ILGA-Europe Conference Paris

ILGA-Europe Conference Paris TRACE TRANSNATIONALCOOPERATIONFOREQUALITY Open and Safe at work.lt(Lithuania),Beneath the Surface(Sweden), Partnership for Equality(Slovenia) www.atviri.lt www.ytan.se www.ljudmila.org/lesbo

CONTENT OF THE WORKSHOP • Transnational cooperation TRACE • National contexts and projects • 3 Pillars of TRACE: • Research • Communication and policymaking • Experience exchange • Discussion

TRACE TRANSNATIONALCOOPERATIONFOREQUALITY The common objectives of the cooperating DP’s are to raiseawareness among stakeholders and key actors in working life on national and EU level, in order to • create an inclusive environment for lgbt; • to collect and disseminate good practice; • to carry out research; • to foster partnership and develop sustainable networks on all levels.

TRACE TRANSNATIONALCOOPERATIONFOREQUALITY 3 Pillars of TRACE: • Research • Communication and policymaking • Experience exchange

The Swedish project “BENEATH THE SURFACE” The project will focus on working life in a school environment focussed on sexual orientation. We will address teacher students and teachers as well as other staff (employees and employers) within the Swedish school system.

WHAT? • Raise awareness on lgbt issues and visualising the heterosexual norm in school • Increase knowledge,and by that improve attitudes • Develop methods on how to work with lgbt issues within a school environment

WHY? • The legislation is of satisfactory, • … but still, there is a lack of openness and visibility • There is a common “political correctness” • …but still, negative attitudes and prejudice exists beneath the surface • Trade unions are aware of their responsibility - …but still, there is a lack of knowledege and methods

HOW? • Different organisations from different sectors • Develop training tools • Train teacher students, teachers and other staff in schools • Raise awareness and disseminate experiences in different forums

The Slovenian project “PARTNERSHIP FOR EQUALITY” 3 national partners in DP: • Trade Union Association (ZSSS) • Employers association (ZDS) • ŠKUC (NGO, co-ordinator)

SITUATION IN SLOVENIA • Discrimination of sexual minorities in employment is still a taboo, one of most invisible forms of discrimination and hard to prove; • The research into sexual orientation discrimination conducted in 2001 among lgbt in Slovenia showed that 49.4% of respondents had experienced violence and harassment because of their sexual orientation; • Public opinion on homosexuality is negative; • LGBT people are often excluded from the equal opportunities system within employment; • Only 24% of interviewed lesbians were permanently or temporarily employed. Due to this fear, lesbians and bisexual women, after finding employment, usually do not risk homosexual socialising and stop attending clubs and other openly lgbt places; • The new government (right oriented) opened the questions of the abortus, single parents situation, special tax for unmarried citizens and couples without children; • The Slovenian Parliament confirmed the same-sex partnership bill (which do not provide basic social and some other rights) without civil dialogue with lgbt NGOs.

THE AIM OF THE PROJECT The aim of DP is awareness raising, training and education of social partners (trade unions, employers) for sustainable development of anti-discrimination policy within employment and work market, with the goal to prevent discrimination and to stimulate the inclusion of social categories, de-privileged because of their sexual orientation.

GOALS • to increase the level of participation in labour market of people, discriminated on the ground of sexual orientation; • to enable the conditions for stable integration of de-privileged group into the labour market; • to raise awareness and educational level of employers and trade unions about the role of inclusive employment policy; • to produce a code of conduct (rules, instructions) for implementation of anti-discrimination policy for employers and trade unions; • to stimulate the implementation of anti-discrimination policy (on the basis of elaborated code of conduct); • to tackle, document and prevent the violations of human rights on the ground of sexual orientation; • to stimulate organized actions of deprivileged groups within trade unions and companies.

INNOVATION • The partnership is aiming to find solutions for sustainable implementation of anti-discrimination policy in employment in the way, that was not used in Slovenia before. It is innovative in various aspects: • by putting sexual orientation-discrimination in the front line, because this form of discrimination was so far completely ignored in employment; • by using standards of national and EU legislation in the struggle against all kinds of discrimination in employment and labour market; • it will try to tackle, document and monitor discrimination on the ground of sexual orientation in employment; this area still remains due to the silence of victims and social homophobia “invisible” and hidden; • by using combined education and training of both employers and trade unions at the same time; • by putting the target group in the role of the partner (employers, trade unions), which enables better cooperation and higher motivation of the DP as a whole;

INNOVATION • by addressing the target group (employers, trade unions) indirectly. In the case that we would address the victims of discrimination (same-sex oriented people) directly , this would mean that they are far less accessible, because most of the workers hide their sexual orientation at work; • the program is applicable for different branches of employment; • the program is applicable for different aspects of discrimination (sex, age, disability, race, ethnical background, etc.); • it enables the NGOs from the field of human rights promotion to cooperate and to network with social partners, with the benefit for both; • it contributes to compatibility of social and civil dialogue.

