South Eastern Europe-Monitoring Equal Opportunities – OSI
Author: Womens UN Report Network
Date: June 12, 2006
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and Men in South Eastern Europe
May 2006
OSI
Women in South Eastern Europe have yet to attain full gender equality and are
at severe disadvantage compared to their counterparts in the EU, according to
On the Road to the EU: Monitoring Equal Opportunities for Women and Men in
South Eastern Europe, a report sponsored by OSI’s Network Women’s Program.
Published as some of the countries in South Eastern Europe are set to join the
EU or begin accession negotiations, the report provides a much-needed assessment
of how the region is complying with EU standards on gender equality.
Although many countries in South Eastern Europe over the past three years
have made progress in bringing national laws on gender equality into line with
the EU, much remains to be done. Among other findings, the report shows that
more than half the women in the region are without jobs, with the highest rate
of unemployment—70 percent—in Kosovo. In Croatia, which is expected to join the
EU in 2010, the number of employed women has fallen by about 6.5 percent since
2000.
The statistics on gender pay gaps are equally troubling. On average, women in
South Eastern Europe make 25 percent less than men, with the difference rising
to 80 percent in Kosovo. Other affronts to women’s rights in the workplace
persist. In Macedonia, for example, the law does not prevent employers from
discriminating against pregnant women and mothers. And throughout much of South
Eastern Europe, women who return from maternity leave have no guarantee resuming
their previous position.
Gender and age discrimination in advertisements remains widespread in
Albania, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Montenegro. In Albania, for example, most
advertisements for private-sector secretarial, assistant, or sales positions
list a preference for women under 25, while those for managerial positions ask
for men to apply.
The complete report is available for download below.
Need help downloading a file or playing a clip? Click here.
On the Road to the EU: Monitoring Equal Opportunities for |
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