Report from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament - Report on the application of Directive 2002/73/EC of the European Parliament and the Council of 23 September 2002 amending Council Directive 76/207/EEC on the implementation of the principle of equal treatment for men and women as regards access to employment, vocational training and promotion, and working conditions
Date: 2009-07-29
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU action, employment policy, equal treatment, gender equality, job access, promotion, remuneration of work, sexual discrimination, working conditions

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COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 29.7.2009 
COM(2009) 409 final 

REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL AND THE EUROPEAN 
PARLIAMENT 

Report on the application of Directive 2002/73/EC of the European Parliament and the 
Council of 23 September 2002 amending Council Directive 76/207/EEC on the 
implementation of the principle of equal treatment for men and women as regards 
access to employment, vocational training and promotion, and working conditions 

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REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL AND THE EUROPEAN 
PARLIAMENT 

Report on the application of Directive 2002/73/EC of the European Parliament and the 
Council of 23 September 2002 amending Council Directive 76/207/EEC on the 
implementation of the principle of equal treatment for men and women as regards 
access to employment, vocational training and promotion, and working conditions 

1. INTRODUCTION 

On  23  September  2002,  on  the  basis  of  Article  141(3)  of  the  EC  Treaty,  the  European 
Parliament  and  the  Council  adopted  Directive  2002/73/EC  amending  Council  Directive 
76/207/EEC on the implementation of the principle of equal treatment for men and women as 
regards  access  to  employment,  vocational  training  and  promotion,  and  working  conditions1. 
Directive 2002/73/EC (hereafter 'the Directive') forms one of the key measures in current EC 
law  on  equality  between  men  and  women.  It  entered  into  force  on  5  October  2002  and  its 
provisions were to be transposed by the Member States by 5 October 2005. As of 15 August 
2009 Directive 76/207/EEC (hereafter 'the amended Directive') will be formally repealed and 
replaced by the recast Directive 2006/54/EC2. The recasting does not affect the deadlines for 
implementing Directive 2002/73/EC. 

In  accordance  with  Article  2(2)  of  Directive  2002/73/EC3,  the  Member  States  were  to 
communicate to the Commission all the information necessary for it to draw up a report on 
the  application  of  the  Directive.  This  report  is  based  on  information  received  from  the 
Member  States,  in  particular  in  response  to  a  questionnaire  on  the  Directive's  application 
prepared  by  the  Commission  departments  and  sent  to  all  Member  States  in  January  2009. 
Other  sources  include  European  Parliament  resolutions4  and  information  gathered  by  the 
Commission  when  monitoring  the  Directive's  implementation. The European social partners 
and  the  European  Women's  Lobby  have  also  been  consulted  on  the  issues  arising  from  the 
Directive. 

The  aim  of  this  report  is  to  flag  up  certain  aspects  that  are  particularly  important  or 
problematic and  to identify  good practice. It concentrates on transposition-related  problems, 
the  impact  of  the  Directive,  the  enforcement  of  rights,  and  the  role  of  equality  bodies,  the 
social partners and NGOs. 

However,  the  report  does  not  aim  at  giving  an  exhaustive  appreciation  of  the  legality  of  all 
national  transposition  measures.  Consequently,  it  is  without  prejudice  to  any  infringement 

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OJ L 269, 5.10.2002, p. 15. 
Directive  2006/54/EC  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  5  July  2006  on  the 
implementation  of  the  principle  of  equal  opportunities  and  equal  treatment  of  men  and  women  in 
matters of employment and occupation, OJ L 204, 26.7.2006, p. 23. 
In  the  following  parts  of  this  report,  all  provisions  referred  to  are  those  of  the  amended  Directive 
76/207/EEC, and not the amending Directive 2002/73/EC.  
See  in  particular  Resolution  of  15  January  2009  on  transposition  and  application  of  Directive 
2002/73/EC, 2008/2039(INI). 

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procedure that the Commission decided or might decide to open in the future with regard to 
the way the Member States have transposed certain provisions of the Directive. 

