Domestic workers’ inclusion in labour law, ratification of ILO Convention 189 demanded
The demands were raised at a rally organised by The Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies marking International Women’s Day
Speakers at a rally of domestic workers, on the occasion of International Women's Day 2021, demanded the inclusion of domestic workers in labour laws and the ratification of ILO Convention 189 in a bid to build a new world of equality.
With the slogan "Women Leadership in Covid-19, Building a New World of Equality," the Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies (BILS), in collaboration with Oxfam in Bangladesh and the International Labour Organization (ILO), arranged the rally in the capital on Monday, said a press release.
The speakers also said although some rights have been established through struggle, domestic workers have not yet been included in the labour law.
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Domestic workers do not have: specific working hours, proper accommodation, weekly or maternity leave, or a fixed salary. Therefore, besides recognising domestic labour as a profession, it is necessary to include them in the labour law, the speakers added, highlighting the significance of Women's Day.
They further said Bangladesh must sign ILO Convention 189 to ensure domestic workers' rights and protection, recognise them as workers and organise them as skilled manpower.
They also demanded: the implementation of the Domestic Workers Protection and Welfare Policy 2015 to ensure their protection; that training be provided, with greater emphasis on skill development and learning languages, for female aspirant migrant workers; that effective programmes be undertaken and implemented for the rehabilitation of women migrant workers who returned from abroad; that domestic workers be brought under the law to ensure exemplary punishment for those who tortured workers; and that immediate action be taken to make workplaces safer.
Abul Hossain, acting coordinator of the Domestic Workers' Rights Network; Abdul Wahed, acting president of Jatiya Sramik Jote; Pulak Ranjan Dhar, secretary of Bangladesh Free Trade Union Congress; Kamrul Hasan, general secretary of The IndustriALL Bangladesh Council (IBC); Nazma Yasmin, director of BILS and others were also present at the rally.
Leaders of the National Trade Union Federation, leaders of human rights and labour rights organisations, civil society representatives, policymakers, government and non-government officials, academics, researchers, professionals and more than 100 domestic workers were also present at the rally.
