Pact Supports ILO Convention to Include Domestic Workers

Pact grantee ASTRADOMES participated from June 1st to 17th, to the 100th ILO annual Conference advocating for the working conditions of domestic workers. ASTRADOMES strives to enhance the leadership capacity of migrant women working within the domestic service industry by improving the capacity of domestic workers to organize and carry out effective political advocacy campaigns to achieve labor rights equality for local and migrant women. Their work includes activities such as developing a campaign to increase public awareness on the rights of domestic workers strengthening local leadership, and advocating within the legal system for the enforcement of the rights of Costa Rican and migrant women.

On June 16, 2011, the ILO adopted the Convention on Domestic Workers (2011) which states that domestic workers share the same basic labor rights as workers in any other sector, including: reasonable hours of work, weekly rest of at least 24 consecutive hours, a limit on in-kind payment, clear information on terms and conditions of employment, and freedom of association, and the right to collective bargaining. The news is available online at the following address: http://justicialaboral.ning.com/profiles/blogs/la-100-conferencia-de-la-. oit

Maria del Carmen Cruz, a representative of ASTRADOMES shared her experience with Pact and thanked the program for its continuing support:

“The experience was very positive and enriching, I feel I have learned so much, and I am very grateful for having had the chance to participate in such a notorious win for all domestic workers around the world.

It was a tripartite agreement, for the first time in my life, I realized that it was possible to have a binding agreement between government, employers and workers. We worked really hard, on each article. It had to be written in 3 languages: English, French and Spanish, so if words had different meanings, subamendments had to be made.

However, the experience was very satisfying when the Convention and Recommendation were adopted. It is such a victory! Now domestic workers around the world have the same basic labor rights as those available to other workers.

I cannot thank enough Pact for supporting and believing in my organization, and giving me the opportunity to grow as an advocate for domestic workers!”