Muna Tawka

Libya – Participants in the event agreed on the importance of enhancing the legal awareness of working women and the necessity of knowing their rights and duties within the workplace, as a means to protect them from exploitation and marginalization and to empower them to claim their rights within institutions.

The organization "Tsadaq for Humanitarian Work" held an awareness lecture yesterday, Thursday, May 21, in the city of Sabha, entitled "Women's Rights at Work: Challenges and Opportunities," at the "Iles" Human Resources Center, attended by a number of media professionals, department heads, female employees, and those interested in women's and work issues. This step aims to enhance women's legal awareness of their rights in the workplace and to highlight the most prominent challenges facing working women in Libyan institutions.

The lecture witnessed a discussion about the laws regulating women's work, their employment rights, the leave entitlements guaranteed by law, as well as how to deal with emergency situations and violations or abuses that women may face in the workplace, with an emphasis on the importance of legal knowledge as a means to protect women from exploitation or marginalization.

Zainab Khamis, head of the "Tsadaq for Humanitarian Work" organization, said that organizing this lecture comes within the framework of raising women's awareness of their professional and legal rights, pointing out that women are not required to memorize the laws completely, but they need to know their rights and duties within the workplace.

She added that the absence of legal knowledge makes many women vulnerable to exploitation or overlooking their rights, affirming that the organization seeks to create an awareness space that helps women understand their professional rights more clearly and promotes a culture of claiming rights according to legal frameworks.

For her part, legal advisor Izdihar Abdul Ghani Muhammad, head of the Legal Affairs Office of the Urban Planning Authority – Sabha branch, explained that the lecture addressed the rights of working women in general, including special leaves for women and mechanisms for dealing with emergency situations at the workplace, in addition to the legal methods that enable women to obtain their rights.

Media professional Rimas Al‑Qassam said that the lecture focused specifically on Labor Law No. 12, which addresses many aspects related to the rights of working women, considering that the initiative represents an important step in spreading awareness among women, especially working women who simultaneously bear family and educational responsibilities at home.

She pointed out that the lecture discussed the most prominent problems women face in work environments, whether related to social challenges, the work environment itself, or opportunities for promotion and career advancement, noting that these activities represent a first phase within a series of awareness programs aimed at supporting women and empowering them legally and professionally.

The event concluded by affirming the importance of continuing awareness programs related to women's rights at work and the necessity of enhancing legal culture within institutions, contributing to creating a more just and equitable work environment for women and giving them greater ability to participate professionally with confidence and knowledge.