What can the Netherlands learn from Finland, Norway and Australia about gender equality?

The World Economic Forum’s ranking examines gender equality in employment, access to education, healthcare/life expectancy and political influence across 145 countries. UvA professor Henk Volberda compiled the data for the Netherlands.

So what is the right approach? To find out, Folia sought advice from UvA staff from countries in the top 10: Finland and Norway, which have been regulars at the very top since the rankings began, and Australia, which has made a huge leap forward in recent years and is making its debut in the top 10 this year. What are they doing better?

Arno Kourula

Finland

Arno Kourula
Professor of Business & Sustainability

“If you ask AI what the Finns are doing right regarding gender equality, you get a lot of structural reasons: education in Finland is excellent, the social infrastructure is supported by the welfare state, and representation of women in politics, in the labor market, and in university education is high.”

“Another aspect is cultural. Historically, Finland was not a particularly wealthy country. Instead of a large elite class, there was an egalitarian rural community—after all, forests cover over three-quarters of Finland’s land area. Both men and women worked on the farm; there was no scope for making gender-based distinctions as every hand was needed.

“Those principles of equality are deeply rooted in Finnish society. Indeed, the country was the first in Europe to grant women the right to vote. Other countries sometimes have to figure out later how to incorporate gender equality into their structures, but in Finland, it happened early on and quite naturally.”

“In the Netherlands, you quite often see the classic “manel” (male panel)—a discussion panel or list of speakers consisting exclusively of men. That doesn’t really happen in Finland; the idea wouldn’t even cross your mind as it goes against social expectations.”

“A simple rule that works for me is to avoid engaging in activities or projects involving only one gender and one nationality. So, if you—as a man—are asked to join a “manel,” just skip it. The simple rule encourages me to think more broadly, beyond always working with the same couple of people. Ultimately, that leads to a lot more ideas, productivity, and innovation.”

Siri Boe-Lillegraven

Norway

Siri Boe-Lillegraven

Associate professor in Strategy (Faculty of Economics and Business)

“In Norway, working full-time is the norm, for both men and women. Children attend childcare five days a week. It’s also much cheaper in Norway: what you pay there for a year often costs the same here for a month. Parental leave is also longer: both parents are collectively entitled to nearly a year’s paid leave.”

“Nevertheless, I don’t think you should simply copy the Norwegian model into the Netherlands. The cultures and systems of the two countries are different. In the Netherlands, the word “emancipation” is very closely linked to the liberation of women and equal rights for them. In Norway, we talk about likestilling, which means equality, regardless of gender. In Norway, the state is seen to a greater extent as an instrument of the people to create greater equality; there is a high level of trust in the government. There are also quotas for those in leadership positions: no single gender may hold more than 60 per cent of the seats; this applies to all public and many large private companies.”

“Furthermore, the Global Gender Gap Index primarily measures the economic value of gender equality and not other values such as happiness. Norway, for example, scores highly on sick leave and burnout – possibly the price women with children pay for working full-time. In Norway, too, women remain responsible for the ‘third shift’: organising the household and care responsibilities. The mental strain of this is heavy, and because women there work full-time, it is perhaps even heavier than in the Netherlands.”

“In the Netherlands, you have greater flexibility to decide how much you want to work and how many days you want to send your child to childcare. Thinking in this way is unimaginable by Norwegian standards. There, childcare for one-year-olds starts straight away at five days a week; there seems to be little scope for other arrangements.”

“Personally, I also see the value of the part-time culture in the Netherlands. The problem, however, is that some women with children are ‘stuck’ in part-time jobs: their partners often earn more, childcare is too expensive, and the tax system offers insufficient incentives to work extra hours. A modern version of the part-time model could be for both men and women to work 80 per cent of full-time hours, without this necessarily having a negative impact on their careers. In Norway, you see some families opting for this, but it remains a small group.”

Australia

Australia

Nicholas Carr

Senior Lecturer in English Language and Culture

“A few years ago (in 2021, ed.), Australia was still ranked 50^th. That received a lot of coverage in the Australian news at the time. Now that the country has made it into the top 10 for the first time, it’s all over the news again. The Australian government is, of course, making a big deal of it: the reason for this significant leap is, after all, the political change in the country.”

“Before 2022, a Liberal party was in power in Australia. That party consisted mainly of men; the Minister for Women was a man, and at one point there was only one woman in the Cabinet. In recent years, the Labour Party has been in power and the Cabinet consists predominantly of women. So there has been no radical change in policy in Australia; it is purely due to the composition of parliament that we have been able to make this leap.”

“Could the Netherlands make that leap too? In theory, yes; Australia and the Netherlands are otherwise very similar in terms of the pay gap, education and health. However, the political system is structured differently. In Australia, there are two main parties; in the Netherlands, the political landscape is much more fragmented. So whether more women enter politics won’t happen all at once.”

“Another thing that works well in Australia is that the Australian government publishes an annual report on the pay gap at the country’s major employers, such as banks, mining companies, Qantas (the Australian airline – ed.) and public services. We call this naming and shaming. This puts pressure on the business community and starts a conversation.”