The most comprehensive compilation of information on the status of
women in the world.

Latest items for GIC-LAW-1

March 18, 2023, 10:20 p.m.
Countries: Ethiopia
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"The legal frameworks further provide for paid maternity leave and guarantee job security during pregnancy and immediately after delivery. In addition, the Civil Servants Proclamation provides for paid paternity leave for five working days at the time of delivery" (16)
March 15, 2023, 4:58 a.m.
Countries: Bulgaria
Variables: GIC-LAW-1, GIC-LAW-3

“In June 2000, Bulgaria ratified selected Articles of Part II of the Social Charter of the Council of Europe, which included provisions for gender equality and some special protections for women, such as the right of women and men workers to equal pay for work of equal value, the right to maternity leave and the payment of adequate benefits” (50). “However, Bulgarian legislation is also lacking in several areas. Most important to the question of women in the labour force is that it does not comply with ratified ILO conventions, namely Convention 100, establishing the right to equal remuneration of women and men for work of equal value. This provision...more
March 8, 2023, 1:43 p.m.
Countries: Montenegro
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"Special treatment of persons with disabilities, youth, and women has been improved with new provisions, such as that a pregnant employee has the right to one day of absence from work during the month to perform prenatal examinations, during which time they are entitled to compensation as if at work (Article 122). A higher degree of protection of the rights of pregnant employees and employees using the right to maternity or parental leave is also provided in the context of protection against termination of employment and a more precise definition of restrictions related to terminating the employment contract (Article 123). In order to protect the rights of pregnant employees, i.e.,...more
Feb. 27, 2023, 1:02 p.m.
Countries: South Korea
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"Recent governments have indeed been alarmed by a rate that’s seemingly approaching zero. Over 16 years, 280 trillion won ($210 billion) has been poured into programs encouraging procreation, such as a monthly allowance for parents of newborns." (para 9). "It’s clear that countries with a disproportionate division of child care or lacking national paid parental leave, like Japan and the United States, also have plunging fertility rates. It’s the same with China, where women inspired by South Korea started their own 'Four nos' movement; government data this month reveals its population is shrinking, too. But countries with cooperative fathers and good family policies, like Sweden, or that recognize diverse companionships,...more
Feb. 24, 2023, 12:54 p.m.
Countries: Nepal
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"With the recognition of maternity as a social function, both mother and father are entitled to paid maternity leave and allowance. Awareness on maternal and child care, vaccination, periodic antenatal and postnatal check-up and role of husband and family members have been on increasing trend." (27). "The GoN’s social security schemes have been vital in enhancing social equity and justice. The government has been providing social security benefits through various programs to the most vulnerable groups in the country since 1994/95. Major recipients of social security allowances are senior citizens, single women, persons with disabilities, targeted marginal communities, and other women and children, of whom more than 50 percent are...more
Feb. 4, 2023, 6:14 p.m.
Countries: Namibia
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

The state party welcomes the recommendation and will consult with relevant stakeholders to develop modalities to better regulate the informal employment sector in order to ensure that issues of conditions of employment including maternity leave in terms of the Labour Act are adhered to. (17). "In terms of section 26 of the Labour Act, Act No.11 of 2007, a female employee who has completed six months’ continuous service in the employment of an employer is, with a view to her confinement (date of childbirth), entitled to not less than 12 weeks’ maternity leave, calculated as follows: a) Before her actual date of confinement - (i) she is entitled to commence...more
Feb. 3, 2023, 2:59 p.m.
Countries: United Kingdom
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"Tens of thousands of grandparents could be missing out on a little-known pension perk that would boost their income in retirement. The high cost of childcare means increasing numbers of parents rely on relatives to look after their children so they can return to work. But many carers do not realise they are entitled to valuable pension credits that could be worth thousands of pounds to compensate for their time" (para 1-3). "To claim the full new state pension, currently worth £185.15 a week, you need 35 years of National Insurance contributions....If you have children under the age of 12 and claim child benefit, you will automatically receive parents' credits....more
Feb. 2, 2023, 1:11 p.m.
Countries: Austria
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"The Committee welcomes the progress achieved since the consideration in 2013 of the State party’s combined seventh and eighth periodic reports... in particular the following:...(c) Adoption of amendments to the Maternity Protection Law and the Paternal Leave Law, which define a legal working time frame for part-time work of parents and extend the period for informing the employer about parental leave plans and which entered into force on 1 January 2016" (1-2). "The Committee welcomes the State party’s efforts to improve its institutional and policy framework aimed at accelerating the elimination of discrimination against women and promoting gender equality, such as the adoption of the following:...Tax reforms, which establish measures...more
Dec. 9, 2022, 2:29 p.m.
Countries: China
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"China's National Health Commission announced this week that it would take steps to reduce the number of abortions in the country — Beijing’s latest attempt to tackle low birthrates and stagnant population growth. According to new guidelines published on the state-run commission’s website, officials plan to offer incentives to encourage family growth, including expanding access to child-care services, reducing the cost of attending nursery school and working with employers to make offices more 'family friendly.' The government has also vowed to make infertility treatment more widely available to married women, by including reproductive technology in the country’s national medical system" (para 1-3). "In 2016, the Chinese government altered its policy...more
July 6, 2022, 10:35 a.m.
Countries: Djibouti
Variables: GIC-LAW-1, GIC-LAW-3

