abstract: 'Objective: This paper pursues the question as to how extended flexible working possibilities in the labor market are legitimized among employers and employees and whether they have potential to mitigate inequalities.Background: Persistent and increasing gendered inequalities in Austria are reflected in the unequal division of unpaid family work in parental couples and in men''s stable fulltime employment while women increasingly work part-time. In recent years, employers have expanded flexible working possibilities for all employees, regardless of their gender, also in leading positions and especially for those with family responsibilities.Method: We conducted six focus groups and 16 semi-structured interviews with employers (n=30) and employees (n=25) from 29 contrasting companies across Austria. An in-depth reconstructive analysis facilitated our exploration of collective notions and concepts associated with flexible work and career opportunities. Results: The respondents constructed part-time and flexible work as a new norm strongly connected to women with (potential) children. At the same time, employers and employees legitimized that these women must be protected from penalties resulting from the ideal worker norm still in force and must be variously supported by employers. However, men - the partners of women they could support by making use of these options and taking over childcare - are not constructed as a target group.Conclusion: In a cultural context such as Austria, family-friendly flexible working opportunities perpetuate rather than level gendered inequalities, as men''s need for those opportunities do not emerge in the constructions. The lack thereof is neither explicitly addressed nor challenged.' affiliation: 'Schmidt, EM (Corresponding Author), Univ Vienna, Austrian Inst Family Studies, Grillparzerstr 7-9, Vienna 1010, Austria. Schmidt, Eva -Maria, Univ Vienna, Austrian Inst Family Studies, Vienna, Austria. Schmidt, Eva -Maria, Univ Vienna, Austrian Inst Family Studies, Grillparzerstr 7-9, Vienna 1010, Austria.' author: Schmidt, Eva -Maria author-email: eva-maria.schmidt@univie.ac.at author_list: - family: Schmidt given: Eva -Maria da: '2023-09-28' doi: 10.20377/jfr-668 eissn: 2699-2337 files: [] journal: JFR-JOURNAL OF FAMILY RESEARCH keywords: 'part-time work; women?s labor participation; career opportunities; gender ideologies; gender equality' keywords-plus: 'PART-TIME EMPLOYMENT; WOMENS EMPLOYMENT; ENTITLEMENT; FAMILY; SENSE; TRANSITIONS; EDUCATION; EQUALITY; REVERSAL; FATHERS' language: English number: '2' number-of-cited-references: '83' orcid-numbers: Schmidt, Eva-Maria/0000-0003-2309-249X pages: 615-642 papis_id: 4051b51a548461d823a15e3f5510a74f ref: Schmidt2022flexibleworking researcherid-numbers: Schmidt, Eva-Maria/HQZ-6704-2023 times-cited: '0' title: Flexible working for all? How collective constructions by Austrian employers and employees perpetuate gendered inequalities type: article unique-id: WOS:000865657700002 usage-count-last-180-days: '7' usage-count-since-2013: '9' volume: '34' web-of-science-categories: Family Studies year: '2022'