2. Work and family life in Europe: Employment patterns of working parents across welfare states Laura den Dulk, Bram Peper and Anneke van Doorne-Huiskes ______________________________________________________________ 1. INTRODUCTION The rise of female employment has been one of the most important trends in the labour markets of all Western European countries in recent decades. The traditional single-earner family is disappearing and the number of dual-earner families is growing, not only in Western Europe but also in the United States (Waite and Nielsen, 2001). In 2000, the number of dual-earner couples averaged 62 per cent across the EU member states. However, European countries differ in terms of the pace and timing of this trend. In the Nordic countries and Portugal, around two-thirds of couples are dual-earners, whereas in Southern Europe, for example Spain, Italy and Greece, the share of dual-earner couples is still below 50 per cent. The growth of dual-earner families is particularly strong among couples with children; only Germany, Italy and Belgium are exceptions in this respect (Franco and Winqvist, 2002). The growth of dual-earner families has challenged the traditional breadwinner model, which has served as a basis for Western European welfare states in particular, and for the way the labour market is organised. Career paths in organisations tacitly imply workers who are ‘free’ of care tasks. In this respect, Moen and Sweet speak of ‘the outdated structure of work and occupational career paths’ (2003:18). The recent rise of the dual- earner family therefore has important implications for the structure of welfare states and for the organisation of work. The rise of dual earners has not, however, implied that a new, dominant model is appearing in Europe. On the contrary, when examining the hours spent on paid labour by couples with children, it becomes clear that working