The lecture, titled “Economic Duress and Vitiated Consent: Labor Rights at the Intersection of Gender, Law, and Structural Inequality”, will take place on June 16 at 13:20 at EHU, Savanorių 28.
At the heart of the lecture is a fundamental question: can consent be truly free when there is no real choice?
Dr. Abed will explore what “voluntary agreement” means in employment relationships where workers face structural inequality, restrictions on freedom of movement, lack of economic alternatives, and informal labor arrangements with limited or no legal protection.
Drawing on the experience of female workers in cross-border settlement employment, the lecture will examine how reliance on intermediaries, weak regulatory frameworks, and broader colonial structures affect bargaining power and shape the very conditions under which “agreement” is reached.
The lecture sits at the intersection of international labor law, feminist legal theory, critical contract theory, and political economy. It invites participants to rethink the notion of free consent in structurally unequal labor markets and to consider what justice in labor relations can actually look like.
Dr. Manal Abed holds a PhD in Civil Law from the University of Zurich and has been a licensed member of the Palestinian Bar Association since 2013. Her research focuses on human rights, gender equality, and comparative legal studies.
This visit is organized within the Erasmus+ program and co-funded by the European Union.
Date: June 16
Time: 13:20
Venue: Savanorių 28, EHU Lithuania
Registration: All participants are required to register in advance via the following form