WUNRN
International Labour Organization -
ILO
DOMESTIC WORKERS IN EUROPE -
CHALLENGES FOR RIGHTS - ILO CONVENTION - WOMEN
Many domestic workers
in
Analysis
| 24 October 2012
“My employers said: ‘We already pay you a salary and you do not pay any taxes,
why should you go on holiday on top of that?’" she explains*.
Coring’s case is particularly difficult because she is an undocumented worker.
But even domestic workers in a regular situation have problems being recognized
as such.
While there are many laws covering domestic workers in
Many domestic workers may be afraid to
contact us, as they are illegal migrants or working in the hidden
economy." |
“Labour inspectors can only use existing labour laws, but these
are not always adapted to the specificities of domestic work,” says John Kelly,
regional manager at the Irish National Employment Rights Authority, the agency
in charge of labour inspection in
Non-compliance has to do with the fact that domestic work is seldom seen as a real
form of employment. On top of that, access to private homes is restricted and
few domestic workers are willing to openly denounce their employers. As a
result, most European labour inspectorates have not focussed on the domestic
work sector.
But according to Kelly, the main challenge remains that many domestic workers
in
“This is a major obstacle for labour inspectors to prevent and punish abuses,”
says Dutch union organizer representative Rebeca Pabon. “Why would undocumented
domestic workers contact a labour inspector if they know they will be deported,
even before their labour rights are recognized?” she asks.
Official data fails to capture the real extent of the domestic work sector in
The demand is even higher because of the ageing of the population. Due to the
difficult economic situation, there are growing numbers of Eastern European
workers coming to
“Informing people about their rights and duties is essential”, says Kelly, from
the Irish National Employment Rights Authority. “It often happens that
employers fail to keep a written record of working time, or do not consider the
time spent at night next to a sick person as proper working time.”
Bringing domestic workers to the formal economy would better protect them
against such abuses.
Some European countries, like
“Clearly this has a cost for the government”, explains Michel Aseglio, head of
the agency in charge of controlling social laws in
“Such schemes seem to go into the right direction,” says Dutch union organizer
Rebeca Pabon. But she worries that people will find more loopholes to bring
“cheap labour” into
ILO
Convention 189 |
Domestic workers who care for families and households
must have the same basic labour rights as other workers. These rights
include: §
Reasonable working hours, §
Weekly rest of at least 24 consecutive
hours, §
A limit on in-kind payment, §
Clear information on terms and conditions
of employment, §
Respect for fundamental principles and
rights at work, including freedom of association and the right to collective
bargaining. |
“The au pair system that provides young people with an
opportunity to come and learn a language while working for a family can seem
appealing at first. However, it has increasingly become a way for families to
compensate for the lack of public structure for child care,” she says.
“Establishing clearer rules to employ domestic workers and providing them with
a real status is key to improving their situation,” explains Martin Oelz, legal
specialist on working conditions at the International Labour Organisation
(ILO).
“We believe that ILO Convention 189 on Decent Work for
Domestic Workers will help give recognition and better protection to a
profession that remains mostly invisible today. Domestic workers deserve to be
seen and treated as real workers,” he concludes.
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