Millions of domestic workers worldwide lack social protection: UN
January 10, 2013: Millions of domestic workers around the world are not protected
under general labour laws and are highly vulnerable to exploitation, says a United
Nations report released on Wednesday, which calls on countries to extend social protection
to them.
“Domestic workers are frequently expected to work longer hours than
other workers and in many countries do not have the same rights to weekly rest that
are enjoyed by other workers,” said the Deputy Director-General of the UN International
Labour Organization (ILO), Sandra Polaski.
“Combined with the lack of rights,
the extreme dependency on an employer and the isolated and unprotected nature of domestic
work can render them vulnerable to exploitation and abuse,” she added.
According
to the ILO report, Domestic workers across the world, more than 52 million people
worldwide are employed as domestic workers. While a substantial number are men working
as gardeners, drivers or butlers, 80 per cent of them are women.
Of the 52
million domestic workers, only 10 per cent are covered by labour laws to the same
extent as other workers, and more than one quarter are completely excluded from national
labour legislation.
This disparity in conditions translates in longer, more
unpredictable working hours with no appropriate remuneration for domestic workers,
rendering them highly vulnerable economically, as well as affecting their health.
The report states that more than half of all domestic workers have no limitation
on their weekly normal hours of work and about 45 per cent have no entitlement to
weekly rest periods or paid annual leave. In countries such as Qatar, Namibia, Tanzania
and Saudi Arabia, the average hours of domestic workers range from 60 to 65 per week,
largely surpassing the statutory limits set by virtually all countries of 40 to 48
hours per week.
“Long working hours, night working and patterns of shift work
that involve an irregular distribution of working hours are among the factors that
have the greatest negative effects on workers’ health,” said an ILO domestic work
specialist, Amelita King-Dejardin. “They carry especially important risks for women
during and after pregnancy and for young workers.”
Long working hours are
especially common among live-in workers – many of whom are migrants – who are expected
to be available at all times of the night, the report notes. Many migrant workers
also lack knowledge of the local language and laws, which makes them especially vulnerable
to abusive practices, such as physical and sexual violence, psychological abuse, non-payment
of wages, debt bondage and abusive living and working conditions.
“The large
disparities between wages and working conditions of domestic workers compared to other
workers in the same country underline the need for action at the national level by
governments, employers and workers to improve the working lives of these vulnerable
but hard-working individuals,” said Ms. Polaski.