WORLD Policy Analysis Center

Does legislation explicitly prohibit discrimination in terminations on the basis of paternal status?

The term “paternal status” includes gender-neutral references to caregiving (“parenthood’, ‘having children’, workers with ‘family responsibilities’), and gender-specific references to ‘fatherhood’, or ‘paternity’. For the purposes of this variable, the term “paternal status” captures all of these definitions, but it does not capture job protections that narrowly apply to fathers’ leave-taking.

Terminations includes explicit legislative prohibitions against discriminatory terminations or dismissals from the workplace, or guarantees of continuance of employment.

No prohibition means that legislation does not take an explicit approach to prohibiting discrimination in terminations on the basis of paternal status. This does not mean that legislation denies this guarantee.

General prohibition of discrimination in terminations means that legislation prohibits discrimination in terminations generally— for example, by prohibiting discrimination based on “any status” or stating no worker may be discriminated against. This general prohibition is not specifically extended on the basis of paternal status.

Broad prohibition of workplace discrimination based on paternal status means that legislation extends a prohibition of discrimination at the workplace on the basis of paternal status, but does not explicitly address terminations. These broad prohibitions use language that could extend prohibition of discrimination across any aspect of work.

Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition means that legislation either extends: a) an explicit prohibition of discriminatory terminations on the basis of the paternal status in focus, or b) extends a broad prohibition of workplace discrimination on the basis of this paternal status alongside a general prohibition of discriminatory termination to all workers.

Countries

Afghanistan - No prohibition

Algeria - No prohibition

Angola - No prohibition

Antigua and Barbuda - No prohibition

Bahamas - No prohibition

Bangladesh - No prohibition

Belarus - No prohibition

Benin - No prohibition

Bhutan - No prohibition

Bolivia - No prohibition

Brunei - No prohibition

Burundi - No prohibition

Cameroon - No prohibition

Central African Republic - No prohibition

Chad - No prohibition

Chile - No prohibition

China - No prohibition

Colombia - No prohibition

Republic of the Congo - No prohibition

Cote d'Ivoire - No prohibition

Cuba - No prohibition

Dominica - No prohibition

El Salvador - No prohibition

Equatorial Guinea - No prohibition

Gabon - No prohibition

The Gambia - No prohibition

Germany - No prohibition

Ghana - No prohibition

Greenland - No prohibition

Guatemala - No prohibition

Guinea-Bissau - No prohibition

Haiti - No prohibition

Iceland - No prohibition

India - No prohibition

Indonesia - No prohibition

Iran - No prohibition

Iraq - No prohibition

Jamaica - No prohibition

Japan - No prohibition

Jordan - No prohibition

Kazakhstan - No prohibition

Kenya - No prohibition

Democratic People's Republic of Korea - No prohibition

Republic of Korea - No prohibition

Kuwait - No prohibition

Laos - No prohibition

Lebanon - No prohibition

Libya - No prohibition

Madagascar - No prohibition

Malaysia - No prohibition

Mali - No prohibition

Marshall Islands - No prohibition

Mauritania - No prohibition

Micronesia, Federated States of - No prohibition

Monaco - No prohibition

Mozambique - No prohibition

Myanmar - No prohibition

Nauru - No prohibition

Nepal - No prohibition

The Netherlands - No prohibition

Nicaragua - No prohibition

Niger - No prohibition

Nigeria - No prohibition

Oman - No prohibition

Pakistan - No prohibition

Palau - No prohibition

Panama - No prohibition

Papua New Guinea - No prohibition

Paraguay - No prohibition

The Philippines - No prohibition

Poland - No prohibition

Qatar - No prohibition

Rwanda - No prohibition

San Marino - No prohibition

Saudi Arabia - No prohibition

Senegal - No prohibition

Seychelles - No prohibition

Sierra Leone - No prohibition

Singapore - No prohibition

Solomon Islands - No prohibition

Somalia - No prohibition

Sri Lanka - No prohibition

St. Vincent and the Grenadines - No prohibition

Sudan - No prohibition

Suriname - No prohibition

Sweden - No prohibition

Tajikistan - No prohibition

Thailand - No prohibition

Timor-Leste - No prohibition

Tonga - No prohibition

Trinidad and Tobago - No prohibition

Tunisia - No prohibition

Uganda - No prohibition

United Kingdom - No prohibition

United States of America - No prohibition

Uruguay - No prohibition

Vanuatu - No prohibition

Venezuela - No prohibition

Yemen - No prohibition

Zimbabwe - No prohibition

Andorra - General prohibition of discrimination in terminations

Azerbaijan - General prohibition of discrimination in terminations

Botswana - General prohibition of discrimination in terminations

Costa Rica - General prohibition of discrimination in terminations

Ecuador - General prohibition of discrimination in terminations

Georgia - General prohibition of discrimination in terminations

Peru - General prohibition of discrimination in terminations

Turkmenistan - General prohibition of discrimination in terminations

United Arab Emirates - General prohibition of discrimination in terminations

Croatia - Broad prohibition of workplace discrimination based on paternal status

Czech Republic - Broad prohibition of workplace discrimination based on paternal status

Honduras - Broad prohibition of workplace discrimination based on paternal status

Samoa - Broad prohibition of workplace discrimination based on paternal status

Ukraine - Broad prohibition of workplace discrimination based on paternal status

Uzbekistan - Broad prohibition of workplace discrimination based on paternal status

Albania - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Argentina - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Armenia - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Australia - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Austria - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Bahrain - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Barbados - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Belgium - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Belize - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Bosnia and Herzegovina - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Brazil - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Bulgaria - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Burkina Faso - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Cambodia - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Canada - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Cabo Verde - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Comoros - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Democratic Republic of the Congo - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Cyprus - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Denmark - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Djibouti - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Dominican Republic - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Egypt - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Eritrea - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Estonia - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Ethiopia - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Fiji - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Finland - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

France - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Greece - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Grenada - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Guinea - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Guyana - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Hungary - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Ireland - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Israel - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Italy - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Kiribati - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Kyrgyzstan - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Latvia - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Lesotho - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Liberia - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Liechtenstein - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Lithuania - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Luxembourg - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

North Macedonia - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Malawi - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Maldives - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Malta - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Mauritius - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Mexico - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Moldova - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Mongolia - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Montenegro - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Morocco - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Namibia - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

New Zealand - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Norway - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Portugal - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Romania - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Russian Federation - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Sao Tome and Principe - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Serbia - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Slovakia - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Slovenia - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

South Africa - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

South Sudan - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Spain - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

St. Kitts and Nevis - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

St. Lucia - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Eswatini - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Switzerland - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Syria - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Tanzania - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Togo - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Türkiye - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Tuvalu - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Vietnam - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition

Zambia - Yes, paternal status-specific prohibition