Strategic objective F.6. Promote harmonization of work and family responsibilities for women and men Actions to be taken 179. By Governments: (a) Adopt policies to ensure the appropriate protection of labour laws and social security benefits for part-time, temporary, seasonal and homebased workers; promote career development based on work conditions that harmonize work and family responsibilities; (b) Ensure that full and part-time work can be freely chosen by women and men on an equal basis, and consider appropriate protection for atypical workers in terms of access to employment, working conditions and social security; (c) Ensure, through legislation, incentives and/or encouragement, opportunities for women and men to take job-protected parental leave and to have parental benefits; promote the equal sharing of responsibilities for the family by men and women, including through appropriate legislation, incentives and/or encouragement, and also promote the facilitation of breast-feeding for working mothers; (d) Develop policies, inter alia, in education to change attitudes that reinforce the division of labour based on gender in order to promote the concept of shared family responsibility for work in the home, particularly in relation to children and elder care; (e) Improve the development of, and access to, technologies that facilitate occupational as well as domestic work, encourage selfsupport, generate income, transform gender-prescribed roles within the productive process and enable women to move out of low-paying jobs; (f) Examine a range of policies and programmes, including social security legislation and taxation systems, in accordance with national priorities and policies, to determine how to promote gender equality and flexibility in the way people divide their time between and derive benefits from education and training, paid employment, family responsibilities, volunteer activity and other socially useful forms of work, rest and leisure. 180. By Governments, the private sector and non-governmental organizations, trade unions and the United Nations, as appropriate: (a) Adopt appropriate measures involving relevant governmental bodies and employers’ and employees’ associations so that women and men are able to take temporary leave from employment, have transferable employment and retirement benefits and make arrangements to modify work hours without sacrificing their prospects for development and advancement at work and in their careers; (b) Design and provide educational programmes through innovative media campaigns and school and community education programmes to raise awareness on gender equality and non-stereotyped gender roles of women and men within the family; provide support services and facilities, -78-