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What it is

Law making real equality between women and men effective

BOE step 7 of 7 · Passed

It is a government bill. Introduced by the Government. It was introduced on 5 July 2006. Introduced by: Gobierno.

Official title: Organic Government bill for the effective equality of women and men.

Follow this law

Source: Congreso de los Diputados, file 121/000092· updated 11 Nov

Automatic summary, not yet reviewed

  1. The law aims to make the right to equal treatment and opportunities between women and men effective, by eliminating discrimination based on sex in every area of life.
  2. It defines direct and indirect discrimination, sexual harassment and harassment based on sex, and declares null any act that causes discrimination, with compensation and sanctions.
  3. Treating a woman unfavorably because of pregnancy or motherhood is direct discrimination, and so is taking revenge on anyone who files complaints or claims about discrimination.
  4. It creates a thirteen-day paternity leave, extendable for multiple births, and improves maternity leave and leave of absence to care for children and relatives.
  5. Companies with more than 250 workers must negotiate and apply an equality plan; others may do so voluntarily, with public support for small and medium-sized ones.
  6. In electoral lists for Congress, municipal, regional and European elections, each sex must make up at least 40 percent, except in municipalities of up to 3,000 residents and islands of up to 5,000.
  7. Using sex to calculate insurance premiums and benefits is banned, and costs related to pregnancy and childbirth cannot justify differences.
  8. A person claiming sex discrimination does not have to prove it: the defendant must show there was no discrimination, except in criminal proceedings.

Who it affects

  • Women facing discrimination or harassment based on sex, pregnancy or motherhood: They can go to court, seek compensation, and do not have to prove the discrimination.
  • Workers: New paternity leave, improved maternity leave, leaves of absence and reduced working hours to balance work and family life.
  • Companies: They must respect equality, negotiate equality plans if they have more than 250 workers, and can earn a distinction for good practices.
  • Political parties and public administrations: They must guarantee at least 40 percent of each sex on electoral lists and in appointments to positions of responsibility.
  • Insurers and people buying insurance: Sex cannot be used as a factor to set premiums and benefits.

Words worth knowing

Discriminación indirecta (indirect discrimination)
A rule or practice that looks neutral but puts people of one sex at a particular disadvantage compared with the other.
Acciones positivas (positive actions)
Specific measures in favor of women to correct clear situations of factual inequality.
Plan de igualdad (equality plan)
A set of measures a company adopts, after an assessment, to achieve equality between women and men at work.
Composición equilibrada (balanced composition)
Presence of women and men such that neither sex exceeds 60 percent nor falls below 40 percent.
Excedencia (leave of absence)
A situation in which a worker temporarily stops working, with the right to return to their job in certain cases.

It summarizes the law as published in the BOE. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries

Where it stands

How far did it get?

It took 7 of 7 steps. It reached BOE, and today it is passed.

  1. Introduced5 July 2006Someone registers the text in the Congreso.
  2. Admitted5 September 2006The Bureau of the Congreso accepts it and, for a members’ bill, the plenary decides whether to consider it.
  3. Amendments8 September 2006Groups propose changes.
  4. Committee26 October 2006A committee goes through the text in detail.
  5. Plenary12 December 2006All 350 deputies vote.
  6. Senate21 December 2006The Senate can pass it, amend it or veto it.
  7. BOE15 March 2007It is published in the Official State Gazette (BOE) and comes into force.
See the 13 official steps on a timeline
Jul 2006Aug 2006Sept 2006Oct 2006Nov 2006Dec 2006Jan 2007Feb 200711. 5 July 2006: Presentación22. 5 September 2006: Comisión de Trabajo y Asuntos Sociales Publicación desde 05/09/2006 hasta 08/09/200633. 5 September 2006: Calificación44. 8 September 2006: Comisión de Trabajo y Asuntos Sociales Enmiendas desde 08/09/2006 hasta 15/11/200655. 25 October 2006: Comisión de Trabajo y Asuntos Sociales Mesa - Calificación desde 25/10/2006 hasta 26/10/200666. 26 October 2006: Comisión de Trabajo y Asuntos Sociales Debate de totalidad desde 26/10/2006 hasta 31/10/200677. 15 November 2006: Comisión de Trabajo y Asuntos Sociales Informe desde 15/11/2006 hasta 30/11/200688. 30 November 2006: Comisión de Trabajo y Asuntos Sociales Acuerdo desde 30/11/2006 hasta 12/12/200699. 12 December 2006: Comisión de Trabajo y Asuntos Sociales Dictamen desde 12/12/2006 hasta 12/12/20061010. 12 December 2006: Pleno Aprobación desde 12/12/2006 hasta 21/12/20061111. 21 December 2006: Senado desde 21/12/2006 hasta 07/03/20071212. 7 March 2007: Pleno Enmiendas o veto del Senado desde 07/03/2007 hasta 15/03/20071313. 15 March 2007: Concluido - (Aprobado con modificaciones) desde 15/03/2007 hasta 17/04/2007

Was there a plenary vote?

We have no plenary vote linked to this law in the Congreso’s data.

What happens next

What happens now?

It is law, or will be once published in the BOE. It comes into force on the date its own text sets.

The same initiative in the other chamber:

Published in the BOE: Organic Law 3/2007, of March 22, for the effective equality of women and men.

Sources

Where does all this come from?

  • The data comes from the open files of the Congreso, the Senate and the BOE, unaltered.
  • Each deputy’s province is the one of their seat on the day of the vote.
  • We only say “passed” or “rejected” when the majority needed is certain; otherwise we say which side had more votes.

Read the full method · Report an error