Legal justification for termination of service of married female employees 

After a meeting with the Gender Committee yesterday, the education minister in the caretaker government, Akram Shehayeb, clarified facts about the circular ordering the termination of service of married female employees. He explained that said directive was issued based on the decision of the Civil Service Council, 5/9/2019 and according to Law No. 22/82 dated 3/8/1982 and Decree No. 58/82. Said laws, he noted, have given the married female civil servant in the educational and administrative departments the right to file a request to terminate her service after marriage if she so wished. Shehayeb maintained that the circular is built around previous legal texts intended to give the married employee the right to choose her career path as she sees fit but never to encourage her to quit work. He pointed out that the Law No. 144/2019 has put on hold the requests for retirement, except in the cases when claimants have reached the legal age of retirement or cases supported by provisions of Article 39 of the Staff Regulations and Amendments Code. The above circular, Shehayeb added, has come to re-claim the right of married female employees to choose. He finally praised the role of women in all areas, expressing his willingness, as a minister and lawmaker, to endorse any draft bill aimed to eliminate gender-based discrimination. (Al Mustaqbal, December 13, 2019)