SDG 5. Gender Equality

• Centre for Equal Opportunities Policy, Faculty of Political Science

• ATHENA – Implementing gender equality plans to unlock research potential of RPOs and RFOs in Europe, Faculty of Sociology and Social Work
• Social memory in the digital age: reinventing the role of women in history through commemorative biographical discourse

The University of Bucharest systematically monitors and reports the number of applicants, students, and graduates, including women. Data on the number of applicants, students and graduates are managed through the platforms dedicated to these activities: the Education Management Platform and the Admissions Platform. The UB also operates the Office of Education Monitoring, Reporting and Statistics, which manages all this data and supplies them to university and faculty management for analysis and specific action.

As of 2022, UB applies the Gender Equality Plan, which includes:

• Establishing a flexible but operational institutional structure for the coordination and monitoring of gender equality in the UB (Measure 2.1);
• The establishment of the Gender Equality Office (measure 2.2);
• Improving the process of collecting, processing, and monitoring statistical data at the UB level to monitor and communicate gender equality indicators (Measure 2.4).
• At UB level, the course “Equality, diversity, inclusion: beyond stereotypes and prejudices in the university environment” was organized as part of the UB Gender Equality Plan (GEP), which benefited around 150 UB employees in 2022.

The University of Bucharest promotes gender equality and, at the same time, respects national legislation and internal regulations, so no gender discriminatory measures are found. Thus, regardless of the status they belong to (candidates, students, employees), women can access the university’s services, such as mentoring through various institutional projects, counselling, extracurricular development, etc.

The European Strategy for Universities, adopted on 18 January 2022 by the European Commission, identifies the need to address the underrepresentation of women in STEM fields (Science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics). The assessment of the current situation of the student population indicates that:

• In Biology– 82% of all students enrolled are female;
• In Chemistry– 73% of all students enrolled are female;
• In Physics– 50% of all students enrolled are female;
• In Geography– 59% of all students enrolled are female;
• In Geology– 39% of all students enrolled are female;
• In Mathematics, 52% of all students enrolled are female;
• In Informatics: 32% of all students enrolled are female;
• In Systems engineering, 26% of all students enrolled are female;

To support applications by women in underrepresented fields, UB implemented several initiatives:

• The Gender Equality Committee at the University of Bucharest aims, among others, to encourage women to become more involved in academic life and research and to move into less accessible areas.
• Another example is the UB for Women in Science, an initiative of the University of Bucharest that aims to help remove invisible barriers to access faced by women in science, promote the outstanding contributions of women in the UB scientific community and celebrate their success in the scientific field in which they work.
• In May 2023, UB organized a training module for employees focused on gender equality and harmonization of professional and personal life. This event, part of the ATHENA project, aimed at raising awareness and implementing effective strategies to promote gender equality in academia. The participants discussed the pitfalls of the gender concept, what gender equality is and is not, and the main issues in this field today.

• The Charter of the University of Bucharest and the Code of Ethics and Deontology prohibit “discrimination, understood as any distinction, exclusion, restriction or preference, based on ” […] sex, sexual orientation ...”. To operationalize this, a procedure has been approved which establishes an effective and transparent mechanism for investigating incidents of sexual harassment and sex/gender discrimination in the academic community. The procedure available here sets out the principles, preventative measures, responsibilities and how to deal with incidents of sexual harassment and sex/gender discrimination.
• Furthermore, the University of Bucharest has developed within the ATHENA project – Implementing gender equality plans to unlock the research potential of RPOs and RFOs in Europe the Gender Equality Plan 2022-2024, which includes measures to combat discrimination against women.

For employees:

UB fully adopted the provisions of the collective labour agreement, which includes the following provisions of interest:

• 24 – (1) Employers are obliged to grant pregnant employees time off for prenatal check-ups up to a maximum of 16 hours per month, without affecting their pay entitlements […]
• 24 – (3) Based on the recommendation of the family doctor, a pregnant employee who is unable to perform her regular working hours for health reasons for herself or her unborn child shall be entitled to a reduction of one-quarter of the regular working hours, while maintaining her salary income, entirely paid from the employer’s wage fund […]
• Article 25 – (1) Employees starting from the fifth month of pregnancy, as well as those who are breastfeeding, shall not be assigned to night work, shall not be called for overtime, shall not be sent on delegation, shall not be seconded except with their consent and shall not be dismissed for reasons not related to their person.
• 28 – (1) Employees are entitled to paid days off in case of special family events or in other situations, as follows: […] g) child health care – 1 working day (for families with one child or 2 children), respectively 2 working days (for families with 3 or more children), according to Law no. 91/2014 on granting one working day off per year for child health care.
• 22.- Employees who waive the legal parental leave for raising a child to the age of 1, 2 or 3 years, respectively, benefit from a reduction of the regular working hours by 2 hours/day, according to the law, without this affecting their basic salaries and seniority in education/work.
• Article 30 – (1) In addition to the paternity leave provided for in Article 28 para. (1) letter b) of this contract, the father shall be entitled to a leave of at least one month out of the total period of leave for the upbringing of the child, under the provisions of Article 11 of GEO no. 111/2010 on leave and monthly allowance for the upbringing of children, as subsequently amended and supplemented. The mother also benefits from this right if the father benefits from parental leave.
• Article 66 – (2) The termination of an employee may not be ordered:

1. a) for the duration of temporary incapacity for work, established by medical certificate;
2. b) during quarantine leave;
3. c) while the employee is pregnant, insofar as the employer was aware of this fact before the dismissal decision was issued;
4. d) during maternity leave;
5. e) during parental leave for the upbringing and care of a child up to the age of 2 years, or 3 years in the case of a disabled child;

(f) during leave for the care of a sick child up to the age of 7 years or, in the case of a disabled child, for a recurring illness until the age of 18 years; […]

Moreover, the Development Strategy of the University of Bucharest for 2020-2023 provides for a series of actions to support the university community, among which are objectives that concern women. Two of the targets proposed by the institutional strategy refer to the development of collaboration agreements with kindergartens and nurseries with priority access for the children of teachers and students, offering support to mothers. A similar target refers to creating at least one playground in every campus/large building by the end of 2023.

