retail labour market, effectively crowding out the latter category. In spite of the domination of “low roads” in product market and human resources strategies of food chains, functional flexibility proved to be widespread at shop-floor level -- almost inevitable as tight financial and personnel benchmarks do not allow idle hours. Working time and scheduling issues stood out prominently in workplace relations in the supermarkets. Recurrent issues of complaint concerned employer decisions concerning working times and days-off, as well as low staffing levels and employers not paying according to hours worked. Discontent on these matters rose during the price war. In consumer electronics retail, the other retail sub-sector studied, nearly one in five workers earned less than the low-wage threshold. Yet, workers had to rely to a considerably part on bonuses and compensations paid for working overtime or unusual hours to reach an acceptable pay level. In consumer electronics the working time issue was much less prominent, partly because of the lower share of part-timers, partly because of higher wages, partly because of the compensation system. Without suggesting a too rosy picture, based on an assessment of shop-floor relations we may conclude that consumer electronics retailing contrasted indeed to a large extent with the supermarket branch, not least because this business is sales-based and knowledgeable salespersons have to be regarded as valuable assets.

WP 19 - Een onderzoek naar CAO-afspraken op basis van de FNV CAO-databank en de AWVN-database

De sociale partners AWVN en FNV hebben elke een CAO-database voor hun arbeidsvoorwaar-denbeleid en dienstverlening aan leden. De AWVN registreert de principe-akkoorden van 606 CAO’s. De FNV heeft de FNV cao-databank met 723 lopende CAO’s (ingangsdatum na 1/1/2000). Om voor de eigen beleidsvorming op het terrein van arbeidsvoorwaarden optimaal van deze gegevens te profiteren, zijn AWVN en FNV overeengekomen het potentiële gebruik van hun respectievelijke databestanden op 15 onderwerpen te vergelijken: kinderopvang, arbeidsduur, arbo-preventie, werkdruk, VUT-/pensioenleeftijd, ziekteverzuim, arbeidsmarktprojecten, doelgroepen, seniorendagen, opleiding, verlofvormen, sexuele intimidatie, CAO a la carte, gelaagde CAO en tenslotte faciliteiten vakbondswerk. Een inhoudelijke vergelijking bleek niet mogelijk, omdat de FNV zo veel mogelijk afspraken per CAO registreert, terwijl de AWVN veranderingen registreert op basis van principeakkoorden. Met de FNV cao-databank kunnen vragen beantwoord worden als: in hoeveel CAO’s is een 36-urige werkweek afgesproken? En met het AWVN-bestand: zijn in het CAO-seizoen 2003 veel nieuwe afspraken gemaakt over verkorting van de arbeidsduur tot 36 uur? De FNV cao-databank tracht aan het doel van een zo breed en grondig mogelijke registratie van CAO-afspraken te beantwoorden, terwijl de AWVN-database is gericht op het monitoren van de dynamiek in de cao-ontwikkeling. De bestanden zijn aanvullend en niet overlappend.

WP 114 - De loonkloof tussen mannen en vrouwen. Een review van het onderzoek in Nederland

Dit artikel bespreekt 20 studies over het beloningsverschil tussen mannen en vrouwen in Nederland, waarbij de invloed van negen groepen van factoren is bekeken: menselijk kapitaal, sector, functieclassificatie, functieniveau, glazen plafond, bedrijfsgrootte, arbeidsduur, sexe-compositie van beroep, gezinssituatie en loopbaanonderbreking. Het effect van sector is alleen op geaggregeerd niveau onderzocht, en dan is het voor vrouwen voordeliger om in de collectieve sector te werken. Vallen onder een CAO heeft nauwelijks invloed op het beloningsverschil. Werken in deeltijd is nadeliger voor mannen dan voor vrouwen. Werken in een bedrijf met salarisschalen en functieclassificatie is nadelig voor mannen, niet voor vrouwen. Werken op een hoger functieniveau is voordeliger voor mannen dan voor vrouwen, evenals werken in hogere strata van de loondistributie. Vooral de effecten van beroepensegregatie en van gezinsuitbreiding en loopbaanonderbreking zijn voor vrouwen nadelig. _Summary_ _This article examines 20 studies on the remuneration of men and women in the Netherlands, where the influence of nine groups of factors was viewed: human capital, industry, job classification, job level, glass ceiling, firm size, working hours, gender-composition of occupation, and family building and career breaks. The effect of industry has only been investigated at the aggregate level, and turns out to be advantageous for women in the public industry. Collective agreement coverage has little impact on remuneration. Part-time jobs are worse for men than for women. Working in a company with salary scales or job classification is bad for men, not for women. Working in the higher income brackets is more advantageous for men compared to women, as well as working in higher strata of the wage distribution. The effects of occupational segregation and of family and career breaks are disadvantageous for women._

