A comparative legal study of sex discrimination in labour law in the European Union and Vietnam : critical perspectives on equal pay, pregnancy and maternity

Abstract

Equality of treatment between women and men has been a priority of the Vietnamese government since 1946. Notwithstanding that the legal system has affirmed gender equality in labour relations, gender discrimination still exists and has become a daunting challenge. Indeed, data and statistics show that working women continue to face labour market barriers, while they make up half of the Vietnamese population and around 48% participate in the labour market. In Vietnam much of the discrimination of women in the workplace is gathered around pay and pregnancy. Therefore the focus of this study is on (equal) pay and the protection of women workers in maternity. For best practices the European Union was looked at, since it has more than fifty years’ experience in the field and its legislation on sex discrimination is quite sophisticated. The researcher aims to contribute to the debate with the hope of improving Vietnamese women workers’ position in labour relations