Policy Brief consultant- “women at work”

PROJECT: PROMOTION OF DECENT WORK AND SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT IN BEKAA, LEBANON (March 2020- September 2022)

1. Background information

With the support of the European Regional Development and Protection Programme for Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq (RDPP II), Oxfam and partners Legal Agenda (LA) and Lebanese Observatory for Workers and Employees’ Rights (LOWER) are implementing a project titled “Promotion of decent work and sustainable business development in Bekaa, Lebanon.” In addition, the project will work very closely with My Work, My Rights! Network, an informal group of local Civil Society Organisation (CSOs) that work on advancing decent working conditions in Lebanon.

The project aims to contribute to a decent and economically sustainable business environment for displacement-affected populations in the Bekaa by strengthening the linkage between the local civil society, the business development organizations, and the MSMEs in Bekaa.

To achieve this overall objective, the project will implement activities under three main clusters:

• Cluster 1: Empower a local network of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) to influence practices and policies related to decent work.
• Cluster 2: Convene an informal network of private business development organizations and professionals with strong decent work capacities in Bekaa.
• Cluster 3: Improve working conditions and accessible decent job opportunities in Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Bekaa.

2. Purpose of the policy brief:

The My Work, My Rights! Network is looking for a research consultant to carry out the policy brief, which is guided by the core advocacy issues of the network, but more particularly the paper will address the topic of “women at work” in Lebanon. It is expected to cover the issue under question from different aspects as follows:

• Gender-based labor violations include harassment, arbitrary dismissal, and discrimination in the workplace.
• Gender-based labor violations in the labor law and social protection law.

The policy brief is to consider focus on the intersectionality of such a topic, including care work, women from different nationalities and backgrounds in both formal and informal sectors with consideration to how women with disabilities are impacted.

3. Duties of the Consultant:

The researcher is expected to review the set of tools and documents that will be provided by the network members as a baseline resource for information.

In addition, the research consultant is expected to:

• Develop a detailed methodology for the paper, including the research tools (Key Interviews, Discussions, etc.)
• Conduct a literature review /desk review to understand the existent policies related to social protection and women at work.
• Carry out meetings with members of the network who are working on relevant topics.
• Submit drafts of the brief policy document.
• Send the drafts to LOWER team for revisions with other network members.
• Develop the last version of the brief policy.
• Translate the brief policy from Arabic to English.
• Edit the English and Arabic versions of the brief policy.

6. Research Consultant qualifications

Education:      

Advanced university degree in economics, public law, public administration, social sciences, development studies or a related field.

Experience:

At least five years of progressively responsible experience in the field of, labor rights, social protection, human rights & gender equality.

Languages:     

Fluency in spoken and written Arabic and English is required.

Competencies

This position requires the following:

• Discipline-Specific Conceptual Knowledge.
• Research Skill Development.
• Communication Skills.
• Professionalism.
• Responsible Conduct of Research.
• Coordination and organizational skills
• Ability to work on own initiative as well as a member of a team.
• Good knowledge of the relevant topics: labor law, social security policies & mechanisms, socio-economic rights and polices, human rights, gender justice and others