WP 93 - An overview of women's work and employment in Kazakhstan

*Management summary* This report provides information on Kazakhstan on behalf of the implementation of the DECISIONS FOR LIFE project in that country. The DECISIONS FOR LIFE project aims to raise awareness amongst young female workers about their employment opportunities and career possibilities, family building and the work-family balance. This report is part of the Inventories, to be made by the University of Amsterdam, for all 14 countries involved. It focuses on a gender analysis of work and employment. _History (2.1.1)._ Under the Soviet regime, the Kazahs had a hard time, initially not improving with the collapse of the Soviet Union. In the 2000s, based on its mineral wealth and high oil prices, the economy boomed, followed by a nosedive in 2008. Governance (2.1.2). Kazakhstan is a republic with a parliamentary system dominated by president Nazarbayev and his party. Recently the government’s human rights record remained poor. Though constitution and law provide for equal rights and freedoms for men and women, enforcement of human and women’s rights is weak. Women’s participation in politics and governance structures is low. _Prospects (2.1.3)._ The global economic crisis has a considerable impact on Kazakhstan’s economic and maybe social prospects. The government had to massively support the banking system. Though official (un)employment and wage fi gures for 2009 do not yet point at serious consequences for the population, projections until 2015 stick to low growth rates, which among other things may endanger the government’s ambituous diversifi cation program. _Communication (2.2)._ Though the coverage of fi xed telephone connections has recently increased, this is dwarfed by the expansion of the incidence of cell phones, to about one per inhabitant in 2008. By that year, 146 per 1,000 were Internet users. Nearly all households have a TV set. The government uses a variety of means to control the media and limit freedom of expression. _The sectoral labour market structure – Population and employment (2.3.1)._ Between 2001 and 2008 a growing ”formalisation” of the of the labour market took place, lifting the share of employees to about two-third. In particular women’s employment witnessed strong growth. Reaching 75% in 2008, women’s Labour Participation Rate (LPR) was rather high and 92% of men’s. _The sectoral labour market structure – Unemployment (2.3.2)_ In the 2000s unemployment fell from over 10% to below 7%, with female unemployment rates remaining one third above male. Youth employment is rather low, the highest unemoplyment rates are among the female 25-29 aged. _Legislation (2.4.1)._ Kazakhstan has ratifi ed the eight core ILO Labour Conventions. The Constitution provides for the freedom of association and the right to strike, though notably the latter right is subject to numerous legal limitations. In the informal economy the government did not enforce contracts or labour legislation. _Labour relations and wage-setting (2.4.2)._ The union movement of Kazakhstan consists of both “traditional” and, after independence newly created, “independent” trade unions. In the 1990s membership of in particular the traditional confederation fell heavily. In 2008, union density may have been about 50% (paid employees). Based on formally tripartite structures, the yearly General Agreement is the basis for national, regional and sectoral collective agreements. The statutory minimum wage (2.5.1). In 2009 the national monthly minimum wage, set by law, was 13,717 Tenge, or 23% of the country’s average monthly wage. Since 2004, the gap between the minimum and average wage has slightly decreased. Poverty (2.5.2). The country’s growth pattern has been pro-poor, with in the (early) 2000s poverty falling according to all yardsticks. For 2004, it was estimated that 16% of the population lived below the national poverty line. Income inequality is relatively limited. Nevertheless, an in-depth study revealed considerable housing poverty and poor quality of basic infrastructure services. _Population and fertility (2.6.1)._ Kazakstan’s population showed a sharp downward trend from 1989 to 2002, followed by a modest growth of on average 0.9% yearly. The total fertility rate, about 1.9 children per woman, and the adolescent fertility rate (29 per 1,000) are both rather low and stable. Early marriage and early pregnancy do occur, but seem to remain rather limited. _Health (2.6.2)._ In 2007, the number of people in Kazakhstan living with HIV was estimated at 12,000, or 0.7 per 1,000, low in comparison with the rest of the region. The levels of public awareness of HIV/AIDS are low, as is the case for knowledge on contraceptive prevalence among women. General health indicators are still low by international standards. In particular in urban areas, access to essential infrastructure services is limited. _Women’s labour market share (2.6.3)._ Women make up nearly half of the country’s labour force. In 2008 seven of 15 industries showed a female share above this average as well as a female majority. Women are clearly over-represented in four occupational groups at the higher and middle levels, each time with more than a two to one parity; even at the level of legislators, senior officials and managers, the female share of 38% is in international perspective rather high. _Literacy (2.7.1)._ The adult literacy rate –those age 15 and over that can read and write—in 1999-2006 was 97.9%, with a small gender gap: 99.0% for men and 96.7% for women. In 2007 the literacy rate for 15-24-year-olds stood at 99.8%; the young females scored 99.9%. _Education of girls (2.7.2)._ In 2006, the combined gross enrollment rate in education was 91.8%, divided in 88.5% for females and 95.1% for males. Net enrollment in primary education was for 2007 set at 99.4% for girls and 98.6% for boys. Women to men parity in secondary education increased to 97% in 2007. Income differences play a major role in further education after secondary school, though much more young women than young men enroll in universities and colleges. _Female skill levels (2.7.3)._ Women in the employed population have on average a higher educational level than their male colleagues. In contrast, women’s opportunities in work and employment are severely limited by the segmentation of the country’s labour market along regional and gender dimensions. We estimate the current size of the target group of DECISIONS FOR LIFE for Kazakhstan at about 230,000 girls and young women 15-29 of age working in urban areas in commercial services. _Wages (2.8.1)._ We found for 2008 a large gender pay gap, totaling 36%. Further, fi tting in the picture of a highly segmented labour market, wages in Kazakhstan vary largely across sectors, occupational categories, the urban – rural divide, and across regions. _Working conditions (2.8.2)._ Official statistical information concerning working conditions is quite limited. As far as can be traced, gender differences in hours worked are small.

