Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2024, published 113rd ILC session (2025)

Workers with Family Responsibilities Convention, 1981 (No. 156) - North Macedonia (Ratification: 1991)

Article 3 of the Convention. National policy. The Committee notes with interest the adoption, in 2020 of the Law on Prevention and Protection Against Discrimination, which includes “family and marital status” as a prohibited ground of discrimination (section 5). It also notes the Government’s information, in its report, concerning the adoption of a new National Strategy for Equality and Non-Discrimination 2022–2026 and its Action Plan 2022–2024, for the inclusion of women and men in the labour market without discrimination and without conflict between work and family obligations. The Committee further notes the adoption of the Strategy for Gender Equality (2022–2027) and the National Action Plan for Gender Equality (2022–24). The Committee requests the Government to: (i) provide information on any concrete measures taken or envisaged within the framework of these national strategies and plans with a view to enabling men and women with family responsibilities to engage in employment without being discriminated against and to do so without conflict between their work and family responsibilities; and (ii) regularly monitor and assess the results achieved within the framework of these Strategies and National Action Plans.

Article 4. Leave entitlements. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that a new Law on Labour Relations is being drafted, which foresees a series of additions that will contribute to achieving a better work-life balance for workers with family responsibilities. The Committee notes with interest the Government’s indication that the chapter that regulates the special protection of workers during pregnancy and parenthood, will be supplemented with several new rights aimed at the promotion of maternity protection, but also the mandatory involvement of the father in the process of care of the child, these include: (1) maternity leave for a total duration of 20 weeks uninterrupted for the birth of one child and 28 weeks uninterrupted for multiple births. If the worker dies during childbirth or during the period of maternity leave or in the event of other reasons that prevent or limit her from using her right to maternity leave, the use of this right in the remaining part of its duration, will belong to the worker-father; (2) a new paternity leave, entitling the worker-father to leave for a total duration of 10 working days for the birth of one child (14 working days for multiple birth); (3) a new parental leave, for one child, for a period of four months for the mother and four months for the father (six months individually for multiple births). The period of parental leave can be transferred between them after a prior written declaration of the parent who transfers his or her right, with the exception of two months of leave, which cannot be transferred between parents and if either parent does not use them. Parents can use the leave simultaneously (jointly), consecutively (one after the other) or combined, based on a mutual agreement, at once (entirely) or in two parts, whereby one part must not be less than one month. Parental leave can be used until the child reaches two years of age at the latest; and (4) after the end of parental leave, but at the latest until the child reaches the age of eight, the worker-mother or worker-father will have the right to additional unpaid parental leave for the purpose of caring for the child for a duration of two months individually for one child (three months individually for multiple births). The period of additional parental leave may be transferred between the worker-mother and the worker-father upon prior written declaration of the parent transferring his right, with the exception of one month of the leave, which cannot be transferred between the parents. Parents can use the additional parental leave simultaneously (jointly), consecutively with or without interruption, or combined, based on mutual agreement. Each parent can use the right to additional parental leave at once (in its entirety) or in two parts, whereby one part must not be less than one month. The Committee further takes note of the data provided by the Government on the number of men who have taken up parental leave under the current Law on Labour Relations: 46 men in 2016, 49 men in 2017, 44 men in 2018, 47 men in 2019, 48 men in 2020. 50 men in 2021 and 54 men in 2022. The Committee requests the Government to: (i) indicate if the proposed initial four months parental leave to be taken before the second birthday of the child shall be paid or unpaid; (ii) indicate if adoptive parents will be entitled to maternity, paternity and parental leave on the same basis; and (iii) provide information on the progress achieved in adopting the new Law on Labour Relations and a copy of the law, once adopted, in one of the official languages of the ILO.

