The Employment Strategy 2004 – 2010 (approved by the Council of Ministers on 6.11.2003) develops the positive employment policies created in the transitional period to market economy and sets out the main objectives and priorities to be achieved. It is a basic understanding of the strategy that employment strategy is a tool to achieve the economic growth as outlined in the National plan for Economic Development.  

The Strategy identifies women as a risk group in the labour market.  The Strategy pays special attention to the need to develop policies on equal opportunities for all social groups to the labor market and to make these freely and easily accessible. It takes account of the information about the state and development of the employment gathered during the last decade. It shows persistent unequal distribution of unemployment per social-demographic groups. The group of young people, people with high school or lower education, people with lower capacity to work and in certain period women and people over the age of 50 are continuously affectedly by unemployment. Women are identified as a risk group on the labour market. The detailed analysis made in the Strategy leads to the conclusion that inequality cannot be established easily solely on the basis of the basic indicators for participation in the workforce, for employment and unemployment. Women are greater portion of the unemployed and this is explained by the fact that women in the active work age are demographically more than men. On the other hand, the lower average levels of remuneration of the women is explained by the fact that they work predominantly in the traditionally low paid industries such as textile, tailoring, education, etc. Preference to employ men on well- paid jobs is also acknowledged as a reason. Following the Strategy, more substantial difference between the two sexes is present in the coefficients of employment. Difference between genders exists also with regard to levels of income but it is comparable to that in the EU countries

The Strategy identifies reintegration of discouraged persons and other social groups, not part of the workforce as a problem of prime importance. It further states out that solution of this acute problem requires elaboration and implementation of measures and programmes making possible reconciliation of family and work responsibilities, which shall promote the economic activity of women. Deadline for this task put in the Strategy is 2010.

Strategy pays special attention to the need to develop policies for equal opportunities for all social groups to the labour market and make it easily and freely accessible for them. Achievement of equality shall be pursued through 2 basic groups of actions:  

• General measures refer to the establishment of legislative, institutional and resource base for guaranteeing equal opportunities for women and men.
• Specific measures for social group, which are considered to be disadvantaged and in unequal position on the labour market as to the other persons.
• The Strategy draws attention to the fact that it is very important that the impact of each measure on the status of the respective groups is timely and appropriately measures.

General measures are outlined in several directions:

Data provision (deadline 2007)

• Data provision on the status and perspectives of the labour market with regard to gender equality;
• Specification of measures for improvement of national statistics related to labour market and collection of data per gender, etc.;
• Specification of group of indicators for monitoring the status and trends on the labour market related equality of the respective groups;
• Starting programme for conducting surveys together with NGOs on the discrimination existing on the labour market with regard to: equal presentation in the governance and in separate branches and sectors of the economy; inequality with respect to the rate of employment and unemployment and inequality in payment - payment gap.

Institutional framework: (deadline 2007)

• Setting legal requirements guaranteeing prevention from discrimination with regard to employment and creation of appropriate mechanisms for promotion of equal opportunities to women and men;
• Amendments in legislation in order to approximate it with the EU legislation related to flexible employment forms (part-time work; shared employment; flexible working hours on a week or monthly basis; employment  for performance of a specific job).

Evaluation of the impact of a policy on the status of each sex (Gender mainstreaming) (Deadline 2010): creation of a comprehensive institutional framework on gender equality, including elaboration and carrying out a national policy on gender equality;

• Nomination of responsible employees in all departments of the central administration;
• Establishment of consultative bodies with participation of NGOs and social partners;
• Training Gender mainstreaming
• Implementation of temporary positive actions to risk groups

Specific measures are based on available results from research and surveys conducted, which evidence certain inequality of women. The purpose of these measures is to eliminate existing discrepancies and reinforce the opportunities for women to find job. Specific measures refer to:

• Elaboration of a strategy for making possible work and family life together, which should include introduction of parental leave for children up to the age of seven; 
• Introduction of more flexible employment forms for mothers with children up to seven years old, different in regard to children’s age;
• Ensuring social security for pregnant women and mother with children up to three years old; creation of a child raising care system;
• Measures for improving the social infrastructure for child raising cares and education of children up to six years old.

The Strategy provides also the institutions responsible for ensuring equal opportunities for women and men – the Council of Ministers, the Employment Agency, the National Council for tripartite co-operation, the National Council for promotion of employment, the Consultative Commission on equal opportunities for women and men, Ministry of Economy, Ministry of Education and Science, Ministry of Regional Development and Social Welfare, Employers’ organizations, Employees’ organizations, NGOs.