Summit seeks to strengthen protection of domestic workers

The plight of domestic workers here and abroad prompted international and local stakeholders, including the Philippine government, to work together to strengthen protection of the workers as well as to promote domestic work as decent work.

During the 2nd National Domestic Workers Summit held at the Occupational Safety and Health Center in Quezon City, trade unions, migrant and employers’ groups and government stressed the need for the adoption of international and local labor standards that would give voice to and ensure more protection to domestic workers.

Linda Wirth, county director of the International Labor Organization (ILO) called the summit as a “monumental event”.

“Improving the conditions of domestic workers has been a longstanding concern of the ILO since its early days. It allows the household and the economy outside the household to function though they remain invisible, undervalued and poorly regulated; clearly indications that domestic work is a work with decent work deficits,” Wirth said in her keynote speech.

According to Wirth, the ILO found out that domestic work is an important occupation for millions of individuals, particularly girl-children. She also noted that because of the hidden nature of work of domestic workers, “enforcement of labor laws and protective mechanisms are weak.”

“Best practices”

She lauded the Philippines for setting “some of the best practices in promoting decent work for domestic workers.”

“Though challenging, you made it possible to demonstrate the importance and contribution of social dialogue in achieving social progress and social justice,” she said.

Agnes Matienzo of the Migrant Forum in Asia said that domestic workers often complain about the treatment given to them as well as on their working conditions.

“Hindi pinapakain on time or they would have to work till the wee hours of the morning. Kinukulong especially sa Saudi Arabia, employment violations at gender discrimination. All forms of abuses are actually nararanasan ng domestic workers,” Matienzo said.

The event also paved the way to reiterate the call for the passage into law of the Batas Kasambahay in the Philippines. The legislation seeks to increase the minimum wage of domestic workers, provide social protection, implement a barangay registration in all barangays nationwide, and formalize the employer-employee relationship through a contract stipulating the minimum working conditions.

Visayan Forum Foundation, Inc. president Cecilia Flores-Oebanda maintained the need for the Philippines to “take a leadership role in the process” of adopting a binding ILO instrument as there are more than one million Filipino migrant domestic workers around the world and 1.7 employed in the country.

“Our failure to come up with a strong, unified position will weaken our bargaining leverage with host countries for our domestic workers. We should also recognize that we cannot negotiate for better terms of employment for migrant domestic workers while continuing to ignore the growing clamor to legislate a Magna Carta for Domestic Workers. It is hypocritical if not downright immoral to turn a blind eye to the injustices happening right inside the households here in our very own backyard,” Oebanda stated.

“Essential to economy”

President Arroyo in her message gave her full support for the passage of the Magna Carta for Domestic Workers and for the adoption of a new ILO instrument for domestic work.

Mrs. Arroyo stated “I earnestly believe that our domestic workers, whose role has been essential to the success of our economy, should always be protected.”

“Baka naman that would be the position that the government would be carrying sa Geneva,” said Matienzo.

Julius Cainglet of the Federation of Free Workers (FFW) meanwhile took Mrs. Arroyo’s statement “as it is.”

“She didn’t explicitly say that she’s endorsing the convention. Sabi lang niya she’s supporting our efforts to have a new convention and a Magna Carta on the Kasambahay. It will manifest in the formal position of DOLE (Department of Labor and Employment) in the crafting of a new convention and then that’s the time when we can claim victory,” Cainglet said.

The ILO included domestic workers in its main agenda for the International Labor Conference in 2010. If adopted and ratified by countries, the Convention has the force of a law and governments are bound to align their national laws and policies with the provisions of the Convention. Maria Aleta Nieva-Nishimori, abs-cbnNEWS.com