WP 92 - An overview of women's work and employment in Azerbaijan

This report provides information on Azerbaijan on behalf of the implementation of the DECISIONS FOR LIFE project in that country. The DECISIONS FOR LIFE project aims to raise awareness amongst young female workers about their employment opportunities and career possibilities, family building and the work-family balance. This report is part of the Inventories, to be made by the University of Amsterdam, for all 14 countries involved. It focuses on a gender analysis of work and employment. _History (2.1.1)_. In the 1880s, the first oil boom took place in Azerbaijan. After brief independence from 1918 to 1920, the country realised independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. This was overshadowed by the Nagorno-Karabakh war with Armenia and an economic crisis that hit women dramatically. The 2000s witnessed spectacular economic growth, led by growing oil exports and high oil prices. _Governance (2.1.2)._ Azerbaijan is a secular and unitary republic with a presidential system. Recently the government’s human rights record remained poor. The Constitution guarantees equality and rights for all citizens, but enforcement of human and women’s rights is weak. With the 2009 elections, women representation in parliament came at 11.4%. Domestic violence and sexual harassment are widespread. _Prospects (2.1.3)._ Though Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) fell drastically in 2008-09, the global economic crisis has had a modest impact on Azerbaijan’s economy. A further decline in jobs in manufacturing sub-sectors like textiles, garment and leather has negatively affected female employment. _Communication (2.2)._ Thoiugh the coverage of fi xed telephone connections has recently grown, this is dwarfed by the expansion of the incidence of cell phones, to over three in four of the population in 2008. By that year, 181 per 1,000 were Internet users. Nearly all households have a TV set. Freedom of press, be it TV, radio or printed press, is a recurrent problem. _The sectoral labour market structure – Population and employment (2.3.1)._ Between 2003 and 2008 a growing ”informalisation” of the economy has taken place, in particular concerning women’s employment. With 66% in 2008, women’s Labour Participation Rate (LPR) was 91% of men’s. _The sectoral labour market structure - Unemployment (2.3.2)_. In the 2000s unemployment fell from 10-13% to 6-7%. The differences between the male and female unemployment rates are marginal. In 2006 unemployment was highest for girls and young women aged 15-24 (17%), followed by their male peers (15.5%). Most likely this picture is structural. _Legislation (2.4.1)._ Azerbaijan has ratifi ed the eight core ILO Labour Conventions. The Constitution provides for the right to strike, but there are exceptions. The State prohibits unions from carrying out political activities. In the informal economy the government did not enforce contracts or labour legislation. _Labour relations and wage-setting (2.4.2)._ Depending on how many members the affi liates of the ATUC, the only union confederation, have, union density may vary between 42 and 91%. The national process of wage-setting seems to be orchestrated top-down, but some reservations should be made, like on bilateral government agreements with multinational enterprises (MNEs), setting aside labour laws. Unions also rarely participate in determining wage levels in the state sector. _The statutory minimum wage (2.5.1)._ Since 2008 the administratively set minimum wage is AZN 75, or 27% of the country’s average monthly wage. Since 2004, the value of the MW has been