Lawyer helped to prove work experience when applying for a pension

Lidiya had worked in education all her life, but when it came time to apply for a pension, she was denied credit for part of her service due to an unclear entry in her work record book. The lawyer helped her defend her right to decent pension payments.

Ms. Lidiya was forced to leave her hometown of Vasylivka in Zaporizhzhia region due to constant shelling. As an internally displaced person, the old-age pension she is entitled to is critically important.

With more than 43 years of work experience as a kindergarten teacher, methodologist of the district methodological office and speech therapist, Lidiya started to apply for a pension. However, she unexpectedly received a refusal to credit part of her work experience due to an unclear entry in her work record book. To solve this problem, she turned to a lawyer from the NGO Step, which provides free legal support under the DRC project.

"I helped to collect a full package of necessary documents. I also explained how to get an electronic signature. Ms. Lidiya has health problems, so to avoid long queues at the Pension Fund, we submitted the documents through the Fund's website," says lawyer Dmytro Dimitriev.

In the end, we managed to prove all of Ms. Lidiya's service record, so legal support helped protect her right to a decent pension. The lawyer also helped her obtain a pension certificate.

The support of a lawyer helped to improve Ms. Lidiya's financial situation and give her confidence in such difficult times.

The STEP NGO provides free legal aid in cooperation with the Danish Refugee Council (DRC) thanks to the generous support of the American people through the Bureau of Humanitarian Assistance of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).