2. TRANSPOSITION AND INFRINGEMENT PROCEDURES 

On the final date for transposition, nine Member States (AT, BE, DE, DK, ES, EL, FI, LU and 
NL)  had  still  to  notify  national  transposition  measures.  Infringement  procedures  for  non-
transposition were therefore initiated against those Member States under Article 226 EC. Two 
of those procedures (against Belgium and Luxembourg) were referred to the Court of Justice, 
which  declared  that,  by  failing  to  adopt,  within  the  prescribed  period,  the  laws,  regulations 
and  administrative  provisions  necessary  to  comply  with  Directive  2002/73/EC,  the  two 
Member  States  had  failed  to  fulfil  their  obligations  under  the  Directive5.  Both  Belgium  and 
Luxembourg have adopted new legislation following the Court's judgment and the procedures 
against them have been closed. 

After  checking  the  conformity  with  the  Directive  of  legislation  communicated  to  it  by  the 
Member States, the Commission, acting under Article 226 EC, opened 22 infringement cases 
against  that  number  of  Member  States.  Following  several  complaints  from  the  public,  the 
number  of  cases  rose  to  25.  The  infringement  procedures  provided  the  Commission  with  a 
tool for dialogue with the Member States, as a result of which the legislation in some Member 
States was brought into line with the Directive and the procedures were closed (at the time of 
writing of this report, the cases against CY and EL had been closed).  

The high number of cases may be partly explained by the wide scope and relative complexity 
of the legislation. Despite the number of cases which remain open, most Member States have 
made  remarkable  progress  in  implementing  Directive  2002/73/EC.  As  part  of  the 
infringement procedures the Member States have often amended their legislation so that they 
could achieve partial or quasi compliance with the provisions of the Directive, although it was 
not  possible  to  close  the  infringement  procedures.  The  problems  of  transposition  identified 
concern  various  aspects  of  the  Directive  and  vary  according  to  the  Member  State,  though 
some points recur more often than others, as outlined below. 

3. THE IMPACT OF THE DIRECTIVE 

Although EC legislation on gender equality in access to employment and working conditions 
has been in force for decades, the Directive is an important milestone in the development of 
that  legislation  and  has  brought  standards  in  this  field  up  to  those  of  modern  EC  law 
prohibiting discrimination on other grounds6. Its impact on legislation in individual Member 
States depends on the development of gender equality law in the country concerned, although 
all Member States had to make some changes to national legislation to comply with it. 

Article  1(la)  of  the  amended  Directive  concerns  the  gender  mainstreaming  obligation,  i.e. 
the requirement on Member States to take the objective of equality between men and women 

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Judgment  of  17  July  2008  in  Case  C-543/07  Commission  v  Belgium;  C-340/07  Commission  v 
Luxembourg [2008] ECR I-43. 
See  Council  Directive  2000/43/EC  of  20  June  2000  implementing  the  principle  of  equal  treatment 
between  persons  irrespective  of  racial  or  ethnic  origin,  OJ  L  180,  19.7.2000,  p.  22,  and  Council 
Directive 2000/78/EC of 27 November 2000, establishing a general framework for equal treatment in 
employment and occupation, OJ L 303, 2.12.2000, p. 16. 

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actively  into  account  when  formulating  and  implementing  laws,  regulations,  administrative 
provisions,  policies  and  activities  in  areas  which  are  within  the  material  scope  of  that 
Directive.  The  Member  States  have  met  that  obligation  in  various  ways:  some  have  made 
provision for it in legislation giving equality for men and women the status of a legal principle 
(DK,  ES,  FI,  IT,  PL,  PT  and  SE);  others  have  adopted  strategic  programmes  (e.g.  BG,  CZ, 
EL, FI, LT, LV, PT, SE and SI), often elaborated on in more detailed periodical programmes; 
others  again  have  adopted  guidelines  for  implementing  gender  mainstreaming  (AT),  while 
some have provided for institutional solutions in the form of inter-ministerial bodies (CZ, DE 
and  PT)  or  gender  focal  points  in  ministries  and  other  authorities  (BG  and  CZ).  Some 
Member  States  (such  as  CZ,  DK,  EE,  ES,  LU  and  UK)  have  introduced  an  obligation  to 
conduct  an  ex  ante  assessment  of  the  consequences  of  envisaged  legislation  or  policies  on 
gender  equality.  The  importance  of  implementing  gender  mainstreaming  at  local  level  was 
mentioned by BG, ES and FR, while mainstreaming training is provided in DE, EE and FI. 

