58.3% of Belarusian women place family above career – Ministry of Labor and Social Protection

Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Protection of the Republic of Belarus Yulia Berdnikova, during a press conference, spoke about how the issue of combining family and work is being addressed in the country, as well as about measures to support parents, reports a Soyuz.by correspondent.

"Parental Love Week is a good occasion to talk not only about family values, but also about quite practical issues that our parents face every day. One of such issues is how to combine family and work. Today parents want to raise children, be present at important moments in their lives, and at the same time work, develop professionally, and build a career," she noted.

In Belarus, women make up 54 percent of the population - nearly 5 million people. They successfully fulfill themselves in management, in developing their own businesses, in the real sector of the economy, open new markets, and shape the business agenda of the future. At the same time, women make up about 51 percent of the total number of people employed in the economy. The employment rate of women of working age reaches 85.6 percent, which is 1.1 percent higher than that of men. The employment rate of women of reproductive age (from 25 to 49 years) is 94.5 percent. Half of employed women - 43.5 percent - are raising minor children. Among women managers, 44.2 percent are raising minor children.

"For 58.3 percent of women, family is more important than a professional career. For 30 percent, family and career are of equal importance. From this follows the main question: what needs to be done so that the two important parts of life - family and developing oneself as a professional - do not compete with each other. And here the task is for us to provide that balance of family and career as harmoniously as possible through various support measures," emphasized the deputy minister.

She noted that over the past 10 years, the gap in time spent by women and men on household chores and childcare has narrowed from twofold to one and ten. "Fathers are already more actively involved in resolving family issues and raising children. We are developing the institution of involved fatherhood: in 2020, a provision was introduced that establishes paternity leave at the birth of a child of up to 14 calendar days - from birth until the child reaches 6 months. Today, every tenth young father already uses this leave," said Berdnikova. In 2022, a new holiday was established - Father's Day, which is celebrated on October 21.

The state guarantees a ban on refusing to conclude an employment contract with women or reducing wages on grounds of pregnancy or having a child under 3 years of age. The same rule applies to single parents with children under 14 and with disabled children under 18. A workplace is preserved during maternity leave and childcare leave until the child reaches 3 years of age. 86 percent of women used childcare leave until the child reaches 3 years of age for the full 36 months.

Flexible forms of employment are provided: remote and combined work. At the request of a pregnant woman or a mother raising a child under 14, the employer is obliged to establish a part-time working day or part-time working week. For parents with two children under 16, an additional free day off per month is provided without pay, and if this is stipulated by a collective agreement - paid. For parents with many children with three or more children under 16 or raising a disabled child under 18, one paid day off per week or a reduction of each working day by one hour is provided. Flexible forms of employment are used by 43 percent of Belarusian women.

Financial support for families with children is significant. The childcare allowance until the child reaches 3 years of age for the first child is 1,050 rubles, for the second and subsequent children - 1,200 rubles, for a disabled child - 1,350 rubles. There are about 170 thousand large families in the republic. The most significant support measure is the family capital program: at the birth of a third child, 35.5 thousand rubles are paid. During the program's operation, more than 155 thousand deposits have been opened for a total of 3.6 billion rubles. Two-thirds of deposit holders have used early disposal, and 80 percent of the funds were directed to improving housing conditions.

Berdnikova also noted that supporting families with parental responsibilities is a task not only for the state. The "Parent-Friendly" initiative is being actively promoted. On May 15, 2023, an agreement was concluded between the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection, the Federation of Trade Unions of Belarus, and the Confederation of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs-Employers. The key task of the initiative is to promote the concept of family-oriented corporate policy, which will have a positive effect not only on employees and their families, but will also contribute to the economic development of the organization.