Law drafter

Result of Service- Law proposal on flexible work arrangements in Lebanon. - 2-3 page legal brief building on a legal study already developed on flexible work arrangements in Lebanon.

Work Location Online

Expected duration 15 days

Duties and Responsibilities Lebanon, as many countries in the Arab region, register low rates of female labour force participation and employment compared to men, despite a significant rise in Lebanese women’s educational attainment. One major barrier behind this situation relates to the role women are expected to play in their societies and families and the unpaid care work they are expected to assume. The COVID-19 pandemic and its consequences came to further exacerbate the situation for working mothers all over the world as well as in Lebanon, leading to an increase in women’s share of unpaid care work and forcing working women to assume the compounded shift of paid work and unpaid care work. The pandemic has therefore brought to the forefront the centrality of care work and highlighted the need for comprehensive care policies and infrastructures deemed essential for women’s economic empowerment and gender equality. It has also placed flexible work arrangements in the spotlight and demonstrated how well such arrangements might work in practice, leading many countries around the globe to introduce new policies aiming to reduce the pressure on working parents such as flexible work schedules, the possibility to work from home, reduced working hours, etc.

A case-study developed by ESCWA on childcare economy and women’s economic empowerment in Lebanon has shown that flexible work arrangements are simply absent from Lebanese legal frameworks and are not covered by any legal texts despite their proven significant contribution to women’s economic participation. Therefore, ESCWA supported the Lebanese Women and Children Parliamentary Committee to undertake an extensive review of the existing legal texts and frameworks related to/governing flexible working arrangements in Lebanon and identify legal obstacles and bottlenecks that might face the formulation of laws, by-laws on flexible work arrangements. This review permitted to set necessary foundation to the formulation/reform of legal and policy frameworks that allow the implementation of flexible working arrangements in the workplace. The objective being to facilitate work-life balance and encourage co-sharing of care responsibilities between men and women, with the ultimate aim of increasing female labor force participation in the country.

To take this issue further, ESCWA is currently seeking to hire a law drafter to prepare a law proposal based on the outcomes and recommendations of the study already prepared for the perusal of the Lebanese Women and Children Parliamentary Committee.

Qualifications/special skills A Master’s or equivalent in law, economy, social studies, or any other related areas is required. At least 8 years of relevant work experience in fields of labor laws and regulations is required. Previous experience with multiple stakeholders on similar topics and issues is required. Experience with international organizations on similar issues is desirable.

Languages Fluency in Arabic is required. Knowledge of English is desirable.

No Fee THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.