Family conciliation must be based on care

In line with its commitment to greater social balance and to the quality of life of people and their families, as well as to improving productivity and the working environment in companies, administrations and organisations, the Observatory of Conciliation, Co-responsibility and Diversity of Comillas Pontifical University organised the 5th Conference on Conciliation, Co-responsibility and Diversity. The meeting, entitled "Reconciling to care: proposals for a family reconciliation focused on care", was held in a bimodal format and counted on the collaboration of Viscofan and REDEIA, which also participated in one of the round tables.

The Dean of the Faculty of Law (Comillas ICADE), Abel Veiga, was in charge of opening the conference, pointing out that this is a complex and multifaceted issue, but a fundamental one. "When we talk about work-life balance, we talk about carers and care, but also about mental health. It is very important that the subject is openly debated at the university and that the focus is also placed on who cares for the carer," she said.

Doctor and pioneer in addressing the feminisation of care, Mª Angeles Durán, gave the opening lecture "Glory and misery of care". During her speech, she stressed the need to define the term "care". "It is a word with many meanings and everyone uses it in a different way. It is important to understand what we are talking about, especially when we are preparing a law, whether at national or European level. Durán continued his presentation by talking about the cost of care and encouraged the audience to "join forces and become involved in the military" by putting the issue at the heart of the matter.

This was followed by the round table "The right to care and to be cared for", which addressed the legislative developments of, among others, the new parental leave and analysed the use of time as an element of wealth. The second round table, entitled "Work-life balance and mental health", explored the impact of work-life balance on people's lives from the point of view of companies that are focusing on this type of process. The conference also served to present the book "Tailor-made work-life balance: a business challenge within the framework of the 2030 Agenda", a volume which includes the speeches made at last year's conference.

Finally, Ana Berastegui, Director of the University Institute of Family Studies at Comillas Pontifical University, took the floor to stress the transversality of care. "It is one of the axes of social transformation and one of the keys for future well-being to be sustainable and inclusive", she said.

The event concluded with the presentation of the Observatory of Conciliation, Co-responsibility and Diversity Award for the Best End of Degree Project of the universities of Deusto, Ramon Llull and Comillas for the 2022-23 academic year to Manuela Bujidos, a student of the Dual Degree in Business Administration and Management and Law (E-3). The student won the award for her work "Conciliation and joint responsibility in the light of labour and social security law in the 21st century". The prize for the best TFM was not awarded.