Proposal to strengthen equality between women and men at work

Automatic summary, not yet reviewed

1. The bill would guarantee equal treatment and opportunities for women and men in employment and occupation, both for employees and self-employed people, in the public and private sectors. It would cover access to jobs, training, promotion, working conditions and dismissal.
2. It would require negotiating positive actions in favor of women when clear situations of de facto inequality compared to men exist, in collective bargaining, public employment and self-employment. Failing to do so would be punished with fines from €60 to €50,000.
3. It would recognize work-life balance as an individual, non-transferable right of each worker. Employers would have to take it into account when distributing working hours, relocating staff or changing working conditions.
4. It would reform family leave: birth leave for the mother would be reduced to six mandatory weeks, a six-week leave would be created for the other parent, and each parent would get ten weeks to care for a child under twelve months. If both parents use these rights on an equivalent basis, the leaves would be extended.
5. It would recognize the right to request an adjustment of working hours, including remote work, and reduced hours to care for a nursing infant. If both parents use it on an equivalent basis, it could extend until the baby turns twelve months old.
6. It would strengthen protection against dismissal: firing a worker for pregnancy or maternity during the trial period would be null and void, as would firing a victim of gender violencegender violence Violence a woman suffers from a current or former partner because she is a woman. for exercising her right to court protection, or ending a self-employed woman's contract for pregnancy, maternity or family duties.
7. It would create the State Office against Discrimination based on sex in employment and occupation, part of the Labor Inspectorate, which would compile statistics to prove inequalities and support collective bargaining.
8. It would set up a system of minor, serious and very serious offenses for obstructing or preventing work-life balance, ignoring positive actions or skipping the balanced composition of bargaining committees, with the corresponding financial penalties.

Who it affects

• Employees, in private companies and public employment: They would gain new equality and work-life balance rights, such as adjusted working hours and individual, non-transferable family leaves.
• Self-employed workers, including economically dependent ones: They could suspend their activity to care for children and would be protected against discriminatory terminations for pregnancy or maternity.
• Companies and Public Administrations: They would have a duty to negotiate positive actions in favor of women and could be fined if they fail to comply.
• Working women who are victims of gender violence: They would have stronger protection against dismissal and new grounds to interrupt contracts and trial periods.
• Members of cooperatives: Cooperatives would have to include equality measures in their bylaws and provide statistical data broken down by sex.

Words worth knowing

Acciones positivas (positive actions)

Specific measures in favor of women to correct situations of de facto inequality compared to men, as long as they are reasonable and proportionate.

Discriminación directa e indirecta (direct and indirect discrimination)

Direct discrimination is worse treatment because of sex; indirect discrimination is a seemingly neutral rule or practice that harms one sex.

Presencia o composición equilibrada (balanced presence or composition)

A rule requiring that a body or list include enough women and men, so that neither sex holds an excessive majority.

Conciliación de la vida personal, familiar y laboral (work-life balance)

The right to combine work with personal and family life through leaves, schedule adjustments and other measures.

Excedencia (unpaid leave)

A situation in which a worker stops providing services and receiving pay, but keeps the right to return to their job within certain time limits.

gender violence

Violence a woman suffers from a current or former partner because she is a woman.

It summarizes the text as it was introduced. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries