Sex and age discrimination - and why violations may be bad for your health
Sounds clear to me. Sex and age discrimination are illegal in Poland.
The European Commission seems to agree. In its recently released report, "Progress Towards Accession," the Commission declared that Poland has transposed the acquis on the equal treatment of women and men.
However, my friends Barbara and Danuta may take issue with this report. Both are "seasoned" professionals, one a payroll specialist and the other a bilingual professional legal assistant, each with more than 30 years' experience. As a result of their previous employer merging with another company though, both are currently looking for work. So far, they haven't received any offers. As one employment agency recently explained, they are overqualified.
In today's labour market, "overqualified" has become synonymous with "too old." Could this be true? Does this really happen? In an effort to answer this question, I decided to thumb through the help wanted ads in several local newspapers. Here is a sampling of what I found - except for the company names, these are exact translations:
__________________________________________________
Help Wanted:
ABC Co. will employ a girl up to age 25 for office work.
24/10/02
Two violations. Apparently, men are not qualified to do office work, nor is anyone over the age of 25. A 26-year-old male is really out of luck.
__________________________________________________
Help Wanted:
House of hiring waiters and waitresses up to age 26 with good foreign language skills.15/11/02
__________________________________________________
Help Wanted:
Secretary (female) with one year's experience to assist busy lawyer.
19/11/02
One violation. The foreign language requirement is OK. The position is open to both men and women (good), but older experienced job candidates are not wanted. I've eaten at this restaurant. Now that I think about it, the only person I saw there with grey hair was me.
I am embarrassed to report that even the legal profession is not immune. I hope this lawyer does not practise employment law.
__________________________________________________
Help Wanted:
Stewardesses up to age 30, proficient in English, tactful and presentable.
15/11/02
Two violations. Knowledge of English is a legitimate job requirement. Limiting the position to women under age 30 is not. I wonder if all their pilots are female and under age 30 as well?
__________________________________________________
Help Wanted:
Agency is searching for attractive hostesses to promote brand name products in Warsaw, must be at least 170 cm. tall, between the ages of 17 and 25 and approved by SANEPID as disease free.
13/11/02
Three violations. This advertisement raises a different issue. Article 18 does permit an employer to limit a particular job to one gender or the other if the nature of the job so requires. For instance, a retailer of children's clothing is justified in employing only male or female teenagers to model teen clothing. However, the retailer is still not permitted to discriminate based upon disability, which may be the case with the height requirement. Presenting and promoting products does not fall within this exception. As such, this advertisement violates Article 11 by limiting the offer to (1) women (2) between the ages of 17 and 25 being (3) at least 170 centimetres tall. A 26-year-old male confined to a wheelchair might as well apply for public assistance. The disease-free requirement may violate the disability provision as well.
__________________________________________________
Help Wanted:
"ABC" Security, a leader in the field of security services, is currently hiring men between the ages of 25 and 35 with no criminal record to work as commercial sales representatives...
24/10/02
Two violations. This time, a 36-year-old woman is out of luck. Women make excellent sales representatives, but apparently this firm is too macho.
So, what is one to do if faced with such discrimination? Help is on the way. Lodge a complaint with the Plenipotentiary for the Equal Status of Women and Men, an agency in the Prime Minister's office, which was established in October 2001. The phone number is 520 0830. In June, this new agency was given added power to combat employment discrimination based on age, gender, race, etc. Unfortunately, the agency only has a staff of 11 to investigate all complaints nationwide. Soon, however, in an effort to further harmonise its law with the European Union's directives, the agency is scheduled to receive added resources and "manpower" (sorry, but "people power" just didn't sound right) to investigate discrimination complaints.
As for Barbara and Danuta, I highly recommend both of them. They have years of experience in their respective fields, and even more importantly, are conscientious and dedicated professionals. If you would like to arrange an interview with either of these "seasoned" professionals, please contact Paul Fogo at 529 0200.
Paul Fogo is a senior attorney at Miller, Canfield, Paddock & Stone.
The European Commission seems to agree. In its recently released report, "Progress Towards Accession," the Commission declared that Poland has transposed the acquis on the equal treatment of women and men.
However, my friends Barbara and Danuta may take issue with this report. Both are "seasoned" professionals, one a payroll specialist and the other a bilingual professional legal assistant, each with more than 30 years' experience. As a result of their previous employer merging with another company though, both are currently looking for work. So far, they haven't received any offers. As one employment agency recently explained, they are overqualified.
In today's labour market, "overqualified" has become synonymous with "too old." Could this be true? Does this really happen? In an effort to answer this question, I decided to thumb through the help wanted ads in several local newspapers. Here is a sampling of what I found - except for the company names, these are exact translations:
__________________________________________________
Help Wanted:
ABC Co. will employ a girl up to age 25 for office work.
24/10/02
Two violations. Apparently, men are not qualified to do office work, nor is anyone over the age of 25. A 26-year-old male is really out of luck.
__________________________________________________
Help Wanted:
House of hiring waiters and waitresses up to age 26 with good foreign language skills.15/11/02
__________________________________________________
Help Wanted:
Secretary (female) with one year's experience to assist busy lawyer.
19/11/02
One violation. The foreign language requirement is OK. The position is open to both men and women (good), but older experienced job candidates are not wanted. I've eaten at this restaurant. Now that I think about it, the only person I saw there with grey hair was me.
I am embarrassed to report that even the legal profession is not immune. I hope this lawyer does not practise employment law.
__________________________________________________
Help Wanted:
Stewardesses up to age 30, proficient in English, tactful and presentable.
15/11/02
Two violations. Knowledge of English is a legitimate job requirement. Limiting the position to women under age 30 is not. I wonder if all their pilots are female and under age 30 as well?
__________________________________________________
Help Wanted:
Agency is searching for attractive hostesses to promote brand name products in Warsaw, must be at least 170 cm. tall, between the ages of 17 and 25 and approved by SANEPID as disease free.
13/11/02
Three violations. This advertisement raises a different issue. Article 18 does permit an employer to limit a particular job to one gender or the other if the nature of the job so requires. For instance, a retailer of children's clothing is justified in employing only male or female teenagers to model teen clothing. However, the retailer is still not permitted to discriminate based upon disability, which may be the case with the height requirement. Presenting and promoting products does not fall within this exception. As such, this advertisement violates Article 11 by limiting the offer to (1) women (2) between the ages of 17 and 25 being (3) at least 170 centimetres tall. A 26-year-old male confined to a wheelchair might as well apply for public assistance. The disease-free requirement may violate the disability provision as well.
__________________________________________________
Help Wanted:
"ABC" Security, a leader in the field of security services, is currently hiring men between the ages of 25 and 35 with no criminal record to work as commercial sales representatives...
24/10/02
Two violations. This time, a 36-year-old woman is out of luck. Women make excellent sales representatives, but apparently this firm is too macho.
So, what is one to do if faced with such discrimination? Help is on the way. Lodge a complaint with the Plenipotentiary for the Equal Status of Women and Men, an agency in the Prime Minister's office, which was established in October 2001. The phone number is 520 0830. In June, this new agency was given added power to combat employment discrimination based on age, gender, race, etc. Unfortunately, the agency only has a staff of 11 to investigate all complaints nationwide. Soon, however, in an effort to further harmonise its law with the European Union's directives, the agency is scheduled to receive added resources and "manpower" (sorry, but "people power" just didn't sound right) to investigate discrimination complaints.
As for Barbara and Danuta, I highly recommend both of them. They have years of experience in their respective fields, and even more importantly, are conscientious and dedicated professionals. If you would like to arrange an interview with either of these "seasoned" professionals, please contact Paul Fogo at 529 0200.
Paul Fogo is a senior attorney at Miller, Canfield, Paddock & Stone.