Directive  2002/73/EC  broadened  the  scope  of  Directive  76/207/EEC,  in  particular  by 
prohibiting  discrimination  in  the  conditions  governing  access  to  self-employment  and 
membership of and involvement in workers' or employers' organisations or any organisations 
whose  members  carry  on  a  particular  profession,  including  access  to  the  benefits  such 
organisations provide (Article 3(1)(a) and (d)). The problems in transposing those provisions 
in  some  Member  States  have  consisted  mainly  in  a  failure  to  include  self-employment  and 
membership  of  and  involvement  in  workers'  or  employers'  organisations  among  the  areas 
covered by the prohibition on discrimination. 

One  important  contribution  the  Directive  has  made  to  EC  gender  equality  law  has  been  to 
clarify  the  concept  of  discrimination  by  explicitly  defining  forms  of  discrimination  (direct 
and  indirect  discrimination,  harassment,  sexual  harassment  and  instructions  to  discriminate) 
and to define the scope of protection more clearly (Article 2(2) and (4)). Most Member States 
needed to put in place or amend legislation in order to implement those provisions correctly. 
Unfortunately, transposition of these fundamental provisions has not gone entirely smoothly: 
one  issue  that  came  up  frequently  during  monitoring  of  the  Directive's  implementation  was 
that  some  national  definitions  of  discrimination,  and  particularly  of  indirect  discrimination, 
were narrower than the Directive definitions. 

The exceptions from the principle of non-discrimination are also crucially important in terms 
of  the  scope  of  protection  from  discrimination.  Under  the  amended  Directive,  indirect 
discrimination  can  be  justified  in  certain  situations  (see  Article  2(2)).  Furthermore,  in 
accordance with Article 2(6), a difference in treatment does not constitute discrimination if it 
is  based  on  a  genuine  occupational  requirement,  provided  that  the  objective  sought  is 
legitimate  and  the  requirement  is  proportionate.  Problems  in  transposing  those  provisions 
properly occurred in a number of Member States, where the wording of the exceptions was 
too broad and thus narrowed the scope of protection. 

The  Directive  defines  harassment  and,  for  the  first  time  in  Community  law,  sexual 
harassment as forms of discrimination. One mistake in transposing those provisions in some 
Member  States  consisted  in  confining  protection  to  relations  between  workers  and  their 
superiors,  thus  excluding  co-workers  or  other  third  parties.  Over  time  and  as  progress  has 
been  made  in  the  infringement  procedures,  some  Member  States  have  corrected  their 
definitions of these forms of discrimination.  

The impact of these provisions also varied from one Member State to another. Legislation in 
some Member States already provided protection from harassment and/or sexual harassment 

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before  the  adoption  of  Directive  2002/73/EC:  for  example,  gender-specific  harassment  was 
already an offence in DK, SE and UK. In AT, gender-specific harassment became an offence 
following the adoption of the Directive. Nonetheless, the transposition of the Directive gave 
those  Member  States  the  opportunity  to  improve  legal  clarity  or  otherwise  step  up  the 
protection (for instance, AT increased compensation in such cases, while the UK adjusted the 
rules on evidence) and to give more visibility to the issue (in the UK, for example, both the 
legislation and the case-law now cover harassment and sexual harassment). In other Member 
States, in addition to raising awareness, the Directive has brought more profound legislative 
changes:  for  instance,  legislation  prohibiting  harassment  and/or  sexual  harassment  was 
introduced  for  the  first  time  in  CY,  CZ,  ES,  IT,  PL  and  SK,  and  they  were  recognised  as  a 
form of discrimination in FI, FR and PT. 

Many  Member  States  underline  people's  lack  of  knowledge  of  harassment  and  sexual 
harassment  and  point  out  that  raising  awareness  is  still  essential  to  fighting  them.  Special 
problems concern enforcement, since the victims are particularly vulnerable and rarely initiate 
judicial proceedings (most Member States quote a very low number of cases taken to court). 
NGOs, trade unions and equality bodies providing assistance to the victims and information to 
employers  have  a  special  role  in  improving  the  situation.  As  sexual  harassment  is  often 
committed  by  co-workers,  the  employer's  role  in  prevention  is  vital.  Advisors  appointed  in 
companies (in BE and SI for instance) are one way of preventing it.  

