Self-employed workers (Directive 2010/41/EU and some relevant provisions of the Recast Directive)
| Author | Davulis, Tomas |
| Pages | 40-44 |
40
8 Self-employed workers (Directive 2010/41/EU and some relevant
provisions of the Recast Directive)
8.1 General (legal) context
8.1.1 Surveys and reports on the specific difficulties o f self-employed workers
No surveys w ere conducted in Lithuania in relation to the specific difficulties of self -
employed workers.
8.1.2 Other issues
No other issues on this matter can currently be identified.
8.1.3 Overview of national acts
There is no specific act regulating the equal treatment of self-employed persons. Directive
fragmental provision can be found in the EOAWM. A rticle 9(3) of the EOAWM reads: ‘the
prohibition of sex discrimination shall apply to employed persons, including self-employed
persons, persons who have ceased work due to sickness, maternity, accident or
involuntary unemploym ent, and persons seeking employment, retired persons, disabl ed
workers or persons entitled to receive the pension on their behalf.’
8.1.4 Political and societal debate and pending legislative proposals
There has been no recent political debate on the issue.
8.2 Implementation of Directive 2010/41/EU
The transposition of Dir ective 2010/41/EU is mi nimal. The EOAWM was slightly amended
in 2012 to include a formal obligation for state institutions to observe the principle of equal
treatment.47 The Annex to the EOAWM and, surprisingly, the Annex to the EOA were
amended on 13 March 201248 to state that this amendment serves as the transposition of
towards self-employed workers. In fact, the public institutions are already prohibited from
discrimination on the ground of sex by virtue of the directly applicability of A rticle 29 of
the Constitution. In addition, the preparation or adoption of discriminat ory legislation has
been explicitly prohibited by Article 3(1) of the EOAWM since 1998.
Thus, the Lithuanian legislator has chosen not to explicitly confer the relevant rights on
self-employed persons and their spouses, with an exception for social security schemes
(the corresponding provision on social security schemes had already been inserted in
2008). Article 4 of the EOAWM only obliges stat e and municipal institutions a nd agencies
to ‘respect equal rights for women and men when providing public and administrative
services’. Self-employed persons are not specifically mention ed here.
8.3 Personal scope
8.3.1 Scope
The existing regulation covers self-employed persons, but the problem lies in the fact that
neither the EOAWM nor t he EOA address self-employed persons , except in the regulation
related to state social security schemes. In other words, except for so cial insurance
47 Article 4(1) No. 4 of the EOAWM reads ‘State and municipal institutions shall (…) respect the equal rights of
women and men in the provision of administrative or public services’.
48 Valstybs žinios 2012, No. 36-1769.
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