Suchergebnisse

The aim of the Master thesis Does the Law System of the Republic of Lithuania Ensure the Non-Discrimination of Women in Labour Market is, by answering the problematic question, to conduct a scientific research and confirm or deny the hypothesis that the law system of the Republic of Lithuania does not ensure the non-discrimination of women in labour market. This topic is problematic because there is a legislative context established in Lithuania that aims to ensure equal individual rights in the field of labour. Despite the relative legislation, the official statistical data demonstrate that de facto situation of women in labour market is worse than men. In Lithuania only in 2012 in the age range of 25-34 there were 17.8% more women with higher education than men and, compared to men, their work pay gap was 12.6%. What is more, in the age range of 35-44 the work pay gap was 17.3%, and the employment rate of women was 3% smaller than men. Hence, the subject of the scientific study is the legal system of the Republic of Lithuania in terms of the non-discrimination/discrimination of women in labour market. The objectives of the paper are as follows: 1. interview the representatives of three different institutions in Lithuania in order to find out the main reasons, why the situation of women in the labour market is worse, and to provide the form and base of discrimination of women; 2. present the concept of positive actions and the application of tools of positive actions that ensure the non-discrimination of women in labour market; 3. analyze and describe how to ensure the non-discrimination of women in labour market on an international and supranational level; 4. analyze Lithuanian law and point out the imperfections of certain laws that do not ensure the non-discrimination of women in labour market. In the first chapter of this Master thesis the forms and reasons of women discrimination in labour market were analyzed. It was important to find what the forms of discrimination are and what factors influence the worse situation of women in labour market, compared to men. The study was done as follows: the representatives of three different Lithuanian institutions were interviewed, the comparative analysis of legislation was carried out, and the analysis of scientific publications was done. The results demonstrated that women in labour market are discrimanet for these reasons: lack of representation of women when making decisions, constantly reproduced gender stereotypes, and the higher burden of family responsibilities, compared to men. The base of discrimination are marital and family status, family commitment, pregnancy, and parental leave. The Lithuanian law provides four prohibited forms of discrimination: direct, indirect, harassment, and sexual harassment. However, the description of law has no direct relation with actual segregation in employment. The second chapter provides the analysis of the application of positive actions that ensure the non-discrimination of women in labour market. Positive actions are important because they eliminate actual inequality in social life. It was researched, what the tools of positive actions are in the public work sector and private work sector. The comparative analysis with other countries was carried out. The results revealed that the Lithuanian law treats positive actions as temporary special measures that are used to ensure equality and prevent the violation of equal rights because of gender-related and other reasons. However, there is no law in Lithuania that would provide the exact nature and conditions of application of these measures. The third chapter provides the analysis of how the non-discrimination of women in labour market on an international and supranational level is ensured. Descriptive, analytic, and comparative methods were used to find out what measures and mechanisms can help to ensure the non-discrimination if women in labour market. With the use of international mechanisms the United Nations obligate the countries-participants of convention to apply national measures in fighting with the discrimination of women in labour market. In Lithuania the Convention to Eliminate All Forms of Discrimination Against Women and the Optional Protocol to the Convention to Eliminate All Forms of Discrimination Against Women are confirmed. Lithuania, as a participating country, formally considers the recommendations regarding the worse situation of women in labour market and implements them through various national programs by modifying or supplementing the legislation. The influence of the European Union is felt on a supranational level when writing national legislation. There are many EU directives applied in the national law of Lithuania. However, not all of them are applied consistently because the non-discrimination of women in labour market is not the priority issue in Lithuania. Chapter 4 provides the analysis of the legislation and legal mechanisms of the Republic of Lithuania. The main focus was on the issue of maternity leave regulated by the Labour Code, and the issue of making decisions, appealing them, and functions of Equal Opportunities Ombudsman. These questions are important because they are directly related to the situation of women in labour market and the ability to address a quasi-judicial body with the appeal about violation of rights. The methods of scientific analysis used in this chapter are analytical method, descriptive method and interview. The provision of parental leave that is regulated by the Labour Code raises main problems regarding the situation of a woman in labour market because the stereotypical idea that only a woman should go on parental leave is still alive. A very small part of men choose to go on a parental leave what causes long breaks between work for women and strongly affects their career. The results showed that people in Lithuania trust the Equal Opportunities Ombudsman more than they trust court. However, the contemporary function of the Equal Opportunities Ombudsman, which is the supervision of law enforcement, and its related competence of imposing administrative liability regarding the violation of Act on Equal opportunities for Women and Men and Law on Equal Opportunities are limited. The results of this research are important because they reveal the imperfections of laws and pose a need to adopt amendments. After the scientific research was conducted, the hypothesis raised was confirmed: the law system of the Republic of Lithuania does not ensure the non-discrimination of women in labour market. The answer to the question, whether the law system of the Republic of Lithuania ensures the non-discrimination of women in labour market, is no.