Beslutningen mødt af jubel og tårer på årsmødet i FNs Internationale Arbejdsorganisation (ILO)
Millions of maids (tjenestepiger), nannies (barnepiger) and cooks around the world moved a step closer to enjoying the same labor rights as other workers Thursday after countries approved the Domestic Workers Convention granting them greater protection from exploitation.
The vote at the annual International Labor Conference was greeted with cheers and tears by dozens of activists in the gallery, many of whom were domestic workers.
The convention brings International Labor Organization (ILO) standards into the informal economy for the first time and could apply to some 50-100 million people, according to the ILO.
Under the text approved by the 183-member ILO, countries should take steps to ensure that domestic workers “enjoy fair terms of employment as well as decent working conditions”.
The text included provisions stating that hours of work should be reasonable with at least 24 hours of consecutive (sammenhængende) rest every week and that workers should be paid in cash at least once a month and have the right to collective bargaining (fælles overenskomster).
This is the first time that the ILO has pushed for labor rights for domestic workers. According to the ILO there are about 53 million people working as domestic workers globally.
– We are moving the standards system of the ILO into the informal economy for the first time, said ILO Director-General Juan Somavia, adding:
– This is a breakthrough of great significance. History is being made.
Kilde: www.worldbank.org
Se også http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportID=93003
