Gender quotas, let’s apply them everywhere. Even to sectors where there are only women

A society where a function is carried out by men and women is not only more equitable in respect of human rights, but also more efficient and productive. It is a statement of common sense, confirmed in an OECD report, which underlines how far there is still to be done for women to have a presence comparable to that of men in public and private positions of responsibility.

The fact that there are work sectors or public functions with few women has made their presence concentrate in a few other sectors, creating further imbalances. My son, who has just finished elementary school in a private school in Florence, Italy, had only female teachers, apart from a few hours of English in the first two years which was the responsibility of a man teacher. My other son, who has just finished public middle school, had only female teachers in his senior year, and in three years only two teachers of non-core subjects (technology and music) were men. Not to think about the kindergarten, where in many years I have never seen a male educator.

Is it healthy for a child to be educated only by women? Of course not. For many reasons: seeing women occupy only certain places unconsciously reinforces gender stereotypes in the new generations, as Peter Birch and David Crosier wrote in 2018 in the article Does it matter if men don’t teach? on Eurydice, a site specialized in educational matters delivered by the European Commission.

The disproportion in Italy is particularly strong. The OECD Education at the Glance report indicates that female teachers in Europe are 68%, in Italy 83%. In kindergarten… the 97%. “Persistent gender imbalances in the teaching profession – writes the OECD – have raised a number of concerns”. The UK is already trying to run for cover by promoting policies that encourage men to choose education, but in general the sensitivity on this issue is very low in governments.

Education is not the only sector with a great female preponderance. Also in the judiciary there is a certain disproportion, although to understand it it is necessary to deepen the numbers a little. Since 2019 in Italy the CSM (Superior Council of the Judiciary) has reported that women are a greater number than men. Last year out of 9787 ordinary magistrates, 5308 were women, 54% of the total.

At first glance it would seem a sector where the presence of gender is particularly balanced, but in reality women are mostly concentrated in some sections. For example, in Florence the family section of the Court, which deals with custody of minors, separations and divorces, is chaired by a woman and all judges are women. It is a situation that feeds potential imbalances in the interpretation of laws where the gender difference has a very important weight: think of the role of the judge in deciding the schedule for attending the children of separated parents or divorce allowances.

As in school, the danger is to keep alive an old stereotype: the woman has to look after the children and the man has to work in the family. In the end, these situations do not advance society according to gender equality. Sometimes gender equality can also be written in the laws, but then it will be difficult to make it effective in reality if there will continue to be sectors with only men or only women.