"Amending provisions on maternity leave in both the private and public sectors, extending maternity leave to six months" (21).
July 1, 2022, 11:43 a.m.
Countries: East Timor
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"The first comprehensive and contributory social security scheme for the working-age population was officially adopted in 2016 (Law N° 12/2016) and began to operate in August 2017. It is mandatory for all workers in the private formal and public sectors and offers provisions for old age, invalidity (Decree-Law N° 17/2017), maternity, paternity (Decree-Law N° 18/2017) and death (Decree-Law N° 19/2017)" (31).
July 1, 2022, 11:06 a.m.
Countries: Indonesia
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"Meanwhile, women employment has been boosted with regulations obligating the employers to provide access to maternity leave, lactation rooms and day care centres and flexible working hours for lactating women" (2). "Indonesia has also enacted national legal instruments to support women’s participation in the labour force... Such laws include among others: (a) Minister of Health Regulation No. 15/2013, which requires the provision of lactation rooms in public places; (b) MoWECP Regulation No. 5/2015 on Facilitating Child Friendly and Gender Responsive Working Environment" (29).
June 29, 2022, 11:33 a.m.
Countries: Indonesia
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"The Committee recommends that the State party:... Guarantee protections for paid maternity, menstruation and breastfeeding leave, and ensure that women will be protected from forced unpaid overtime hours, despite changes to overtime hours and wage laws in Law No. 11/2020 on job creation" (12-13). This indicates that these protections are not yet in place (SFR - CODER COMMENT).
June 21, 2022, 8:35 a.m.
Countries: United Kingdom
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"The Committee welcomes the measures taken by the State party to expand the childcare entitlement for working parents in England, Scotland and Wales. However, the Committee is concerned that childcare costs remain excessive, in particular in Northern Ireland, which constitutes an obstacle for women in entering into and progressing in the workplace. In addition, while welcoming the introduction of flexible working arrangements in 2014, the Committee regrets that it can only be exercised after 26 weeks of employment. It also regrets that, notwithstanding the introduction of shared parental leave in 2014, uptake among men has been low" (12). "The Committee recalls its previous concluding observations (CEDAW/C/GBR/CO/7, para. 62) and remains...more
June 14, 2022, 5:24 p.m.
Countries: Denmark
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"A nationwide campaign to promote the use of parental leave by fathers runs in 2017–2020. It was developed in dialogue with companies, organizations and trade unions. Also, a charter with concrete actions was drafted and subsequently signed by a number of private sector actors. In 2019, a pool of DKK 1 mill. was distributed for activities to promote the use of fathers’ leave" (5). "Both mothers and fathers are entitled to state sponsored parental leave and entitlements. Mothers have 18 weeks of paid maternity leave and fathers have 2 weeks of paid paternity leave. Additionally, each parent has the right to 32 weeks of parental leave with a total of...more
June 8, 2022, 4:20 p.m.
Countries: Hungary
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

Its policies look strikingly similar to those of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who recently announced measures to help mothers by rewarding those who have multiple children with tax cuts and financial subsidies.
June 8, 2022, 3:38 p.m.
Countries: Spain
Variables: ATDW-PRACTICE-3, GIC-LAW-1, GIC-LAW-3

"The party also espouses what Sílvia Claveria, a politics professor at Carlos III University in Madrid, described to me as “modern sexism”: It advocates longer maternity leave and encourages women to be proud mothers, but once women want to separate from or divorce their partners, it shifts positions to take the man’s side..." (Para. 9).
June 7, 2022, 10:47 a.m.
Countries: China
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"The Law of the People’s Republic of China on Social Insurance, which was adopted in October 2010, came into effect in July 2011. The law stipulates that workers shall participate in maternity insurance and the maternity insurance premiums shall be paid by the employers in accordance with the provisions of the State. The workers need not pay the maternity insurance premiums. If the employing entity has paid the maternity insurance premium, its worker shall enjoy maternity insurance benefits, including the medical fees associated with giving birth and maternity subsidy. The spouse of the worker who is not employed will be paid the benefit of medical fees associated with childbirth, according...more
May 30, 2022, 9:08 p.m.
Countries: Switzerland
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"In a 2012 analysis of the effects of maternity insurance, FSIO found that most female employees had maternity leave with pay before the introduction of compulsory maternity insurance. Compulsory maternity insurance is nonetheless important, as it recognizes the loss of earnings due to maternity and guarantees women proper social protection during that time; and its introduction has also enabled a minimum standard to be established" (35). "In a ruling dated 15 September 2014, the Federal Supreme Court defended the non-discriminatory character of the limitation to women only of the right to an earnings loss allowance during maternity, and dismissed the appeal of a father who was seeking an allowance for...more
May 27, 2022, 4:14 p.m.
Countries: Turkey
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"[A] five-day paternity leave was granted to employees whose spouse give birth" (18). "[F]emale employees were entitled to work half-time for two months for the first child on condition of the survival of the child; four months for the second child, and six months for the third and more children without any pay reduction. In multiple births, one extra month shall be added to the aforementioned periods. In the event of a child with disability, the employee was entitled to work half-time for 12 months on usual salary" (18). "The employee shall be paid 'Part Time Employment Payment after Maternity and Adoption', following the maternity and adoption, throughout his/her unpaid...more
May 16, 2022, 8:09 p.m.
Countries: Suriname
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"With regard to Article 45 paragraph 4 of this Act, in 2003 the Government Act on Pregnancy/ Maternity Leave was revised and made more flexible. Instead of the former compulsory 6 weeks before and 6 weeks after child birth, pregnant women can, after consultation with a doctor, continue to work up to two weeks prior to childbirth and resume service 10 weeks after childbirth" (9). "Paid maternity leave has been added to the draft civil code. Some companies have also included paid maternity leave in the company’s collective agreement on terms of employment. Women employed in the private sector by companies without a collective labour agreement have no legal coverage...more
March 25, 2022, 10:05 p.m.
Countries: Kosovo
Variables: GIC-LAW-1, GIC-LAW-3

