The social role of women has gone through historical transformations which have meant moving from performing only domestic chores to taking part in other segments of society. Education, politics, economics, and particularly labor are the most significant ones. And labor is the main focus of this paper. Women take up 38,5 % of the active work force in Chile, with some of them holding important public positions as Ministers, Undersecretaries, Senators, Deputies, Ministers of the Supreme Court, Mayors, and City Council members. In various work environments women are subject to gender discrimination, which translates into limited job opportunities. Women feel discriminated against in (1) salaries, (2) access to management positions, (3) ethnic issues, (4) physical aspects, (5) social class, and (6) social (neighborhood) background. Some institutions concerned with labor discrimination include the National Service for Women, the Center for Women Studies, the Institute for Liberty and Development, the PRODEMU Foundation, the UN Economic Commission for Latin America (CEPAL), the International Labor Organization, and the Reproductive Rights Center, among others. The current legal system includes laws in line with the evolution of the social role of Chilean women. Thus, laws on sexual harassment, equal rights for men and women, pregnant students rights, civil marriage, family courts, domestic violence, filiation, work contracts, and Sunday rest are among the most important ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]