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This publication is supported by the European Union Rights, Equality and Citizenship Programme (2014-2020). This programme is implemented by the European Commission and shall contribute to the further development of an area where equality and the rights of persons, as enshrined in the Treaty, the Charter and international human rights conventions, are promoted and protected. For more information see: http://ec.europa.eu/justice/grants1/programmes-2014- 2020/rec/index_en.htm

In August 2015, the European Commission launched its 'Roadmap for a new start to address the challenges of work-life balance faced by working families'. Whilst it now seems quite serious about setting up a coherent legal framework, with full respect for the equal opportunities for women and men in the labour market, two elements have remained absent from the debate, that is the fact that the main focus is still on the nuclear family, and the fact that the gendered division of care activities remains out of sight. This article intends to draw attention to these elements, hoping that the Commission could still take them into account with regard to the revision of the Maternity Leave Directive. The first section provides a critical overview of the current legislative framework. The second section then presents a number of suggestions for a new legislative framework that is not detrimental to women workers and that caters for all sorts of families.

The principle of equal pay for men and women for work of equal value has been key to the European Union ever since its foundation. It was laid down in the original Treaty, and brought into practice by several directives. Also the Court of Justice's case law has boosted its importance. Notwithstanding these efforts at the legal level, the average gender pay gap for the 27 EU Member States (17.6% in 2008) is hardly diminishing. It is against this worrisome background that the European Commision asked its European Network of Legal Experts in the Field of Gender Equality to collect data on national policies, initiatives and legal instruments aimed at tackling the gender pay gap, and to explore potential links between equal pay and other national legal provisions. 33 legal experts of the EU Member States, the EEA countries and the candidate countries took part in a questionnaire that formed the basis for this publication. It analyses a wide variety of national policies, initiatives and legal instruments that aim to combat the gender pay gap and it uncovers a number of unexpected links between the gender pay gap and it uncovers a number of unexpected links between the gender pay gap and other parts of the law.

Dit boek bevat de bijdragen voor de Biënnale 2020 van het Belgische genootschap voor arbeids- en socialezekerheidsrecht (afgekort als Begasoz). Begasoz is een vereniging van professoren sociaal recht van alle Belgische universiteiten, die de wetenschappelijke uitwisseling onder haar leden beoogt te bevorderen, met het oog op het stimuleren van onderzoek en het verspreiden van kennis. Na de passende arbeid en het behoorlijk ontslag (2005) (1), het bewijs (2012) (2), de rechtspositie van het personeel in overheidsdienst (2014) (3), de bronnen van het sociaal recht (2016) (4) en de vierde industriële revolutie (2018) (5), ging de aandacht in 2020 naar de effectiviteit van het sociaal recht

Syndicat CFTC v. CPAM provided an excellent opportunity for the Court of Justice of the European Union ('CJEU') to reconsider its position taken in the Hofmann case, regarding the question to what extent additional maternity leave can be exclusively reserved for female workers without infringing Directive 2006/54. Whilst the CJEU has narrowed the grey zone, it refrains from clearly indicating the boundaries between 'maternity' and 'parenthood' and leaves that for the Member States to decide. Against this backdrop, this case note argues that the CJEU should cease to conflate both concepts, as it cements women into their traditional role as primary caregivers and keeps men in a role subsidiary to that of women with respect to the exercise of parental responsibilities. Ultimately, childcare related leave should be approached from a rights perspective, taking into account the best interests of the child.

Syndicat CFTC v. CPAM provided an excellent opportunity for the Court of Justice of the European Union ('CJEU') to reconsider its position taken in the Hofmann case, regarding the question to what extent additional maternity leave can be exclusively reserved for female workers without infringing Directive 2006/54. Whilst the CJEU has narrowed the grey zone, it refrains from clearly indicating the boundaries between 'maternity' and 'parenthood' and leaves that for the Member States to decide. Against this backdrop, this case note argues that the CJEU should cease to conflate both concepts, as it cements women into their traditional role as primary caregivers and keeps men in a role subsidiary to that of women with respect to the exercise of parental responsibilities. Ultimately, child-care related leave should be approached from a rights perspective, taking into account the best interests of the child.

Syndicat CFTC v. CPAM provided an excellent opportunity for the Court of Justice of the European Union ('CJEU') to reconsider its position taken in the Hofmann case, regarding the question to what extent additional maternity leave can be exclusively reserved for female workers without infringing Directive 2006/54. Whilst the CJEU has narrowed the grey zone, it refrains from clearly indicating the boundaries between 'maternity' and 'parenthood' and leaves that for the Member States to decide. Against this backdrop, this case note argues that the CJEU should cease to conflate both concepts, as it cements women into their traditional role as primary caregivers and keeps men in a role subsidiary to that of women with respect to the exercise of parental responsibilities. Ultimately, child-care related leave should be approached from a rights perspective, taking into account the best interests of the child.