International Domestic Workers Day

STATEMENT FOR INTERNATIONAL DOMESTIC WORKERS’ DAY, 

16 June 2012 

Ratify and Implement ILO Convention 189 on Decent Work for Domestic Workers Now! 

Today, as we commemorate the first anniversary of the adoption of ILO Convention 189 (C189) on Decent Work for Domestic Workers, we call on ILO Member States to immediately ratify and mplement C189 as a demonstration of their global commitment made at the 100th Session of the International Labour Conference on 16 June 2011.

Ratifying C189 is important, urgent and a priority! Wide ratifications of C189 would benefit an stimated 100 million domestic workers around the world who for long have been unrecognized,neglected, and forgotten.

We commend Uruguay for being the first country to ratify C189. We are optimistic that this step orward will encourage the rest of the world to follow in particular the Philippines which also committed to be among the first countries to ratify the Convention.

We call on States, employers, recruiters, civil society, religious groups, and the general public to ecome instruments of change and reinvent their views on domestic work. Specifically, we raise ur call to the following:

• Governments to ratify C189 and follow through on their ethical and legal obligations to extend to both local and migrant domestic workers the same rights as those of other workers. 
• Governments are urged to provide an enabling environment that will facilitate respect for rights, provide ample protection and promote holistic development of domestic workers.
•  Governments to include domestic workers in national labour laws and enact provisions that address the specific needs and concerns of domestic workers especially child domestworkers and migrant domestic workers. 
• Governments to repeal policies that disproportionately discriminate and criminalize domestic workers and effectively enforce existing policies that seek to promote the rights and welfare of domestic workers. 
• Governments, employers and the general public to recognize the contribution of domestic and workers to the development of societies where they work and treat them with respectdignity. 
• Recruiters to stop the exploitation of migrant domestic workers through collection of exorbitant recruitment fees which lead domestic workers into forced labor and debt bondage. 
• Trade unions and labour rights advocates to show their concrete support by assisting domestic workers to exercise their right to association and to join or form a trade union
• For trade unions to expand solidarity with migrant domestic workers across borders. Religious groups to take an active role in promoting public consciousness with respect to the culture of inequalities and stereotypes that work against domestic workers particularlwomen domestic workers.
• Religious groups to continue with their role of providing refuge and comfort for domestic workers who have been exploited and abused.
• Domestic workers to organize, speak for themselves and mobilize support for the atification and implementation of C189. 

Domestic Work is Work!
Domestic Workers are Workers!
Domestic Work is Not Slavery!
Ratify C189!

Singed by: 

• ACTFORM‐ Sri Lanka 
• AFL‐CIO Ain O Salish Kendro (ASK)‐ Bangladesh 
• Alliance of Progressive Labor (APL– Philippines unity Development ‐ Bangladesh Association for Community Development - Bangladesh 
• Association of Major Religious Superiors of the Philippines ‐Migrants Center‐ Philippines 
• ATIKHA‐ Philippines 
• Bangladesh Institute of Labor Studies‐Bangladesh 
• Cambodia Legal Education Center (CLEC) ‐ Cambodia 
• Caritas Lebanon Migrant Center (CLMC)‐ Lebanon 
• Center for Indian Migrant Studies (CIMS)‐ India 
• Center for Labour and Social Studies (CLASS) – Nepal 
• Center for Migrant Advocacy (CMA) – Philippines 
•  Coalition for Migrants Rights (CMR) ‐ Hongkong 
• Federasi Serikat Pekerja Metal Indonesia (FSPMI) ‐ Indonesia 
• Federation of Free Workers (FFW)– Philippines 
• German Commission for Justice and Peace‐ Germany 
• Global Network‐ Asia Helpers for Domestic Helpers (HDH)‐ Hongkong 
• Hongkong Confederation of Trade Unions (HKCTU) - Hongkong 
• Hope Workers Center (HWC)‐ Taiwan 
• Hsinchu Migrants and Immigrants Services Center (HMISC) 
• Humanitarian Organization for Migration and Economics Delopment (HOME) - Singapore 
• Institute of Social Development (ISD) - Sri Lanka 
• International Domestic Workers Network (IDWN) JALA PRT‐ Indonesia 
• KAKAMMPI‐ Philippines Kanlungan Centre Foundation‐ Philippines 
• Konfederasi Serikat Pekerja Indonesia (KSPI)‐Indonesia Labor Education and Research Network (LEARN) ‐ Philippines 
• Labour Education Foundation (LEF) - Pakistan 
• Legal Support for Children and Women (LSCW) - Cambodia 
• Migrant Care‐ Indonesia 
• Migrant Forum in Asia 
•  Migrant Forum India – India 
• National Domestic Workers Movement‐ India 
• POURAKHI‐ Nepal 
• Pravasi Nepali Coordination Committee (PNCC)‐Nepal 
• Self Employed Women's Association (SEWA-Academy) - India 
• Serikat Buruh Migran Indonesia (SBMI) - Indonesia 
• Solidarity Center Sr. Immaculate De Alwis, ACTFORM‐ Sri Lanka 
• SUMAPI‐ Philippines Transient Workers Count Too‐ Singapore 
• Unlad Kabayan Migrant Services Foundation, Inc. - Philippines 
• Visayan Forum Foundation Incorporated - Philippines 
• WARBE Development Foundation – Bangladesh 
• Youth Action Nepal (YOAC) ‐ Nepal

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