Commission Report 2002 (Romania)

Economic, social and cultural rights

During the reporting period, new legislation has been adopted to promote equal opportunities and equal treatment for women and men (see Chapter 13 - Social policy and employment). The principle of equal opportunities for men and women has also been introduced, as a basic principle into other legislation (such as the Law on Unemployment Insurance and the Promotion of Employment Stimulation). Given the lack of statistical records or previous case law, it is currently impossible to determine the extent of discrimination. This kind of information will be necessary before the effectiveness of new legislation can be assessed.

Implementation of the National Action Plan for Equal Opportunities continued over the reporting period, most notably with the initial steps towards setting-up a National Agency for Equal Opportunities by 2004. Training activities have also been developed to raise the awareness of civil servants responsible for the implementation of the law on equal opportunities.

Women remain under-represented in political life, with only 11% of deputies and 9% of senators. In the Government, five out of 28 cabinet ministers are women.

Fighting social exclusion and poverty is an explicit government priority and the reporting period has been characterised by intensive legislative activity. New legislation has sought to provide a social safety net while at the same time facilitating access to the labour market in order to develop the economic independence of the socially vulnerable. The National Plan for Poverty Prevention and the Promotion of Social Inclusion was finalised in April 2002 and a law on Preventing and Combating Social Exclusion was adopted as one of the first instruments to implement this Plan. A National Strategy on Special Protection and Social Integration of Disabled Persons has also been drawn up.

Trade unions are amongst the most visible civil society organisations and the Government has continued its efforts to constructively engage with them. In January 2002 the Government concluded a Social Pact with the majority of trade unions. A further agreement was reached in June 2002 with the two unions that had not signed the original agreement. Following a request from the trade unions, the Ministry of Labour and Social Solidarity signed the European Social Security Code.

Against a background of industrial restructuring serious labour disputes have taken place - most frequently in the processing industry and in the public sector. At the same time, the Law on the Solution of Labour Disputes would appear to be working with over 50% of disputes solved through conciliation.

The need to improve social dialogue and the role of trade unions at enterprise level was noted in the last Regular Report - but no developments can be reported. There are concerns that implementation is not being respected in all cases.

Romania has submitted the second report on implementation of the Revised European Social Charter to the Council of Europe Secretariat General.

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