wow-inequalities/02-data/intermediate/wos_sample/a1861524aa4f04907f8d91094296012e-esteban-salvador-m./info.yaml

abstract: 'Objectives

  Cooperative enterprises have different organizational and operational

  characteristics that could provide favorable conditions for gender

  equality. In this paper, we describe several aspects of the working

  conditions and workplace flexibility of women in cooperatives in the

  province of Teruel, a region that is characterized by its low population

  density. In addition, we study other aspects involved in the running of

  these organizations in the context of social economy, and how this could

  have potential benefits and advantages for the personal and professional

  development of women and their families. A greater understanding of

  these organizations will facilitate the development of actions aimed at

  strengthening business projects that contribute to integrate women''s

  needs and the needs of their surrounding environments.

  Design/methodology/approach

  A qualitative analysis has been carried out through in-depth interviews,

  which have provided more detailed and extensive information than other

  available methodologies. The initial sample consists of 99 cooperatives,

  representing 31.03\% of the total population of cooperative entities in

  the province of Teruel, Spain. This sample was then filtered by

  selecting the cooperatives which have a greater percentage of female

  employees higher than male employees, or have more female than male

  directors, including those cooperatives which fulfilled both of these

  conditions. There resulting set of 12 cooperatives with a large number

  of female employees among its staff or with high female participation in

  their boards of directors. We subjected to semi-structured interviews,

  one per cooperative, of their partners and/or employees, using a

  semi-structured questionnaire.

  Results / Research limitations / Implications

  The results suggest that self-management allows greater flexibility than

  other forms of enterprise in areas such as conciliation or working

  conditions. Likewise, women recognize that their involvement with the

  entity must be greater, since their future employment depends on the

  survival of the cooperative. One factor that affects the reconciliation

  of family, work and personal life is the presence or absence of

  seasonality in the activities carried out by the cooperative. Internal

  measures for the seasonal adjustment of demand could contribute to

  improving the reconciliation and also to reducing inequalities between

  men and women.

  With regard to working conditions, there are opportunities for

  conciliation and timetable flexibility that rely on the goodwill and the

  climate of trust existing in the cooperatives. This issue is closely

  related to the good relations among its members, as evidenced by the

  opinions of the respondents and the presence of female leadership

  focused on greater collaboration and teamwork. It is noteworthy that

  these cordial relations extend even among the companies in the sector.

  Collaborative attitudes between cooperatives of the same sector of

  activity are frequent.

  Self-management allows the working day to be better and more easily

  adjusted to the specific needs of female employees as compared to other

  styles of management. In general, working hours are not cause for

  concern. Women are aware that if the activity requires a greater time

  investment, their commitment must be greater, since their future careers

  depend of the survival of the cooperative

  The good relations existing among the different cooperatives in the

  province are remarkable. The study emphasizes the establishment of

  mutually supportive relationships with other cooperatives and, in many

  cases, the use of synergies with the competing companies. This

  reinforces the expected behaviors for organizations based on

  inter-cooperation and networking.

  Due to the peculiarities of the context in which these cooperatives

  operate, mainly in rural areas, cooperatives can cover the needs of the

  partners, boost rural development, to improve trade activities, provide

  support and advice to access to new foreign markets; improve structures

  through integration processes and obtain competitive advantages with

  formulas of inter-cooperation with other groups.

  Regarding the support of the public administrations in issues related to

  paperwork or consultation and advisory services, no conclusive results

  have been obtained. Relations with public administrations, however,

  could be improved to take full advantage of the potential of wealth

  creation in cooperatives and to achieve greater effectiveness of

  policies of public support for the promotion of female entrepreneurship

  and social economy entities. The recognition of gender inequalities in

  the labor and business sphere by the Spanish government, expressed

  through the Gender Equality Act, should be taken into account when

  implementing administrative procedures for cooperatives in order to be

  more sensitive to women''s necessities.

