ABSTRACT
With the entry of Sweden, Finland and Austria to the European Union in 1995 the balance of the European Community changed: from having only one country, Denmark, which belonged to the high female employment Nordic countries, the EU now had three such member states. Not only do they have high employment rates, but also they have had a tradition of state policies designed around a weak male breadwinner model, providing support to women to enter employment through provision of paid parental leave, childcare and plentiful employment opportunities in the public sector. Despite these similarities within the Nordic bloc, there are still major differences between Scandinavian countries: Finland has high female employment rates based on full-time work, while Sweden has one of the highest part-time rates in the EU. The entry of Sweden and Finland into the EU also has the simultaneous effect of raising the average employment rate and increasing the trends towards employment loss as both countries have suffered from very severe economic crises in the 1990s.