"The law provides for 20 days’ paid leave per year for employees and 12 months of partially paid maternity leave" (33).
March 21, 2022, 3:27 p.m.
Countries: Serbia
Variables: ADCM-PRACTICE-1, GIC-LAW-1

"The state child allowance stops at the fourth child, and collection of child support orders from fathers is inefficient" (11).
March 10, 2022, 10:53 p.m.
Countries: Lebanon
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"Palestinians did not benefit from national sickness and maternity funds or the family allowances fund. UNRWA continued to bear the cost of any medical, maternity, or family health-care expenses (excluding worker’s compensation)" (24).
March 9, 2022, 8:57 a.m.
Countries: Italy
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"...the above Framework was...designed to encourage Regional Administrations, to reach the following quantified targets, by 2013: Increasing the percentage of municipalities offering child-care services, from the current 21% to 35%" (62). "In Italy, [maternity] leave lasts five months, to be shared in a flexible way before and after the child-birth...the indemnity is equal to 80% of the average wage (to be calculated on the basis of the last month wage before the beginning of the leave)" (65). "...parental leave, as introduced in Italy, in 2000, may be requested by both parents, if employees and when their child is within the age of 8 and for a term not exceeding ten...more
March 6, 2022, 11:49 p.m.
Countries: Kazakhstan
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"Women from lower-income families are continuing to demand government assistance as coronavirus restrictions in the Central Asian state are eased. Some 20 women on June 9 resumed their so-called 'silent protest' after spending the night in front of the Ministry of Labor and Social Support. The women were wearing sanitary masks marked with an 'X' on them, which they said symbolized 'the fact that we are not allowed to speak up.' They also held posters saying: 'Cheap mortgages for families in need,' 'Financial support for each child,' 'Amnesty for poor families' bank credits,' and 'We are on a hunger strike.' 'Rallies and pickets by poor women have been held regularly...more
Feb. 28, 2022, 4:35 p.m.
Countries: El Salvador
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"In August the Legislative Assembly approved an “equal job, equal pay” reform to the labor code that provides for equal pay for women and persons with disabilities who perform the same duties as others. The law, reformed in 2018, prohibits the dismissal of women returning from maternity leave for up to six months.On February 14, the Legislative Assembly reformed the labor code in order to grant employment stability to persons suffering from chronic diseases that require frequent medical checks and rehabilitation. The reform applies to women who are pregnant and ensures job security during pregnancy."(27).
Jan. 24, 2022, 1:07 p.m.
Countries: India
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"The government has promoted female sterilization as a form of family planning for decades and, as a result, it made up 86 percent of contraceptive use in the country... The government provided monetary compensation for the wage loss, transportation costs, drugs and dressing, and follow-up visits to women accepting contraceptive methods, including voluntary sterilization" (47). "Policies penalizing families with more than two children remained in place in seven states, but some authorities did not enforce them... Certain states maintained government reservations for government jobs and subsidies for adults with no more than two children and reduced subsidies and access to health care for those who have more than two" (47).more
Jan. 21, 2022, 9:22 p.m.
Countries: Mauritania
Variables: GIC-LAW-1, GIC-LAW-3

"In the modern wage sector, women also received family benefits, including three months of paid maternity leave" (27).
Dec. 20, 2021, 11:19 a.m.
Countries: Belgium
Variables: GIC-LAW-1

"The Federal Institute for the Equality of Men and Women is responsible for promoting gender equality and may initiate lawsuits if it discovers violations of equality laws. Most complaints received during the year were work related and most concerned the termination of employment due to pregnancy. Economic discrimination against women continued. According to Eurostat, women’s hourly wage rates were 6 percent less than those of their male colleagues in 2017. The law requires that one-third of the board members of publicly traded companies, but not private ones, be women" (16). This suggests that there may not be effective pro-natal policies in place (JLR-CODER COMMENT).