Through improvement of anti-discriminatory and social legislation towards benefits for vulnerable women

Our aim was to increase the rights of caregivers and women whose status is influenced by gender and age discrimination and social disadvantage.
The project involved four parts: analytical, advocacy, lobbying, and awareness. We have analysed the anti-discrimination legislation, the impact of introduction of social housing on women at risk of poverty and loss of housing, the situation of the caregivers, and the situation of families with children under 3 years of age and single parents. We have organised a round table on social housing and balancing work and private life with caring. We engaged people in decision-making positions in the preparation of the Platform against Multiple Discrimination and provided expert information materials to regional and municipal authorities. We have pushed through important measures in the Family Policy of the Czech Republic (prepared by the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs): long-term care allowance, increased flexibility of parental allowance, the principle of inter-generational solidarity, and a support coordinator. A Social Housing Concept has been adopted as well. We have been working with the persons at risk in participatory groups and informed them through social networks, our website, a newsletter, media, labour offices, information centres of Prague’s district offices, and the Office of the Public Defender of Rights (a project partner). We have successfully publicised problems of caregivers and seniors, “The End of Hidden Poverty”, which ran on social networks. The key benefit of our work was the pressure put on legislators to tackle the issue.