Since April 2020, the Association of Youth with Disabilities of Montenegro (AYDM) has been working on providing free legal aid to all women with disabilities who have suffered from discrimination in the field of work and employment. By the end of November, 40 women with disabilities had approached AYDM which provided 89 sessions of legal advice, and represented the parties before the competent courts and institutions.
There has been an increase in the number of women with disabilities who have sought help, support and counseling in the field of labor relations. Most irregularities occurred during employment of persons with disabilities (PWDs).
One positive example from this initiative was the drafting of a contract for service user S.C.; in whose name AYDM contacted their employers with a request to review working conditions and eliminate irregularities. Originally, S.C. worked from home because their workplace, where they were an intern, was completely inaccessible to PWD due to architectural barriers. After the application was sent by AYDM, both the employer and competent local self-government bodies allowed SC to continue working from home, in an accessible working environment. Soon after the expiration of the initial employment contract, AYDM was informed that the S.C. was offered anothercontract.
“I am satisfied with the working conditions; my office is now accessible, and I can successfully perform my work tasks. Since I signed a fixed-term contract, I will try to acquire as many skills as possible and to progress in the business. Immediately after the end of the internship, I decided to take the professional exam for work in state bodies, because I believe that it will help me in mastering work activities. “
Another example was the service user B.A. who was discriminated against due to her disability. B.A. is employed in a public preschool institution as a cook, although she is a doctor by profession. Her employer was originally unaware of her disability, but B.A. believes that the reasons why she was not hired twice as a nurse / technician were because the information was made known. After that, the director of the school began to persistently discriminate “indirectly”. After two attempts at applying for the position, the employer rejected her applications and hired seven people without disabilities. There was never a detailed explanation for rejecting her application. “I was very hurt when my employer told me orally that because of my disability he could not allow me to work as a nurse. Working with children requires a lot of effort and responsibility. I don’t want to have unpleasant situations with parents in case “something” happens!” B.A. did not give up, on the contrary, she decided to initiate an investigation with help from the legal team of AYDM, as well as initiate a complaint to the Protector of Human Rights and Freedoms. Proceedings before the competent authorities are currently ongoing.
Women with disabilities are now feeling empowered to report discrimination in the field of work and employment, after hearing the stories of their peers. In the past two months, a growing amount of women with disabilities have applied to AYDM for legal assistance. Most complaints stem from the irregularities of job applications for state institutions. Some of the job ads were eventually taken down, while the selection process for others is still ongoing.
AYDM also began a campaign against violence against women, for “16 days of Activism”. During that period they implemented the campaign on social media platforms and directly spoke with their constituents. On the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, ADYM highlighted that women and girls with disabilities are not “spared” from violence, but can suffer more than able-bodied women.
The organisation called on the state to take an active role in fighiting the discrimination of women with different abilities, and for competent institutions and individuals to raise awareness and strengthen their mechanisms of protection and support for victims of violence.
We believe that through campaigns of this type, women with disabilities will be further empowered to report discrimination and violence and will be active when it comes to exercising their rights.
This activity is part of sub-grantee’s action ”Empowered, Employed, Involved“, supported by the Kosovo Women’s Network, Center for Women’s Rights and their partners through the Action “Furthering Women’s Labour Rights”. This Action is financed by the European Union and co-funded by Swedish International Development Cooperation (Sida). The content of this activity/post is solely the responsibility of Association of Youth with Disabilities of Montenegro and does not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union or Sida.