Less  favourable  treatment  of  a  woman  related  to  pregnancy  or  maternity  leave  also 
constitutes discrimination within the meaning of the amended Directive (Article 2(7)) and is 
still widespread in many Member States. In this area, the provision introducing the worker's 
right to return to her job or to an equivalent post on terms and conditions which are no less 
favourable to her and to benefit from any improvement in working conditions to which she 
would have been entitled during her absence has had relatively the biggest impact. In BG, ES, 
FR  and  LT  it  led  to  new  legislation,  while  its  impact  was  smaller  in  other  Member  States, 
where  it  brought  only  minor  amendments.  When  reporting  on  this  point,  several  Member 
States and social partners underlined the need for better reconciliation of work and family life. 

Article 2(8) allows for positive action in accordance with Article 141(4) EC with regard to 
areas  covered  by  the  material  scope  of  the  Directive.  In  this  area,  too,  the  situation  varies 
widely among the Member States. While some have not made use of this possibility (such as 
CY, LU and LV), legislation in many explicitly allows for it (such as AT, BE, CZ, DE, DK, 
EE,  EL,  ES,  FR,  IT,  MT,  PT,  RO,  SE,  SI  and  SK).  Some  Member  States  have  adopted 
positive action at national level in specific areas (for example, it is compulsory in the federal 
public sector in BE; in DE it takes the form of quotas in the civil service at federal and Land 
level; in IT and NL there are positive action plans in the civil service; and in MT the taxes on 
women returning to the labour market are lower). In several Member States (AT, ES and FR) 
positive  action  is  the  subject  of  collective  bargaining.  In  ES  the  authorities  are  required  to 
provide  for  positive  measures  to  redress  inequality.  In  FI  companies'  equality  plans  refer  to 
positive action, but in practice such cases are rare. 

The most common examples of positive action include measures in education and training (as 
in CZ, ES, EL, PT and SE), measures for the integration of women in general and of women 
who  have  given  birth  and  are  returning  to  the  labour  market  in  particular  (BG,  CZ,  ES  and 
PL),  other  actions  to  facilitate  women's  professional  and  business  activities  (DE,  EL),  and 
encouragement given to members of the underrepresented sex to apply for certain jobs (DK, 
UK). 

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In  some  Member  States  such  measures  are  monitored  by  the  equality  body  (for  example  in 
SK).  In  SI  the  prior  authorisation  requirement  for  positive  action  has  been  abolished.  The 
equality  bodies  in  BE  and  the  UK  give  advice  on  positive  action.  ES  reported  a  potential 
difficulty relating to the degree to which positive action could be allowed without breaching 
the principle of equality.  

4. PROVISIONS REGARDING THE ENFORCEMENT OF OBLIGATIONS AND THE PROTECTION OF 

RIGHTS 

The  conventional  method  for  securing  the  enforcement  of  individual  rights,  namely  by 
litigation,  is  less  effective  in  securing  compliance  in  the  case  of  equality  law  than  in  other 
areas. The information provided by the Member States indicates that the number of cases of 
discrimination referred to the courts is low or very low in virtually all of them. The reasons 
include the lengthy time taken by proceedings, the formalities involved, the cost, and fear of 
victimisation. The Directive recognises the  problem  and includes a number  of provisions to 
improve the enforcement of equality law by means of judicial and administrative proceedings.  

The Member States must ensure that judicial and/or administrative proceedings to enforce 
obligations  under  the  amended  Directive  (Article 6(1))  can  be  initiated  by  all  persons  who 
consider they have suffered as a result of a failure to apply the principle of equal treatment. In 
a  few  Member  States  it  was  unclear  whether  that  obligation  also  applied  after  the  labour 
relationship had ended, as required by that provision. 

The amended Directive (Article 6(3)) makes it an obligation for the Member States to grant 
associations,  organisations  and  other  legal  bodies  with  a  legitimate  interest  in  ensuring 
compliance with that Directive the possibility of engaging, either on behalf or in support of 
the complainant and with his or her approval, in any judicial or administrative proceedings 
provided  for  the  enforcement  of  obligations  under  the  Directive  in  accordance  with  criteria 
laid  down  by  national  law.  Problems  with  regard  to  this  obligation  included  reserving  that 
right  for  an  ombudsman  or  trade  unions,  to  the  exclusion  of  other  organisations.  The 
Commission  also  considered  whether  or  not  the  criteria  laid  down  by  law  in  some  Member 
States  under  which  associations  could  engage  in  proceedings  were  overly  restrictive. 
Legislation  on  this  point  has  been  amended  in  a  number  of  Member  States.  The  practical 
impact  of  this  provision  varies  with  the  Member  State.  Non-profit  organisations  are 
particularly  active  in  some  (DE  and  FR),  while  the  assistance  is  mainly  provided  by  the 
equality body in others (BE, ES and SK) or by trade unions in many (CY, CZ, DK, NL, SE 
and SI). 

