Womens' rights at the place of work : a legal perspective

Abstract

Today, women represent over 40% of the global labour force. Approximately 70% of women in developed countries and 60% in developing countries are engaged in paid employment. Over the past two decades, the growing participation of women in paid jobs has been driving employment trends (ILO Fact Sheet). Although more women are achieving higher levels of education, there are still anomalies as regards equality between the genders at the place of work. This thesis shall focus mainly on women's rights at the place of work. Primarily these rights are enshrined in the Constitution of Malta which protects against Discrimination as well as laying down the rights of women workers in the Declaration of Principles. European Union legislation has been transposed into Maltese legislation, due to Malta's entry into the European Union. This thesis shall focus mainly on the principle of equal pay for work of equal value, the principle of equal treatment in the access to employment and vocational training, including working conditions and promotion and dismissals, maternity protection and the right to parental leave and urgent leave on grounds of force majeure. The aim of this thesis is to examine in detail the relevant Directives, as well as European case law on the matter. Since equality law is a relatively new regime in Maltese law, we have to look at European law and case law for guidance on interpretation and how these laws are to be applied in practice. Therefore, this thesis shall show, with the help of case law, how labour law relations should create the right balance between the interests of all the social partners in providing a just and humane workplace for women, thus avoiding the presence of harassment and discrimination.