Soldiers are entitled to paternity leave, Constitutional Court confirms

Servicemen are entitled to paternity leave and depriving them of this right is unconstitutional, held the Constitutional Court in a ruling delivered in response to a petition by Ombudsman Tudor Lazar, Info-Prim Neo reports. Besides the direct discrimination of the servicemen compared to servicewomen, as only the latter are allowed maternity leaves, they are also discriminated against in relation to other men. Yet, men and women should equally enjoy this right, petitioned the Ombudsman. The Ombudsman further stated that depriving servicemen of paternity leave is a direct discrimination on grounds of sex, which is prohibited under both constitutional norms and international human rights conventions. Examining the petition, the Constitutional Court held that such a restriction imposed on servicemen is incompatible with the constitutional norms.