The Kosovo Women’s Network (KWN) in cooperation with the Kosovo Law Institute (KLI) held a workshop on the 26th of November, on the legal framework and mechanisms for reporting cases of gender-based discrimination in the labor market in Kosovo.
This workshop informed labor unions more about KWN’s research findings “Gender-Based Discrimination and Labour in Kosovo”, as well as the legal framework on gender-based discrimination.
Adelina Tërshani, KWN Project Coordinator, said the research shows the various forms of discrimination that women face in the labor market.
“Women are asked in job interviews about family planning and this is one of the most pronounced forms of discrimination. Career promotion is also quite problematic because some emphasize that X type of work is only for men and often women do not get promoted for these reasons,” she added.
During the workshop, trade union representatives discussed best practices for preventing gender-based discrimination in the labor market.
Zjavere Keqmezi from the Union of Independent Trade Unions of Kosovo emphasized that women face a lot of discrimination in their workplace.
“One of the topics that should be talked about the most is sexual harassment. Psychological sexual harassment is very present with us. Women are silent about this because they are stigmatized and forced to remain silent. Therefore, anonymity would guarantee that the reporting of sexual harassment in the workplace is addressed,” she added.
Further, Valmira Rashiti, KWN Project Coordinator, assesses that gender sensitivity in cases of discrimination does not constitute a violation, on the contrary, it helps to better address cases in the courts.
“Gender sensitivity should be guaranteed because there is always the fear of publishing the case publicly, and men are not afraid to face it and publish the case, but women are different, so this gender sensitivity should be guaranteed,” she added.
Arrita Rezniqi from the Kosovo Law Institute, who has assisted several cases of gender-based discrimination in the workplace and monitored them in court proceedings, stressed the importance of cooperating with KWN to better address these cases.
“From the cooperation we have had with the Kosovo Women’s Network, we have seen how important it is to support women during court proceedings to report gender-based discrimination in the labor market. Consequently, we have supported and monitored many such cases,” she said.
The workshop concluded with a discussion on gender-based discrimination in the workplace, the treatment of cases of discrimination in the workplace and the support that these cases receive through non-governmental organizations in Kosovo.
This workshop was funded by the European Union (EU) and co-funded by the International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA), in the framework of the initiative ” Empowering CSOs in Combatting Discrimination and Furthering Women’s Labour Rights “.