Objective 6 – Work-life balance, caring responsibilities – of the Gender Equality Plan 2022-2024 sets out a set of measures aimed at work-life balance to support teaching staff and students with caring responsibilities:

6.1 Promote work-life balance by establishing a flexible working time scheme for UB employees;

6.2. Promote the reconciliation of students’ caring and educational obligations to encourage tertiary education for all young people, regardless of family obligations (Regulations on attendance arrangements for students with caring obligations, especially young mothers);

6.3 Organise an education and care structure for pre-school and early school children of UB staff and students.

To address this, UB organized a training module for employees that focused on gender equality and the harmonization of professional and personal life.

According to Article 29, paragraph 1 of the Internal Regulations of the University of Bucharest, it is forbidden for the employer to terminate the employment or service relationship in the case of:

1. a) pregnant or breastfeeding employees for reasons directly related to their condition;
2. b) an employee on maternity leave;
3. c) an employee on risk maternity leave;
4. d) an employee on parental leave for a child up to the age of two or, in the case of a disabled child, up to the age of three;
5. e) an employee on leave for the care of a sick child up to the age of 7 or, in the case of a disabled child, up to the age of 18. Article 63 of the same Regulation also states that maternity may not constitute grounds for discrimination.

For students:

According to article 36 of the Regulation on Students’ Professional Activity:

(1) A pregnant student benefits, based on her application and the supporting documents, from a period of interruption with a duration equivalent to the duration of the authorized sick leave. Students may request an interruption of studies for the upbringing and care of the child under the legal provisions.

(2) Upon resumption of studies, the student shall support any differences arising from the modification of the curriculum (free of charge), and the examinations passed up to the moment of interruption of the period of studies shall be recognized.

Students can similarly benefit from paternity leave.

One way in which student parents are encouraged to continue their studies is through the occasional maternity welfare grant, which is awarded to a student whose spouse has no income or income above the national minimum net wage and consists of a childbirth and maternity grant and a grant for the purchase of clothing for the newborn child, which is awarded once during the academic year for each child born (Art. 43, lit. b of the Methodology for awarding grants and other forms of support for students of the University of Bucharest, bachelor and master).

• The University of Bucharest supports student families by providing accommodation facilities. Thus, according to the Methodology on accommodation in UB dormitories, art. 17, students who have a dependent child and live with him/her have priority in the accommodation process. The same applies to UB employees up to the age of 35.
• One way in which student parents are encouraged to continue their studies is through the occasional maternity welfare grant, which is awarded to a student whose spouse has no income or income above the national minimum net wage and consists of a childbirth and maternity grant and a grant for the purchase of clothing for the newborn child, which is awarded once during the academic year for each child born (Art. 43, lit. b of the Methodology for awarding grants and other forms of support for students of the University of Bucharest, bachelor and master).
• Another measure encouraging students to continue their studies is provided in Art. 46, para. 1, lit. c of the Regulation on students’ professional activity, according to which the Dean of the Faculty may approve the interruption of studies for maternity and childcare.
• UB staff are entitled to parental leave for children up to the age of 2 or 3, in compliance with the law and the provisions of the collective labour agreement described above.

UB’s Department of Career Counselling and Guidance and the Psychological and Educational Counselling and Intervention Clinic offer counselling and mentoring services to all employees and students without discrimination. Available data shows that more than 50% of participants are females.

• The UB Statistics Office collects data on graduates’ number and career paths and carries out descriptive and explanatory analyses to support student services and access schemes. As of 2022/23, the distribution of graduates is the following:
  • Out of 5,040 graduates in bachelor studies, 3,663 were female;
  • Out of 3,369 graduates in master studies, 1,533 were female;
  • Out of 157 graduates in doctoral studies, 78 were female;
• To identify relevant information about the socio-educational background of UB students in order to facilitate their successful adaptation and integration into university life and thus prevent drop-out, the Inclusion Service, together with UB Learning Centre, implements an Integration Questionnaire through which students at risk of dropping out are identified and personalized support services are subsequently proposed.
• The UB Statistics Office tracks the professional status of graduates according to the last level of study. The latest available report completed 12 months after graduation (reference year – 2021) shows that 82% of female and 74% of male graduates were employed. For 61% of both genders, the post is in the field of studies.

The University of Bucharest has a policy that protects those reporting discrimination from educational or employment disadvantage.

• A central role in this policy is played by the Ethics Commission, which analyses and resolves deviations from university ethics based on complaints or through self-referrals. Both staff and students can address the commission in case of discrimination or other misconduct, and the university protects the right to confidentiality of its members in all matters concerning their private sphere, which can be provided only under the law (art. 8, Code of Ethics and Deontology).
• The University Ombudsman provides members of the academic community and the technical-administrative staff of the University, under conditions of complete confidentiality, with independent and impartial advice and information on the resolution of disputes and problems, with particular reference to cases of violation of the rights and freedoms provided for by law, the Charter and University regulations (art. 140, Charter of the University of Bucharest).