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Roughly 40 per cent of domestic workers globally are employed in Asia, yet the region has been slow to enact laws to protect their rights.
According to a new report by the International Domestic Workers’ Network (IDWN), the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and Human Rights Watch, more than 25 countries have improved legal protection for domestic workers, especially in Latin America, but Asia’s record is dismal, with only the Philippines adopting such a law.
Sharan Burrow, General Secretary, ITUC, said in a release that Governments that have lagged, particularly in Asia and West Asia, need to act without delay.
The report, ‘Claiming Rights: Domestic Workers’ Movements and Global Advances for Labour Reform’ was launched at a recent meeting of labour leaders from over 40 countries in Montevideo (Uruguay) to establish a new International Domestic Workers Federation to help share strategies across regions.
The report documented a range of abuses of domestic workers, including unpaid wages, restrictions on leaving households where they work and excessive work hours with no rest days.
It noted that domestic workers from India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Cambodia experienced the most “horrific” experiences. However, it also noted incremental reforms in India, which has health cover for domestic workers as also a law prohibiting workplace sexual harassment. However, how many workers are actually aware of these schemes and laws is a moot question.
According to research by the International Labour Organisation, while child labour in other sectors had declined, it had increased by 9 per cent in the domestic labour during 2008-12.
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