On November 4, 2022, the Labor Inspection Service, with the support of the USAID Rule of Law Program, held a meeting on measures and plans for the prevention of discrimination in pre-contractual and labor relations. The event was attended by representatives of business associations, as well as international and local non-governmental organizations. 

Deputy Minister of Internally Displaced Persons from the Occupied Territories, Labor, Health and Social Affairs of Georgia Tamila Barkalaia said "In many cases, discrimination is not intentional and is mostly caused by lack of information. Therefore, it is important to work actively in the direction of raising public awareness. Society needs to know exactly what is or can be considered discrimination and how to avoid such cases. The best example of this effort is the guidelines that have been developed and about which the Inspection Service will implement a wide public awareness campaign.”

“Strengthening the right to equality and fighting against discrimination is of great importance in terms of access to justice in Georgia. The development of the Anti-Discrimination Law played a major role in the steps against discrimination in the country. Labor legislation has been improved, and legislative amendments have been adopted for the protection of women's rights, the right to equality, and the rights of persons with disabilities. Unfortunately, the existence of a legislative environment alone is not enough, and in terms of enforcement, the Labor Inspection Service has an important role. We also think that the elimination of discrimination is a state issue and requires the cooperation and joint advocacy of representatives of various fields in the country." – stated USAID Rule of Law Program Chief of Party Giorgi Chkheidze. 

"We have to promote a change in the worldview and approaches of both the employer and the employee. It is for this purpose that we supported the preparation and publication of this manual, and we sincerely hope it will be widely used." - he added. 

Participants also heard from Mikheil Sarjveladze, Chairman of the Human Rights and Civil Integration Committee of the Parliament, Vladimer Kakhadze, First Deputy Chairman of Parliament’s Healthcare and Social Issues Committee, and Raisa Liparteliani, Deputy Chair of the Georgian Trade Unions Confederation.

At the event, the Guiding Principles on the Prevention of Discrimination During the Vacancy Announcement [available in Georgian, English, Azerbaijani and Armenian languages] were presented. The document was issued by the Labor Inspection Service, with the support of the USAID Rule of Law Program, for private and public sector institutions. It explains the basic principles that an employer must consider in the pre-contractual stage to avoid any kind of discrimination. 

The fight against discrimination is one of the priorities of the Labor Inspection Service. In this regard, the agency constantly conducts inspections in institutions, at both the existing labor relations and pre-contractual stages. Preparation and publication of the text announcing a vacancy is an important process that must make clear that the position is accessible to any interested person and does not unreasonably exclude access to employment for any group of people.