The Ministry of Labor and Social Protection and the Ministry of Health proposed to reduce the list of non-female professions

June 3, MINSK. The Ministry of Labor and Social Protection and the Ministry of HEALTH proposed to reduce the list of non-female professions during a meeting of the National Council on Gender Policy under the Council of Ministers, chaired by the Minister of Labor and Social Protection, Chairman of the National Council - Irina Kostevich. This was reported to BelTA by the press service of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection.

With a proposal to reduce the list of heavy work and work with harmful and (or) dangerous working conditions, in which it is prohibited to involve women in labor, Ivan Karchevsky, HEAD of the department for protection and state examination of working conditions of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection, presented. Such a list existed in the USSR.

"In Belarus, such a list was revised three times: in 1994, 2000 and 2014. This is due to the changed working conditions for certain types of work, the improvement of technological processes, the introduction of new equipment. The current version of the list provides for 181 positions. The Ministry of Labor and Social Protection in cooperation work has been carried out with the Ministry of Health and other interested parties to correct this document," the press service said.

Thus, it is proposed to exclude from the list 93 positions that are irrelevant for modern production types of work, as well as jobs in which, according to the results of certification, the working conditions are classified as acceptable or optimal and which do not pose a threat to a woman's reproductive health.

The new edition of the list contains 88 positions, including types of hard work and work with harmful and (or) dangerous working conditions, and the names of workers' professions for which women's work is prohibited. "Of course, work related to the production and use of chemicals, for example, hydrocyanic acid, chlorine dioxide, cannot be completely excluded from the list, since their concentration in the air sometimes exceeds the established hygienic standards, having a negative impact on reproductive ability," the press noted. -service.

As before, the professions of a solderer, a distiller of mercury, a steelworker at open-hearth furnaces, and an explosives operator remain non-female. Women will not be hired to manually repair asphalt concrete road surfaces, to work with the use of vibration and pneumatic tools, as well as to the positions of blacksmiths, firemen, lumberjacks, diggers and a number of other professions.

Taking into account the development of science, the list provides for the opportunity for women to work, and for the employer, respectively, to hire women for the jobs specified in the document, if, following the results of taking measures to modernize production, replace obsolete equipment, working conditions at a particular workplace will be brought into line with hygienic standards.

"The meeting addressed the issues of forming young people's attitudes towards a healthy lifestyle, preventing the consumption of ALCOHOL, psychoactive substances, implementing educational programs on reproductive and sexual health for adolescents. Adolescent-friendly centers play a leading role in this work. Therefore, the work of the National Council began precisely with acquaintance with the activities of these centers," the press center said.

Today, there are 56 adolescent-friendly centers in Belarus. They are organized on the basis of health care institutions providing outpatient and pediatric care.

First Deputy Minister of Health Elena Krotkova and Chief Physician of the 8th City Children's Clinical Clinic in Minsk Tamara Gaidukevich spoke about the implementation of educational programs on reproductive and sexual health for adolescents based on adolescent-friendly centers.

Comprehensive medical and psychosocial assistance for health problems associated with the specifics of adolescence is provided by specialists: gynecologists, pediatricians, psychologists, as well as consultants with a secondary medical education: valeologist instructors, nurses, midwives. Volunteers are recruited for peer-to-peer counselling. The centers actively cooperate with educational institutions, public associations, and the BOC. Consultations and information and educational work are carried out by dermatovenereologists, narcologists, representatives of the internal affairs bodies, juvenile affairs inspectors, detectives in the fight against drugs and human trafficking.

The meeting was held on the basis of the 8th city children's clinical clinic. The meeting was attended by members of the National Council - representatives of the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Economy, the Ministry of Information, regional executive committees, the Minsk City Executive Committee, deputies of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus, the FPB, the NGO "Belarusian Women's Union".

The next meeting of the National Council on Gender Policy will be held in November this year as part of the dialogue platform with students "Youth for Equal Rights and Opportunities!", which will consider the formation of youth leadership, responsible parenthood, and caring for one's own health.

Since 2000, the National Council for Gender Policy under the government has been a permanent body on state policy in the field of gender equality, which coordinates the gender policy pursued in Belarus and develops concerted actions aimed at ensuring the implementation of the provisions of the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women .