Progress Amid Resistance

IRAQ 175calls for equal pay and benefits. However, under the 1969 Worker’s SocialSecurity and Retirement Law, women can receive retirement benefits fiveyears earlier than men, encouraging them to leave the workforce sooner.Women also face discrimination in promotions, and working women mustadapt themselves to what are sometimes hostile, male-dominated workingenvironments.Under the Maternal Law of 1971, women in the public sector receivesix months’ paid maternity leave and may take a further six months of leaveat half-pay. Private-sector workers are entitled to 72 days of paid maternityleave, and medical officials can extend that to a maximum of nine monthsif necessary, in which case the mother would receive social security paymentsrather than salary. The 1987 labor code states that pregnant womenmay not be assigned extra work that may cause harm to them or their pregnancy(Article 82), but these protections do not apply to women workinginformally in the agricultural sector. The code also grants nursing womenone hour per day to feed their children (Article 87). Working women withchildren under six years old are allowed three days of unpaid leave at a timeto care for a sick child. Women working in the private sector are generallymore vulnerable than state employees, as they are not as well protected bythe law and most private employers can violate their rights with impunity.The labor code of 1987 and the penal code of 1969 protect workingwomen from sexual harassment in the workplace, but in practice theselaws are not enforced, and most women lack any knowledge of their laborrights. They are reluctant to come forward with complaints or charges,fearing humiliation, threats of violence, or social consequences. The country’sfragile security situation exposes women to attacks or murder by themen they have accused of harassment, since the crimes can be attributedto the insurgency.Article 23 of the 2005 constitution guarantees the protection of privateproperty without distinction based on gender, stating that the owner “shallhave the right to benefit, exploit and dispose” of it within the limits ofthe law. Consequently, Iraqi women are legally permitted to buy and holdproperty under their own names, although due to the current social andpolitical situation, fewer women are able to exercise that right. Womenalso have full legal freedom to use their income and assets. They can openbank accounts in their name and receive bank loans or mortgages withoutthe involvement of their husbands or male relatives. In practice, however,women are socially obligated to give up some or all of their income to help