The Directive provides for clearer provisions regarding compensation or reparation for loss 
or  damage  sustained  by  a  person  injured  as  a  result  of  discrimination,  which  must  be 
dissuasive  and  proportional  and  must  not  be  subject  to  a  prior  upper  limit  (Article  6(2)). 
Setting  an  upper  limit  on  compensation  was  an  issue  raised  in  a  number  of  infringement 
procedures. As progress is made in the latter, this problem is gradually disappearing.  

The  amended  Directive  (Article  7)  makes  provision  for  protection  from  victimisation.  A 
frequent  error  in  transposing  this  provision  in  some  Member  States  involved  narrowing  the 
scope  of  protection  as  compared  with  the  Directive,  for  example  by  including  the  victim  of 
discrimination but excluding any third parties assisting the victims.  

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The  amended  Directive  (Article  8d)  makes  it  an  obligation  to  introduce  effective, 
proportionate  and  dissuasive  sanctions  for  infringements  of  national  provisions  adopted 
pursuant to it. Most Member States have fulfilled that obligation. 

5. EQUALITY BODIES 

In  addition  to  measures  to  strengthen  conventional  methods  of  enforcement,  the  Directive 
provides for innovative ways of improving compliance and furthering equality, the obligation 
to  set  up  equality  bodies  being  the  first  worthy  of  mention.  Article  8a requires the Member 
States to designate 'a body or bodies for the promotion, analysis, monitoring and support of 
equal treatment of all persons without discrimination on the grounds of sex', the competences 
of  which  must  include  providing  independent  assistance  to  victims  of  discrimination  in 
pursuing  their  complaints  of  discrimination,  conducting  independent  surveys  concerning 
discrimination,  and  publishing  independent  reports  and  making  recommendations  on  any 
issue relating to such discrimination.  

In  some  Member  States  such  bodies  have  existed  for  a  long  time,  be  it  in  the  form  of 
ombudsmen  or  commissions.  In  most  Member  States,  however,  they  were  established  as  a 
result of the adoption of the Directive. Equality bodies vary greatly across the EU in terms of 
competences,  the  way  they  function,  their  organisation  and  their  human  and  financial 
resources.  

Providing assistance to victims is a key task of equality bodies. Information from the Member 
States shows clearly that persons complaining of discrimination are more likely to turn to an 
equality body than to the courts, mainly on account of the specific expertise of the former, and 
because  they  are  cost-free  and  access  involves  less  red  tape.  The  support  provided  by  the 
equality bodies varies with the Member State: in some (DK, SE and SI) it extends to handling 
complaints  in  quasi-judicial  proceedings  with  binding  decisions,  albeit  subject  to  appeal  in 
court. In others the equality bodies may conduct investigations on their own (CY, NL, SE and 
UK) or support the complainants before the courts and/or administrative authorities (AT, BG, 
ES, FR, SE and UK). In others again, their role is restricted to providing information (MT and 
PL).  

Although the equality bodies were set up to promote gender equality, awareness of their work 
in  society  is  not  always  satisfactory  –  witness  the  relatively  small  number  of  requests  for 
assistance which they receive in some Member States. There is a need for better awareness of 
their existence and work, and particularly of the assistance they provide to victims. Telephone 
help-lines  established  by  some  equality  bodies  (in  ES,  SE  and  UK)  and  information 
campaigns may make accessing them easier. 

In the Commission's view, equality bodies can only perform their tasks independently if they 
are  also  independent  to  some  extent  in  terms  of  organisation  and  financial  and  human 
resources. The situation in the Member States varies greatly in this respect.  

Although the Directive only lays down minimum requirements for equality bodies, these have 
not  been  met  in  some  Member  States.  Over  time  and  as  progress  has  been  made  in  the 
infringement procedures, the problems in this area have diminished significantly. On the other 
hand,  the  equality  bodies  in  some  Member  States  have  wider  competences  than  those 
provided for in the Directive, extending to such tasks as monitoring equality plans (ES, FI and 
SE), providing advice on and monitoring positive action, and training. 

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The Commission has decided to launch a study relating to equality bodies that will thoroughly 
explore issues such as their independence, accessibility, visibility and performance. 

