ABSTRACT
One possible aim of the following analysis might be to rank the different state policies found in member states according to a measure of gender equity. For example, it may be possible to group countries according to how their system of unemployment insurance increases or reduces the relative level of protection women face as employees compared to men. Such a ranking, however, must also account for broader differences between countries with regard to the distinct philosophies of distributive justice which underpin each country’s social security system, and which affect the risks faced by all employees. For example, one study proposed the grouping of member states into four general categories of social security systems according to their general method of financing and allocating social security protection (CEC 1993b: 16). In the first category, the system of compensation for the unemployed aims primarily to maintain previous levels of income by linking individual benefits closely to unemployment insurance contributions. Germany, France, Belgium and Luxembourg all have social security systems which follow these general principles of insurance practice. Those in work contribute to insurance funds, and these contributions entitle them to receive a proportion of their earnings when unemployed. General taxation finances a complementary system of unemployment assistance which ensures minimum levels of income to those who have not contributed to the fund, as well as those who are ineligible for or who have exhausted their entitlements to benefit payments.
