Employment discrimination

Article 56 of the Labor Code stipulates the employer's obligation to set part-time working hours for certain categories of employees, including (i) pregnant women; (ii) women with children under the age of 14 and/or a child with a disability; (iii) women caring for a sick family member. The scope of their labor rights is not limited; such women still have the right to a full-time vacation and social benefits. For part-time work days, a person is paid in proportion to the time worked. Article 60-1 provides for the right of pregnant women and women with children to choose to work from home.

Article 63 of the Code of Labor Laws prohibits overtime work for pregnant women and women with children under the age of three. This rule is meant to protect women, but at the same time it makes them vulnerable to discrimination. The direct application of this rule violates women's right to freely choose their work, restricts women's access to jobs for which additional payment is provided (for example, under the hourly payment system, overtime work is paid at doubled hourly rate), and can also inhibit women’s career and professional growth.

Article 24 of Ukraine’s Constitution prohibits privileges and restrictions based on sex (and other grounds), and requires equal opportunities for women and men in socio-political and cultural activities, access to education, work and remuneration, and pension privileges. It also mandates special measures for labor protection, women’s health, and creating conditions enabling women to combine work and maternity. Article 51 provides that marriage is based on the free consent of a woman and a man. Each spouse has equal rights and responsibilities in marriage and family.

This Order invalidated Order No 256, which listed heavy work and work with harmful and dangerous working conditions in which the employment of women was prohibited. Order No 256’s list of prohibited work for women included 70 types of work and 558 professions. Among the priority factors were the physical stress associated with lifting and carrying loads, forced working posture, vibration, and other similar tasks that could affect a woman's body and reproductive health.

The Equal Opportunities Act of Ukraine (the “Act”) provides the legal framework for men and women’s parity in all spheres of social life through providing legal support for equal rights and opportunities, removal of gender-based discrimination, and prevention of imbalance between women’s and men’s opportunities in implementing the rights granted to each of them by the Constitution and other laws.

The plaintiff sued the defendant, one of the Ukrainian enterprises, for gender discrimination, refusal to hire, forced hiring, recovery of average earnings for the period of forced absenteeism, and non-pecuniary damage. The plaintiff argued that his labor rights were violated because the job advertisement required only female candidates, which, in his opinion, constituted discrimination. He also noted that after sending his resume and documents, he did not receive a response, which forced him to seek medical treatment for mental anguish.

A woman (the plaintiff) filed a lawsuit to recognize her dismissal as illegal, reinstate her her employment, and recover non-pecuniary damage in the amount of UAH 50,000. The plaintiff’s claim was based on the fact that the director of the company where she worked issued an illegal order to dismiss her when he learned that the plaintiff was pregnant. This decision was due to the fact that the company was obligated to provide the plaintiff with paid maternity leave in the near future.

The plaintiff filed a lawsuit with the Kyiv City Court against the defendant, the State Enforcement Service of Ukraine, to declare the order on his dismissal and reinstatement unlawful. The plaintiff argued that his dismissal was unlawful because he was not offered another position (as required by law in the event of a legal entity reorganization) and was dismissed during his social leave for childcare.

The plaintiff was hired as a cashier at a supermarket. Due to her pregnancy, she was hired as a part-time employee (working no more than four hours a day; under Art. 56 of the Labor Code, at the request of a pregnant woman, the employer must allow her a part-time working day or part-time working week), but worked full-time. While at work, she suddenly started experiencing health problems and asked the senior cashier to let her go home. The latter denied her request in a rude manner.

The Strategy aimed to improve government policies promoting human and civil rights and freedoms. The Strategy aims to unite society in protecting the values of human rights and freedoms based on equality and non-discrimination.