Law No. 202/2002 (19/4/2002) On Equal Opportunities between Women and Men - Romania

Lege privind egalitatea de sanse între femei si barbate; MO No. 301, 5/8/02 (In Romanian)

Article 5(1) prohibits direct or indirect gender discrimination. Article 5(2) specifies a number of exceptions that do not amount to such discrimination:

a. special measures for the protection of maternity, birth and breast-feeding;
b. temporary incentive measures for the protection of certain categories of men and women; and,
c. qualification requirements for fields of activities where gender particularities constitute a determining factor given the activity’s specific conditions and mode of operation.

Direct gender discrimination is defined as any disadvantageous treatment inflicted by reason of one’s gender, pregnancy, maternity, birth or when a paternity leave is granted (Art. 4a). Indirect discrimination occurs where apparently neutral criteria or practises affect people belonging to one gender; an exception to this prohibition of indirect discrimination is provided when the criteria or practice can be justified by objective factors, unrelated to gender.

Chapter II deals with Equal opportunities and treatment between women and men in the labour field. This covers, according to article 6, non-discrimination with regard to:

a. access to a profession or activity;
b. employment in all vacant positions and at all hierarchical levels;
c. equal income for equal work;
d. professional information and advise, vocational counselling, learning, training upgrading and retraining vocational programs;
e. promotion at any hierarchical or professional level;
f. working conditions and observance of health and safety norms;
g. benefits, different from those related to pay; and,
h. protection measures or social security.

Article 7 states that employers shall ensure equal opportunities and treatment between women and men in work relations and include provisions prohibiting discrimination in the companies’ statutes. Employers shall also systematically inform their employees, by way of posters, of their right to equal opportunity and treatment.

Article 9 provides that maternity cannot constitute a discrimination motive for the selection of applicants for a position. It also prohibits asking the applicant to submit to a pregnancy test, except where particular working conditions prevent pregnant or breast-feeding women from occupying the position.

Article 10 states that sexual harassment is any behaviour that aims at:

a. creating in the workplace an atmosphere of intimidation, hostility or discouragement for the affected employee; or
b. negatively influencing the employee’s personal situation with regard to his/her professional promotion, pay, access to formation, when the employee refuses relations of a sexual nature.

Article 11 adds that company statutes shall include disciplinary sanctions for employees violating other employee’s right to dignity by discriminating against them. Employers shall also inform their employees, by way of posters, of the prohibition of sexual harassment.

Article 12 states that the unilateral modification by the employer of work relations or work conditions following the invocation by the employee of the Act’s provisions constitutes a prohibited discrimination (i.e.: victimisation.). Article 13 provides that contracting parties to collective agreements negotiated at the national or company level shall include provisions prohibiting discrimination and establishing dispute settlement procedures.

Chapter III deals with equal opportunities and treatment with regard to access to education, health, culture and information. Article 14 thus prohibits any gender discrimination in the access to all levels of instruction and vocational training. Teaching institutions shall include in teaching programs measures calling for equal opportunities and treatment between women and men. Article 15 adds that the Education Ministry will promote school textbooks, university courses, guidelines for the implementation of analytical programs which will not include neither gender discrimination aspects nor negative behaviour stereotypes with regard to women’s and men’s role in public and family life.

For its part, article 16 prohibits any gender discrimination in the access to all levels of medical assistance, disease prevention and health promotion programs. Article 18 states that public culture institutions and other structures and formations promoting culture shall create conditions enabling non-discriminatory access to cultural products.

Article 19 prohibits advertisements which violate human dignity, offending on a gender basis someone’s image or honour. Article 20 provides that the information broadcast by mass-media shall respect equal opportunities and treatment between women and men and shall not promote any form of gender discrimination.

Chapter IV deals with equal opportunities between women and men with regard to decision-making. Article 21 provides that central and local public authorities, political parties and non-profit organizations shall promote and support women’s and men have balanced participation in their decision-making process. Article 22 adds that central and local public authorities shall adopt measures encouraging women’s and men’s balanced participation in the social partners’ deciding authorities.

Chapter V enumerates the public authorities competent to monitor and implement the legislation adopted in the field of equal opportunities between women and men. The Labour Ministry’s task are to:

a. abrogate legislative and administrative provisions which violate equal opportunities and treatment between women and men; and,
b. amend the same provisions where they are included in collective work conventions, individual work contracts, companies’ statutes and independent profession’s statutes (art. 23).

The Labour Ministry also ensures that the Acts’ provisions are implemented through the following institutions:

a. National agency for the Working force’s Employment
b. National Pension Fund, Labour Inspection
c. National Council for Vocational Training
d. National Institute on Scientific Research in the Labour and Social protection fields
e. National Institute on Research and Development for Labour Protection
f. Health and Family Ministry
g. National statistics Institution
h. Ombudsman
i. Social and Economic Council

Article 32 provides that trade unions shall name, within each company’s trade unions, representatives competent to ensure the respect of equal opportunities between women and men in the labour field. The representatives will take into considerations complaints emanating from victims of alleged gender discrimination and will try to solve the dispute.

Chapter VI deals with the settlement of gender discrimination disputes. Article 33 provides that employees have the right, when they consider themselves victims of gender discrimination, to complain and to request the support of a trade union or of an employee’s representative. If mediation at the company’s level fails, employees can institute proceedings in courts and obtain indemnities for their material or moral prejudice as well as the removing the consequences of the discrimination. Article 34 grants the same rights where discrimination takes place outside the labour field.

Chapter VII deals with sanctions, which range from 1.5 million lei to 15 million lei. Violations of the Act’s provisions are certified, and fines imposed by Labour inspectors, Education inspectors, Health inspectors and Culture inspectors.