about this level. In practice the MW is not effectively enforced. Poverty (2.5.2). For 2008, it was officially estimated that less than 13% of the population lived below the national poverty line. This is questioned by various research outcomes, suggesting a more grim picture, though the trend towards less poverty and greater equality cannot be denied. Economic independence is far-away for many women, in particular for many young women. Female-headed households are much more locked in poverty than male-headed households. _Population and fertility (2.6.1)._ Azerbaijan has a rather low and decreasing population growth, currently lower than 0.8% yearly. The 2009 sex ratio at birth is 1.13 male/female. The total fertility rate (slightly above 2.0 children per woman) and the adolescent fertility rate (44 per 1,000) are rather low but the adolescent rate is increasing. Early marriage is uncommon but increasing too. _Health (2.6.2)._ In 2007, the number of people in Azerbaijan living with HIV was estimated at 7,800. Though HIV/AIDS is much more a men’s disease, female risk groups include trafficked women and girls and injecting drug users. Levels of public awareness of HIV/AIDS are very low, as is the case for knowledge on contraceptive prevalence. Health disparities are large, including urban – rural divides. _Women’s labour market share (2.6.3)._ Women make up nearly half of the country’s labour force. In 2008 five of the 15 industries showed a female share above this average. Nearly half of all women employed could be found at the bottom of the labour market, in elementary occupations. Among legislators, senior officials and managers the female share was with 6% very low, but women made up majorities among professionals (54%) and among technicians and associate professionals (53%). _Literacy (2.7.1)._ The adult literacy rate –those age 15 and over that can read and write—in 1999-2006 was 98.7%, with hardly any gender gap: 99.0% for men and 98.3% for women. In 2007 literacy rate for 15-24-year-olds stood at 99.9%; young females even scored 100%. Education of girls (2.7.2). In 2006 the combined gross enrollment rate in education was 66.2%, divided in 65.3% for females and 67.2% for males. In the 2000s school life for girls has been prolonged substantially. Net enrollment in primary education was for 2006 set at 83.3% for girls and for boys 86.2% for boys; in secondary education these rates were 76.4% and 79.2%. Beyond the age of 16, enrollment rates drop off sharply, with 13% of young adults in tertiary education. In 2006-2007, female students made up 47% of all tertiary enrolled. _Female skill levels (2.7.3)._ Gender differences in the country’s education structure are rather small. Women are less represented at the highest level, but more at the second highest level. Women 25-29 of age are highest educated. Especially for women a serious underutilization of skills is at hand. We estimate the size of the target group of DECISIONS FOR LIFE for Azerbaijan at about 90,000 girls and young women working in urban areas in commercial services. _Wages (2.8.1)._ We found for 2008 large differences between wages across industries, as well as a large gender pay gap, totaling 43% -- fitting in the picture of a highly segmented labour market. Remarkably small was the gender pay gap in wholesale and retail, where men had quite low earnings. _Working conditions (2.8.2)._ Overall, gender differences in hours worked are small. Nearly one in four women works parttime i.e. less than 31 hours per week. In 2008, in eight of 15 industries the average monthly hours of females were longer than those of males, in four industries even considerably.