  Simplification of administrative procedures and a more individualised

  guidance and advice for female entrepreneurs in the social economy

  should be included in the agendas of public authorities. These measures

  become especially sensitive in territories such as Teruel, where the

  weakness of its business fabric and its relatively high rate of female

  unemployment are clear components of the economic stagnation of the

  province.

  Some questionnaire answers show that cooperative principles are present

  in these entities, as is the case in one company where the partners

  reported being satisfied and happy to contribute to the respect of

  agriculture and to promote environmental care.

  In addition to the financial income associated with participation in the

  cooperative, other non-economic ``intangible{''''} benefits related to

  personal satisfaction and fulfilment derived from such participation

  should be highlighted. This added value must also be taken into account

  at the time of quantifying the benefits of both cooperatives and the

  social economy as a whole, and especially when formulating strategy and

  assessing the results achieved.

  Practical conclusions and original value

  The findings show that there is still a long way to go to achieve the

  reconciliation of personal, family and work life that allows full

  equality. This issue reveals the need for action, both institutionally,

  through a suitable framework of support measures, and internally, within

  the entities themselves, through incentives leading to the full

  implementation of these cooperative values and rules of conduct.

  Our results give new evidence of the internal and external social

  policies, and of institutional and business relationships of these

  cooperatives characterized by a high representation of women. It is also

  noted that self-management allows improve adaptation of the working

  conditions and flexibility of women in cooperative workplaces. Moreover,

  they realize that their involvement must be greater, since future

  employment depends on the survival of the cooperative. It would be

  interesting for future studies to compare these results with the

  equivalent relationships observed between shareholders and employees in

  other types of entities. Future research could also examine whether

  other factors, such as the size of the organization, can influence the

  existence of harmonious relations.'
affiliation: 'Esteban Salvador, ML (Corresponding Author), Univ Zaragoza, Fac Ciencias
  Sociales \& Humanas, Escuela Univ, Zaragoza, Spain.

  Esteban Salvador, M. Luisa; Gargallo Castel, Ana F.; Perez Sanz, Francisco Javier,
  Univ Zaragoza, Fac Ciencias Sociales \& Humanas, Escuela Univ, Zaragoza, Spain.'
author: Esteban Salvador, M. Luisa and Gargallo Castel, Ana F. and Perez Sanz, Francisco
  Javier
author-email: luisaes@unizar.es
author_list:
- family: Esteban Salvador
  given: M. Luisa
- family: Gargallo Castel
  given: Ana F.
- family: Perez Sanz
  given: Francisco Javier
da: '2023-09-28'
eissn: 1989-6816
files: []
issn: 0213-8093
journal: CIRIEC-ESPANA REVISTA DE ECONOMIA PUBLICA SOCIAL Y COOPERATIVA
keywords: Cooperatives; employment; woman; conciliation; Spain; depopulation
keywords-plus: 'TOP MANAGEMENT; FIRM PERFORMANCE; WOMEN; DIVERSITY; BOARDS; TEAM;

  DISCRIMINATION; EXECUTIVES'
language: Spanish
month: DEC
number-of-cited-references: '84'
orcid-numbers: 'ESTEBAN-SALVADOR, MARIA LUISA/0000-0001-6511-1893

  Gargallo-Castel, Ana/0000-0001-8054-8997'
pages: 61-92
papis_id: 6f508c2da309531f30b7b338d2479520
ref: Estebansalvador2016docooperatives
researcherid-numbers: 'ESTEBAN-SALVADOR, MARIA LUISA/H-3181-2015

  Gargallo-Castel, Ana/F-8686-2016'
times-cited: '4'
title: 'Do cooperatives have favorable contexts for gender equality?: Special reference
  to the province of Teruel'
type: article
unique-id: WOS:000399878000003
usage-count-last-180-days: '5'
usage-count-since-2013: '31'
volume: '88'
web-of-science-categories: Economics
year: '2016'