IÐAN fræðslusetur
- Feb 24, 2021
- 2 min read

ICELAND: Gender equality in the vocational education and training - broadening career choices.

Updated: Nov 1, 2021

The main objective was to spotlight good practices that support gender equality in vocational education and training. The partners reported various ways to address and move forward on gender equality in VET. In Sweden a training course for workplace supervisors that include gender discussions. The labour market in Sweden is active in addressing gender issues, a web page is called STOP THE MATCHO CULTURE - focus on the construction sector. There you can find tools that help enlighten people that woman are just as capable and competent as men in the construction sector. Norway put a lot of efforts into Comprehensive information spreading on education and career opportunities and the importance of role-models. In Iceland a national equal pay act is in place prohibiting by law pay discrimination affecting all levels in the labor market. In Iceland a special campaign focusing on women in crafts and trade was quite a success followed by web page providing information for student and career councilors focusing on crafts and trades and role-models created through ,,gender glasses". The project was funded by the Nordic gender equality fund (NIKK).

Responsible organisation

What problem or issue has the innovative practice aimed to tackle?

Problem: Nordic labor market is gender segregated and therefore limiting career and educational opportunities.

Aim: Highlight good examples, identify success factors and share tools that can be used in gender equality work in vocational education.

Outcome: Support students with non traditional career choices during apprenticeship.

What have been the achievements?

The main results show that gender equality in VET is lacking. Efforts are usually short sighted and are more often focused on drumming up interest for VET in general than encouraging people to make informed decisions. The partners found that:

All partner countries share a legal framework on equal status and equal rights of women and men.
There is a serious lack gender education at all school levels.
There is a serious lack of gender education in teachers as well as student and career counsellor education.
Network’s matter – there is a lack of public support - Role models matter.
Lack of comparative Nordic statistics.