Working-time arrangements. With reference to its previous comment, the Committee notes that the Government does not specify: (1) how it is ensured that the prohibition of overtime work or night work for mothers with children under 12 months (section 164(1) of the Law on Labour Relations) does not adversely affect women’s participation in the labour force; and (2) if the benefits provided by section 164(2) of the Law on Labour Relations (which authorizes a mother to work, with her consent, overtime or at night if she has a child from one to three years of age) also applies to men. The Government, however, indicates that the draft new Law on Labour Relations will permit a worker (woman or man) who has a child from one to three years of age, or has a child from three to ten years of age, who is seriously ill or has a physical or mental deficiency, as well as a single parent who takes care of a child up to ten years of age, to work at night or overtime only with their written consent. The Committee further notes the Government’s indication that the new Law on Labour Relations will be amended to introduce the possibility that an employee (woman or man) who has a child up to the age of eight can request to work flexibly for the purpose of caring for that child, in the form of part-time work, adjusted working hours or remote work, in accordance with their needs for providing care for the child and the needs of the employer related to the work process. The Government adds that this shall be subject to negotiation between the employee and the employer, whereby, after the expiration of the agreed period of work with a flexible form, the employee shall return to the form of work he or she was performing before the start of the work in a flexible form, unless the employee and the employer agree otherwise. The Committee requests the Government to: (i) indicate if the new law will continue to prohibit overtime or night work only for mothers with a child under 12 months; (ii) if so, to indicate how it is ensured that this prohibition does not adversely affect women’s participation in the labour force; and (iii) provide information on the progress achieved in the adoption of the draft law.

Social security. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, in December 2022, it adopted the Social Security Support Programme for women who perform agricultural activities. Through this Programme, female farmers will have the right to compensation in case of being prevented from performing agricultural work due to childbirth. This right for female farmers, who are not covered by the regulations on paid maternity leave in the field of labour relations, is being realized for the first time and will provide a one-time financial support of 81,000 Macedonian denars (approx. €1,300) to women who have the status of insured-individual farmer according to the Law on Pension and Disability Insurance and who cannot take paid maternity leave. The Government further indicates that the Programme is being implemented since 2023 through the Ministry of Agriculture and the Agency for Financial Support for Agriculture and Rural Development. The Committee recalls that women, all too often work in forms of employment which are outside the scope of social security coverage or have limited entitlement to social security and therefore welcomes the introduction of the Social Security Support Programme for women who perform agricultural activities. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on: (i) the application in practice of the above-mentioned Programme, including by indicating the number of beneficiaries; and (ii) onany other measures taken or envisaged to take account of the social security needs of other workers with family responsibilities, such as own-account workers and more generally workers outside the scope of the formal employment relationship.

Article 5. Childcare and family services and facilities. The Committee takes note of the Government’s information on the number of childcare facilities opened between 2015 and 2023: 106 kindergartens and 35 centres for early childhood development were opened, which increased the capacity for caring for children in kindergartens by 7,277 and by 1,590 in childcare centres. The Committee also notes that the proportion of children aged 0 to 6 years, attending pre-school education, is steadily increasing: 24.1 per cent in 2015, 28.3 per cent in 2018 and 31.2 per in 2021, although it notes a decrease in 2022, with 27.2 per cent of participation. The Government further indicates that, in the coming years, it will continue its efforts to increase the network and coverage of childcare facilities by building and opening new kindergartens, making extensions, upgrading and modernizing existing ones. The Committee further notes, from the National Employment Strategy (2021–2027), that efforts will be made towards the expansion of childcare for attracting women to the labour market. In addition, it notes, from the 2012 Country Gender Equality Profile of the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), that: (1) the main barriers for women’s employment and participation in the labour market in North Macedonia are the gendered divisions of the household duties and the burden of providing care for children and the elderly, mainly due to the lack of early childhood education services, especially rural areas; (2) in 2020, 59.3 per cent of inactive women in the age group 20–64 years were inactive due to household duties and responsibilities, while only 2.3 per cent of men were inactive for the same reason; (3) women in rural areas are especially disadvantaged in the labour market due to such factors as the gendered division of labour in the households and the lack of social services that would allow them to (re)enter the labour market, notably the lack of childcare services; and (4) in rural areas, significantly fewer children aged 36–59 months attended early education services (19.9 per cent, compared to 46.6 per cent in urban areas). The 2022 Gender Equality Report of the European Commission (EC Gender Equality Report) further indicates, that because of the high level of poverty and unemployment and the overall limited capacity (in terms of available spaces) and geographically uneven distribution of the kindergarten network, even with such large subsidies and keeping the overall price quite low (starting from about €25 per child per month), only a small percentage of children are in kindergartens. In 2020, 26,589 children were going to a kindergarten – private or public (with or without any particular focus on certain children, for example, some kindergartens are still focused on children with disabilities) - representing a coverage of only 22 per cent. The Committee welcomes these initiatives. Nevertheless, the Committee asks the Government to pursue its efforts and continue to provide information on: (i) the specific measures taken or envisaged to improve access to adequate childcare and family services and facilities, including for workers in rural areas; (ii) the percentage of workers with family responsibilities who avail themselves of childcare and family services, if possible disaggregated by sex; and (iii) the progress made in extending coverage of care services and facilities for other dependent members of the family.

