Duties and Responsibilities
1. Background In Lebanon, the female labour force participation revolves around 28% - approximately a third of the male rate. One of the reasons for this is that women undertake the majority of childcare responsibilities, which limits their chances of pursuing a career. Existing work systems are rapidly transforming due to technological progress and changing global markets. These shifts have given rise to flexible work arrangements, increasingly embraced by governments, employers, and workers. Such changes call for updated regulations that keep pace with new work realities while safeguarding social protection. In Lebanon, the 1946 Labour Code lacked adequate provisions for such forms of work, and flexible or remote arrangements often fell outside formal employment and social protection frameworks, leaving many workers unprotected. In response, in May 2025, the Lebanese Parliament adopted Law No. 3/2025, amending the Labour Law to formally recognize flexible, part-time, and remote work arrangements and to extend National Social Security Fund (NSSF) coverage to new categories of workers. This reform represents a milestone in Lebanon’s labour and social protection framework, aiming to promote inclusive and equitable access to employment. It is particularly significant for advancing women’s economic participation, as flexible and family-friendly work arrangements can help reduce barriers that prevent women especially those with caregiving responsibilities from entering or remaining in the workforce. Given the importance of ensuring the effective implementation of this reform, UN Women, jointly with UN ESCWA and in collaboration with the International Labour Organization (ILO), will provide technical assistance to the Lebanese Parliament, and specifically to the Women and Children Parliamentary Committee, to support its follow-up on the implementation of the law as part of the Parliament’s role in post-legislative scrutiny. The consultancy builds on previous analytical work by ESCWA and other partners, including a legal study on flexible work arrangements in Lebanon, which laid the groundwork for the legislative proposal. The legal study under this consultancy will serve as a foundational input to guide the actuarial feasibility study leading to the full implementation of the labour law reform while also ensuring the benefits of this reform are utilized appropriately and fairly. This legal study/advice will serve to guide on the changes to be introduced to the Lebanese National Social Security Fund internal laws and regulations to allow for the implementation of Law No. 3/2025 without misuse of the new arrangements for fraudulent purposes. 1. Objective and methodology: ESCWA seeks to hire a consultant to update the definitions of workers’ categories established in the Lebanese National Social Security Fund and propose new ones as relevant to allow actuarial feasibility exercise according to the revised/new definitions. The consultant will also advise on associated changes to be made to the Lebanese National Social Security Fund internal laws and regulations. Additionally, the consultant will establish the necessary legal and procedural controls to prevent the misuse of the new reform concerning flexible work for fraudulent purposes. The legal study/advise will take place in conjunction with the actuarial feasibility study leading to the full implementation of the labour law reform. The study will draw on regional experiences and definitions related to Flexible Law Arrangements in Arab countries. The consultant will work in collaboration with the NSSF and the technical team working on the implementation of the law reform. 2. Tasks - Duties and responsibilities: - Desk review: Conduct a revision of the labour and National Social Security Entities laws and regulations in Arab countries including definitions which could serve as examples and best practices for implementation in Lebanon; - Undertake consultations with involved stakeholders on the relevance and consequences of different options and alternatives; - Suggest changes and new definitions to the one followed by the NSSF in conjunction with the Labour law updates, specifically flexible work arrangements, which will guide in the actuarial feasibility study and enable the implementation of all aspects of the new labour law update; - Propose legal and procedural controls to prevent fraudulent use of flexible working arrangements;
Qualifications/special skills
A master’s degree in law is required. All candidates must submit a copy of the required educational degree. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed. At least (5) years of work experience in areas related to law reform and changes is required. Previous experience in working on labor law and/or social security laws is desirable
Languages
English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat; and Arabic is a working language of ESCWA. For this position, fluency in Arabic is required. Knowledge of French and English is desirable. Note: “Fluency” equals a rating of ‘fluent’ in all four areas (speak, read, write, and understand) and “Knowledge of” equals a rating of ‘confident’ in two of the four areas.
No Fee
THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.
