Gabriele Heinisch-Hosek (born 16 December 1961) is an

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen, see Austrian nationality law * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ...

politician. She served as minister without portfolio between 2 December 2008 and 16 December 2013. In addition, she was the federal minister for women and civil service within the Federal Chancellery between 18 December 2008 and 18 May 2016.

Early life and education

Heinisch-Hosek was born in

Guntramsdorf Guntramsdorf is a town in the district of Mödling in the Austrian state of Lower Austria. As part of the "''Industrieviertel''", the industrial region in the southeast of Lower Austria, it is well connected to the country capital Vienna. The loca ...

, District of Mödling, Lower Austria, on 16 December 1961. She is a graduate of the Grammar School in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

(1976-1980). She graduated from the Teachers College in Baden in 1983.

Career

Heinisch-Hosek, a teacher by training, worked in a Viennese toyshop and in the adult education center in

Mödling Mödling () is the capital of the Austrian district of the same name located approximately 14 km south of Vienna. Mödling lies in Lower Austria's industrial zone (Industrieviertel). The Mödlingbach, a brook which rises in the Vienna Woods, ...

from 1983 to 1984. Then she worked as a teacher in a secondary modern school in Vienna from 1984 to 1985. Next, she served as a teacher in a school for children with hearing impairments and deaf children again in Vienna from 1985 to 2002.

Political career

Heinisch-Hosek began her political career in 1990 as a member of the Guntramsdorf municipal council. In 1995, she became executive municipal councillor in Guntramsdorf. Her tenure lasted until 2008. She was a member of Parliament for the Social Democratic Party for the districts of Mödling and Greater Vienna from 1999 to 2008. She served as spokesperson for women’s affairs in parliament and chair of the parliamentary commission for the equal treatment of women from 2004 to April 2008. She was appointed federal minister for women and civil service to the cabinet led by

Werner Faymann Werner Faymann (; born 4 May 1960) is an Austrian former politician who was Chancellor of Austria and chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Austria (SPÖ) from 2008 to 2016. On 9 May 2016, he resigned from both positions amid widening critic ...

on 2 December 2008, replacing Heidrun Silhavy in the post. She represents the Social Democrat Party in the coalition government formed by the Social Democrat Party and the People's Party. She has been dealing with gender equality problems in Austria. She has been also the chair of the women’s organisation of the Social Democratic Party since December 2009.

Views

In December 2009 Austria’s parliament approved a legislation that enables same-sex couples to enter into civil unions. Heinisch-Hosek regarded the vote as "the first step in the right direction." In 2010, she declared her support for a ban on the full

Islamic veil Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or ''Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the main ...

in public spaces if the number of women veiled from head to toe increases dramatically.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Heinisch-Hosek, Gabriele 21st-century Austrian women politicians 1961 births Living people Members of the National Council (Austria) People from Mödling District Social Democratic Party of Austria politicians Women government ministers of Austria