Article 6. Information and education. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, with the support of civil and international organizations, trainings and workshops are continuously implemented with the aim of increasing awareness of gender equality and issues related to the family and the division of family responsibilities. The Government further refers to the opening of the Resource Centre for Gender-Responsive Policy-Making and Budgeting, in 2022, which conducted 18 trainings on topics related to gender equality for a total of 199 persons trained. However, the Government does not indicate whether these trainings covered the special challenges and rights of workers with family responsibilities. The Committee once again requests the Government to indicate the specific measures taken or envisaged to raise awareness among workers, employers and the general public and promote broader public understanding of the difficulties faced by workers with family responsibilities and of the benefits for society, families and the workplace of a better balancing of work and family life.

Article 7. Integration in the labour market. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that it does not have data on the percentage of women and men who return to work after using maternity and parental leave. The Committee reiterates its request to the Government to: (i) collect statistics, disaggregated by sex, on the number of employees who return to work after taking parental leave; and (ii) provide such information, once collected. The Committee reminds the Government of the possibility to avail itself of the technical assistance of the Office in this regard.

Article 8. Protection against dismissal. The Committee notes, from the EC Gender Equality Report, that, while section 77 of the Law on Labour Relations protects workers from dismissal while on approved leave for pregnancy, birth or parenthood, including unpaid parental leave, this is not the case for workers with an employment contract concluded for a definite period of time. These contracts are concluded for an established duration, usually for one year, and are automatically renewed until they have been terminated by one or both parties. This has been used by employers to not renew an ending fixed-term contract with women while they are on maternity leave. Employers will just notify the female worker that they do not want to renew the contract. In this way, the worker is not fired, but her contract has ‘merely’ expired and is not being renewed. The European Commission considers that it is a cause for serious concern. The Committee requests the Government to ensure that the new Law on Labour Relations will include the necessary safeguards to prevent situations where the non-renewal of a fixed-term contract is related to pregnancy, childbirth or nursing, for example by shifting the burden of proving that the reasons for the non-renewal is unrelated to pregnancy, childbirth and its consequences or nursing, to the employer.Once again, the Committee asks the Government: (i) to take the necessary steps to compile statistics, disaggregated by sex, on the number of men and women workers who have been dismissed due to their family responsibilities; and (ii) to provide information on any judicial or administrative decisions relating to employment discrimination on the grounds of family responsibilities, including under sections 71(4), 77(3) and 101 of the Labour Relations Law.

Article 11. Cooperation with employers’ and workers’ organizations. The Government states that the draft Law on Labour Relations was elaborated after consultation with social partners. The Committee refers to its General Observation of 2020, in which it highlighted the important role that national mechanisms on gender equality, business associations, trade unions and other non-governmental associations can play in promoting the aims of the Convention through research, training, awareness-raising and exchange of lessons learned and good practices. Examples of such action it has noted, include such things as the establishment of a paternity website aimed at promoting equitable gender relations and men’s participation in care tasks, the setting up of a national task force on the integration of work and family life, and family-friendly company certification systems providing positive recognition to enterprises which adopt family friendly measures for their workers. The Committee therefore once again requests the Government to provide information on the specific measures taken to promote social dialogue and tripartite cooperation in order to strengthen the laws, measures and policies giving effect to the Convention, and on the manner in which workers’ and employers’ organizations have exercised their right to participate in the design and implementation of such measures.

Enforcement. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, according to the available information, there are no court decisions relating to the discrimination of workers with family responsibilities. The Government does provide information on cases dealt with by the Commission for Prevention and Protection of Discrimination (CPPD), received in 2023, including 3 petitions for protection against discrimination related to family obligations in the field of work and labour relations. In one of the petitions, the CPPD determined indirect intersectional and prolonged discrimination based on sex, gender, belonging to a marginalized group and personal characteristics and social status, and in connection with pregnancy, birth and parenthood, while for the other two petitions, proceedings are still ongoing. are in progress. The Committee further notes, from the 2022 EC Gender Equality Report that published surveys and reports on workers and gender equality in the labour relations area do not address work-life balance issues. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on any judicial or administrative decisions or labour inspection reports relating to employment discrimination on the grounds of family responsibilities, including under the Labour Relations Law and the LPPD. It also once again requests it to provide information on any studies, surveys or reports that may enable the Committee to assess how the principles of the Convention are applied in practice.