Why the EU emergency brake on migrant benefits is sexist
The IndependentSign up for the Independent Women email for the latest news, opinion and features Get the Independent Women email for free Get the Independent Women email for free SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Of particular interest has been the proposal to apply an “emergency brake” to limit access to in-work benefits for EU migrants. While the precise details of the brake are yet to be refined, what we do know is that it limits access to in-work benefits for “up to” four years. So it could take a long time to get recognised as a worker in the first place, and then much longer than four years to accrue the requisite continuous period of work. The emergency brake on in-work benefits creates a sexually asymmetric concept of free movement: women can only enjoy the rights supposedly afforded to all European citizens so long as their bodies do not betray them.
History of this topic
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