Registration deadline: 25 November
Parents@Work presents
TACKLING PREGNANCY AND PARENTHOOD RELATED DISCRIMINATION IN THE LABOUR MARKET
4 December 2020, 09:00 – 16:00 CET
Webinar (free)
/ about

This webinar invites European labour inspectors and Equality Bodies to discuss and exchange different investigation tools and techniques to combat discrimination in the labour market based on employees’ right to work-life balance.
Participants of this webinar will:
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Discuss investigation tools to better detect discriminatory practices in the labour market.
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Exchange experiences and good practices in tackling cases of discrimination based on employees’ right to work-life balance.
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Reflect on how to improve cooperation between Equality Bodies and labour inspectors.
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Discuss case studies.
Participants
Equality Bodies’ staff members and labour inspectors dealing with pregnancy, maternity, paternity and parental discrimination, dismissal protection and carer’s leaves in the context of work-life balance.
Content
Both European directives and national legislations have set a clear legal framework for discrimination on the ground of gender. Nevertheless, unfair treatment and discriminatory dismissal of pregnant and parent workers, and care takers is still a prevalent reality in many European countries. A major challenge in fighting this kind of discrimination stems from the fact that proving discrimination remains hard; there is commonly a lack of clear and undeniable evidence. Equality Bodies and labour inspectors are both facing these challenges.
In order to build a successful case and mitigate the key problem of the issue of proof, and, more generally, to ensure the application of the principle of equal treatment, it is crucial that Equality Bodies and labour inspectors have effective and adequate tools.
During this webinar, European labour inspectors and Equality Bodies get the opportunity to discuss different tools and techniques to tackle cases of discrimination related to pregnancy, parenthood, and care-taking. They will be able to exchange their experiences with colleagues of other European countries. Labour inspectors and Equality Bodies do not always have the same powers, but they are facing similar challenges in tackling discrimination cases. The answer to some of these challenges may be to combine their forces and expertise, and to foster a mutual collaboration.
Language of the webinar
English

/ program
09:00-09:15 Connecting to the platform
OPENING SESSION
Chair: Barbara Ortiz – Institute for the equality of women and men (BE)
09:15-09:30 Opening addresses
Karen Vandekerckhove – Head of the Gender Equality Unit, European Commission
Liesbet Stevens – Deputy Director, Institute for the equality of women and men (BE)
09:30-10:00 Keynote on Work-Life Balance and Pregnancy Discrimination: issues around enforcement
Dr. Annick Masselot – Professor of Law, University of Canterbury (NZ)
10:00-10:15 Parents@Work project: sharing conclusions
Sylvie Janssens – Project coordinator, Institute for the equality of women and men (BE)
10:15-10:30 Coffee break
EXPLORING INVESTIGATION TECHNIQUES: SITUATION TESTING
Chair: Tamás Kádár – Equinet
10:30-11:30 Experiences across Europe:
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Sophie Latraverse – Défenseur des Droits (FR)
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Didier Henrard – Inspectorate of Social Laws (BE)
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Relja Pantić - Commissioner for Protection of Equality (RS)
11:30-12:00 Q&A
12:00-13:00 Lunch
EFFICIENT INVESTIGATIVE TECHNIQUES: CASE STUDIES
Chair: Viktor Ribarski – Commission for Protection against Discrimination (BG)
13:00-13:15 Introduction to the workshops
13:15-14:45 Parallel workshops:
Workshop 1: Indirect discrimination and thematic leaves
Liisa Pakosta – Head of the Gender Equality and Equal Treatment Commissioner (EE)
Workshop 2: Return to work after thematic leaves
Phedra Neel & Barbara Ortiz – Experts, Institute for the equality of women and men (BE)
14:45-15:00 Coffee break
15:00-15:45 Reporting back & discussion
Liisa Pakosta – Head of the Gender Equality and Equal Treatment Commissioner (EE)
CONCLUDING SESSION
15:45-16:00 Conclusion
Anne Gaspard – Executive Director, Equinet
/ parents
@work
This webinar is part of the Parents@Work project.
The Parents@Work project is funded by the Rights, Equality and Citizenship Programme of the European Union (2014-2020).
Project goals
The project aims to improve the protection of and combat discrimination against pregnant workers, mothers, and fathers in the workplace.
Project partners
Project duration
1 September 2019 – 31 August 2021

/contact
CONTACT
For any additional questions contact:
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This project is funded by the Rights, Equality and Citizenship Programme of the European Union (2014-2020).