Persons convicted of offences against children no to be allowed to hold positions involving interaction with minors

Persons convicted of offences against children will not be allowed to hold positions that involve interaction with minors. A draft law to this effect was adopted today by Parliament, in first reading, with the votes of 69 MPs.

The document was presented by Secretary of State of the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection Anastasia Oceretnii. She noted that the purpose of the draft is to strengthen the child protection system against violence and neglect.

“The amendments concern the Labour Code, by supplementing it with a new chapter on work that involves regular contact with children. Thus, we propose introducing mandatory rules for checking criminal records and psychological fitness at the time of hiring, rules that will apply to all professions involving regular contact with children, regardless of the sector of activity. The document prohibits employment in such professions of persons who are subject to judicial protection measures, who are declared unfit from a psychological point of view to carry out social and professional activities with increased responsibility, or who have been previously convicted or have the status of suspect, accused, or defendant for intentional offences committed against children,” Anastasia Oceretnii pointed out.

In the case of convictions for sexual offences committed against children, the ban applies regardless of the extinction or deletion of the criminal record related to these offences. In addition, for the professions of professional foster carer, parent-educator and guardian or curator, the restrictions will also be extended to the family members of the person exercising these professions.

Another provision of the draft law stipulates that, in the event of criminal proceedings being initiated for offences committed against children, the employer will suspend from duty any employee who interacts with children at the workplace. For this purpose, the competent bodies managing criminal proceedings will be obliged to inform the employer about the granting of the status of suspect, accused, or defendant. In the case of a final conviction, the employee will be dismissed.

“At present, assessments of psychological fitness are applied for a variety of positions, such as doctors, teaching staff, management positions, police officers, prosecutors and judges. At the same time, we aim for such provisions to be reflected not only in the Labour Code, but also in the Law on Volunteering, given that there are currently volunteers who work with children,” Anastasia Oceretnii added.

The draft also contains measures to prevent the unlawful movement or retention of children abroad, by introducing legal instruments that would allow courts to intervene quickly when there is a risk of such situations occurring. Provisions regarding the protection of children in cases of domestic violence and those relating to maintaining relationships between siblings separated through adoption are also strengthened.

For example, in cases of domestic violence, the protection order will be extended to the child as well. The legislative initiative also sets clear time limits for examining cases concerning the deprivation of parental rights, of up to 45 working days. In cases where a child is removed from the family when their safety is at risk, the proposed time limit is up to 30 working days. The document also includes amendments to the Enforcement Code. It is proposed that income obtained in the form of social benefits or cash assistance granted by state institutions and received by the family for the child cannot be subject to enforcement.

Consequently, these financial resources cannot be used to pay off debts. The draft law will be submitted to Parliament for examination in second reading. After adoption, the legislative amendments will enter into force three months after publication in the Official Journal.