6. SOCIAL DIALOGUE, DIALOGUE WITH NGOS AND ROLE OF EMPLOYERS 

The  Directive  seeks  to  foster  equal  treatment  inter  alia  by  involving  the  social  partners  in 
general  and  employers  in  particular  in  the  social  dialogue.  Instruments  such  as  collective 
agreements  may  help  in  the  long  run  to  create  a  work  environment  that  is  free  of 
discrimination.  

Since the new Article 8b(1) and (2) refer to national traditions and practice with regard to the 
obligations  laid  down,  the  social  partners'  practical  involvement  depends  very  much  on  the 
tradition  in  the  Member  State  concerned  and  the  extent  to  which  social  dialogue  and 
collective  bargaining  have  developed  there.  In  the  UK,  for  example,  it  is  not  common  to 
conclude  collective  agreements,  and  dialogue  with  the  social  partners  is  promoted  in  other 
ways,  such  as  through  funding,  research  and  guidance.  In  most  Member  States,  however, 
social dialogue in general and collective bargaining in particular play a major role.  

There are collective agreements on gender equality issues in AT, BE, DK, ES, FR, LT, LV, 
MT, NL, PT, SE and SI and they are compulsory in some of the latter (AT, ES and FR). In 
some Member States (BG, CZ, EL, ES, LV, PL, PT, RO, SK and SI), social dialogue takes 
place at national level and usually involves tripartite committees. Ways of promoting social 
dialogue  other  than  through  collective  agreements  typically  include  consulting  the  social 
partners on legislation and policy initiatives. In 2005 the European social partners concluded a 
framework agreement on gender equality7. 

Under  new  Article  8b(3),  the  Member  States  are  to  encourage  employers  to  promote  equal 
treatment  in  a  planned  and  systematic  way  in  accordance  with  national  law,  collective 
agreements  and  practice.  This  happens,  for  example,  by  disseminating  information  in 
companies (as in BE and EE) or adopting equality plans (in ES, FI, NL and SE, in companies 
employing a given number of workers). 

The amended Directive (Article 8c) also recognises the role of dialogue with NGOs. The main 
ways of engaging civil society organisations involve establishing advisory bodies (as in BG, 
CZ,  EL,  ES,  PT  and  UK),  consulting  them  on  policy  initiatives  and  legislation,  providing 
financial  support  (as  in  BE,  CZ,  DE,  EE,  ES,  FI,  SE,  SK  and  UK  —  in  the  latter,  for  the 
purpose  in  particular  of  providing  assistance  to  victims),  organising  joint  conferences  and 
seminars, involving NGOs in the drafting of documents for national or international bodies or 
including their members in delegations to UN conferences (as in SE). Some Member States 
(AT, BG, EL and PL) stressed the role of the European Year of Equal Opportunities for All 
(2007)  in  establishing  cooperation  with  NGOs  and  their  participation  in  projects  relating  to 
that initiative. The role of NGOs in implementing projects funded by the Structural Funds was 
stressed by CZ, LT and PL.  

7 

Available at http://www.etuc.org/IMG/pdf/framework_of_actions_gender_equality_010305-2.pdf. 

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7. CONCLUSIONS 

Considering  the  far-reaching  changes  to  legislation  required  in  a  number  of  Member  States 
and the substantial progress most Member States have made in implementing its provisions, 
the transposition of Directive 2002/73/EC can generally be regarded as satisfactory. However, 
an  effort  is  still  needed  in  a  number  of  Member  States  to  achieve  full  and  correct 
transposition. 

The Directive is an important milestone in the development of EC gender equality law in so 
far as it has modernised the rules on equal treatment of men and women in employment and 
related  areas.  Nonetheless,  given  the  persistence  of  inequality  and  discrimination,  it  is 
important  that  EC  and  national  gender-equality  legislation  be  implemented  and  enforced 
carefully. 

The  role  of  the  equality  bodies,  which  not  only  monitor  developments  at  national  level  and 
assist the victims of discrimination but also contribute to furthering equality in the long run 
through their many other activities, is particularly important here.  

The involvement of all actors (the authorities, the social partners, NGOs, the equality bodies 
and  society  at  large)  is  essential  if  awareness  is  to  be  raised  and  effective  use  made  of  the 
tools to eradicate discrimination that are provided for in the Directive. 

EN 

9 

   EN