New Lithuanian Labour Code will not secure transgender rights

On the 19th of March, 2015 new amendments to the Labour Code of the Republic of Lithuania have been finally introduced to the public. The amendments have been prepared by a group of scientists and experts and was initiated by the Ministry of Social Security and Labour of the Republic of Lithuania. The new Labour Code shall be considered in the Lithuanian Parliament Seimas’ spring session in May.

During the period of the development of the amendments to the Labour Code social partners and other actors have been invited to submit their proposals. Prime Minister of Lithuania Algirdas Butkevičius said that draft amendments to the country’s Labour Code will be beneficial both for employees and employers and will make the labour market much more flexible.

On the 12th November, 2014 the national LGBT* rights organization LGL submitted the proposal to include gender identity as a non-discrimination ground to the Code, so as to ensure against the discrimination of transgender persons in the labour market. Comparative analysis of the Fundamental Rights Agency shows that transgender people are one of the most vulnerable groups amongst all LGBT* community and said situation in Lithuania is critical compared to other countries. However, no proposals submitted by LGL have been included in the final amendments.