Press release on the Employment Bill
11/01/2010
Submitted by
Sanja Juras, Lesbian Group Kontra
PRESS RELEASE
Zagreb, 16 November 2009
To whom it may concern,
We are writing to you in connection with the Employment Bill with the text of the final version of the draft law drawn up by the Ministry of Economy, Labour and Entrepreneurship, which is included in the agenda of the 15th sitting of the Croatian Parliament.
We are concerned that the Bill, whose aim is precisely harmonisation with the standards of the European Union, for which reason it was even put into accelerated procedure, is discriminatory with relation to sexual orientation, and thus is contrary to positive Croatian and international legislation.
Thus, for example, same-sex partners are not mentioned in Article 65 of the Bill, which concerns the right to freedom from the obligation to work with pay (paid leave) for important personal needs, especially involving the serious illness or death of a close family member, including marital or extramarital partner. Considering that this is the matter of a right which a worker uses in order to care for an ill person, or because of the death of a close person, it is unthinkable that such a right is not available in cases of the death or illness of a same-sex partner. On the other hand, in Article 141 para 2 which prescribes the restriction of voting rights in a workers’ counsel for members of a company’s management and supervisory bodies and members of their families, the same restriction is not prescribed for their same-sex partners, which could lead to cases of conflict of interest.
In short, although the Same-sex Unions Act was passed back in 2003, the proposer of the Bill behaves as though same-sex unions do not exist in Croatian society and does not mention them in parts of the Bill which concern certain rights, nor in parts which are intended to prevent conflict of interests. Adopting such a law would mean one more act of legalisation of discrimination and adopting a law which does not protect the rights of citizens, and is subject to abuse.
Lesbian Group Kontra, together with Iskorak – Centre for the Rights of Sexual and Gender Minorities and the Women’s Network of Croatia, has made an appeal to the responsible committees of the Croatian parliament, parliamentary parties and the Ombudswoman for Gender Equality to propose amendments by which the provisions from the above articles of the Employment Bill would be changed so that they are no longer discriminatory against workers who live in same-sex unions and are harmonised with international and domestic legislation. The Union of Autonomous Trades Unions of Croatia also supports this initiative for passing amendments which would remove this type of discrimination.
With best regards,
Sanja Juras,
Coordinator, Lesbian Group Kontra
Bojana Genov,
Coordinator, Women’s Network of Croatia
Augustin Zonjić,
Coordinator, Iskorak
Zagreb, 16 November 2009
To whom it may concern,
We are writing to you in connection with the Employment Bill with the text of the final version of the draft law drawn up by the Ministry of Economy, Labour and Entrepreneurship, which is included in the agenda of the 15th sitting of the Croatian Parliament.
We are concerned that the Bill, whose aim is precisely harmonisation with the standards of the European Union, for which reason it was even put into accelerated procedure, is discriminatory with relation to sexual orientation, and thus is contrary to positive Croatian and international legislation.
Thus, for example, same-sex partners are not mentioned in Article 65 of the Bill, which concerns the right to freedom from the obligation to work with pay (paid leave) for important personal needs, especially involving the serious illness or death of a close family member, including marital or extramarital partner. Considering that this is the matter of a right which a worker uses in order to care for an ill person, or because of the death of a close person, it is unthinkable that such a right is not available in cases of the death or illness of a same-sex partner. On the other hand, in Article 141 para 2 which prescribes the restriction of voting rights in a workers’ counsel for members of a company’s management and supervisory bodies and members of their families, the same restriction is not prescribed for their same-sex partners, which could lead to cases of conflict of interest.
In short, although the Same-sex Unions Act was passed back in 2003, the proposer of the Bill behaves as though same-sex unions do not exist in Croatian society and does not mention them in parts of the Bill which concern certain rights, nor in parts which are intended to prevent conflict of interests. Adopting such a law would mean one more act of legalisation of discrimination and adopting a law which does not protect the rights of citizens, and is subject to abuse.
Lesbian Group Kontra, together with Iskorak – Centre for the Rights of Sexual and Gender Minorities and the Women’s Network of Croatia, has made an appeal to the responsible committees of the Croatian parliament, parliamentary parties and the Ombudswoman for Gender Equality to propose amendments by which the provisions from the above articles of the Employment Bill would be changed so that they are no longer discriminatory against workers who live in same-sex unions and are harmonised with international and domestic legislation. The Union of Autonomous Trades Unions of Croatia also supports this initiative for passing amendments which would remove this type of discrimination.
With best regards,
Sanja Juras,
Coordinator, Lesbian Group Kontra
Bojana Genov,
Coordinator, Women’s Network of Croatia
Augustin Zonjić,
Coordinator, Iskorak