EMPOWERMENT The principle of empowerment of vulnerable groups and individuals (sexual minorities) will be realized indirectly, through awareness raising, training and education of social partners for introduction of anti-discrimination policy. With good practice of social partners the conditions for equal opportunities, better inclusion and maintaining of discriminated categories in the labour market will be created. This will bring the changes of attitudes toward minority rights within trade unions and employers, and develop positive values and everyday practice. The final aim is to create such environment of employment, where every form of discrimination is declaratively unacceptable.

The Lithuanian projectOPEN AND SAFE AT WORK. LT • Lithuanian project is tackling discrimination based on sexual orientation in working life by building the right attitude towards minority workers identities and decreasing homophobia of the general public. • Representative research shows that 43 percent of respondents do not object to employers decision not to recruit a homosexual worker. • Every third citizen of Lithuania says that only a total absence of lgbt people will not cause any problems in the society.

GOALS • to research the situation of sexual minorities in working life and on the labour market for the first time in Lithuania; • to create and test an open and safe e-learning and working laboratory for LGBT and provide IT training as the main means for building self motivation and self-esteem; • to help workplace communities to understand the diversity of staff and to tolerate sexual minority employees to the extent that discrimination does not prevent people to seek employment in more open and safe environments.

ACTIVITIES • Along with information distribution, the project places special emphasis on changing the ethos in workplaces so as to make sexual minorities feel better included in their work communities. One means to this end is a pilot equal opportunities toolkit which will be based on research data and co-operation on both national and transnational levels; • Spreading our knowledge and know-how, dissemination and influencing individuals, organizations and society in both a national and an international perspective.

CHALLENGES • A homophobic reaction from the press and society toward the project; • Promoting the issue of non-discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation is too specific and is met with reluctance. Therefore we have adopted a strategy to raise the issue of diversity and equal.

OPPORTUNITIES • The lack of prominent research data on discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation leads to undermining of the problem; • The low self esteem and motivation of lgbt workers to come out in the workplace also keeps the problem deep under surface.

TRACE TRANSNATIONALCOOPERATIONFOREQUALITY 3 Pillars of TRACE: • Research • Communication and policymaking • Experience exchange

TRACE TRANSNATIONALCOOPERATIONFOREQUALITY1 - Research • How heteronormativity is constructed at work? • How to find, produce and analyse data for studies of heteronormativity in school and working life?

TRACE TRANSNATIONALCOOPERATIONFOREQUALITY1 - Research Joined reasearch activities: • Research design • Preparation of the report (good practice of non-discriminatory policy at work)

TRACE TRANSNATIONALCOOPERATIONFOREQUALITY1 - Research Research group: • Experience exchange from different studies; • Developing concepts, theory and strategies; • Mutual discussion; • Transnational researchers’ conference (one session focused on heteronormativity in working life).

TRACE TRANSNATIONALCOOPERATIONFOREQUALITY2 – Communication & policymaking Main objectiveis raise awereness and make sustainable changes in the discriminatory structures in society and among social partners.

TRACE TRANSNATIONALCOOPERATIONFOREQUALITY2 – Communication & policymaking Communication &policymaking group: • Information leaflet; • Other communication tools (radio programmes, newspaper articles, letters to stakeholders, the participation in conferences, the production of comic strips).

TRACE TRANSNATIONALCOOPERATIONFOREQUALITY2 – Communication & policymaking Influences: • Social dialogue (Communicating with trade unions and employers); • Civil dialogue (Communicating for example with the EU Parliament, the EU Commission and Pan-European networks and NGOs).

TRACE TRANSNATIONALCOOPERATIONFOREQUALITY2 – Communication & policymaking • What target groups are most important (and possible) to adress? • How can we reach them? • What result/impact can be achieved (on EU-level and on national level)? • How should TRACE workwith communication and policymaking?

TRACE TRANSNATIONALCOOPERATIONFOREQUALITY3 – Experience exchange Main objective is sustainable communication between similar organisations and institutions in the participating countries, in order to make sure that key actors can benefit from good practice, methods and policies developed and used in other countries.

TRACE TRANSNATIONALCOOPERATIONFOREQUALITY3 – Experience exchange • Linking relevant organisations and authorities together, in different countries, in order to exchange experiences on successful structures and methods; • Strengthening and supporting organisations/institutions that are new and inexperienced in the field of non-discrimination work; • Fact Finding Missions (key actors will be able to meet, discuss, exchange experiences and establish ways of communicating in the future).

ILGA-Europe Conference Paris