Conservancy workers air their complaints before public hearing, Karur, Tamilnadu, India - AREDS

Tamil Nadu Conservancy workers trade union conducted a Public hearing on manual scavenging workers in Karur, Tamil Nadu, India on February 7, 2016, where fifteen depositions were presented before the jury in front of 400 people. The very workers that keeps the city and the residences of the communities clean do not have a decent place to live. Often they are forced to stay in the sewage canals with most unhygienic places. Within the caste structure, Dalits who work as manual scavengers are usually from the Hindu Valmiki sub-caste. These communities are held at the bottom of the social hierarchy and, accordingly, face discrimination even from within the Dalit community. Considered fit for only the most “polluting” labor, their role is to manually dispose of human excrement and perform other unsanitary tasks. In March 2014, in an effort to resolve this, the Supreme Court of India estimated that there are 9.6 million dry latrines that are still being cleaned manually by people belonging to the Scheduled Castes. This does not take into account manual cleaning of open defecation from roads and other areas, removing excrement flushed into uncovered drains by private households in rural, semi-urban, and underdeveloped urban areas, or manual cleaning of private and government septic tanks. In a landmark judgement in 2014, the Supreme Court ordered the abolition of manual scavenging and asked state governments to provide financial assistance and rehabilitation to those who had lost a family member to the inhuman practice.

In order to highlight the reality of these workers to a larger public and to bring out legal issues for the state to take immediate action, a public hearing was organized with cases presented to a jury.

Two persons died of asphyxiation while they were cleaning the septic tank in a plastic company in Karur. A widow presented the case where her husband died during his service time but the government has not yet paid death compensation and other benefits the deceased person or his family is entitled to have. Others demanded higher pay, as they made only 2.000Rps(26€) per month, which isn't enough to live from. Another conservancy worker worked in Chennai in scavenging work after the floods. The government authorities did not provide them with safety equipments, so they had to work with bare hands, removing carcasses, debris and draining sewerage. No accommodation had been provided and remuneration has yet to be paid. Another worker did the same job for ten days only received 200Rps total instead of the promised remuneration of Rs1.000. A woman worked without protective gears like gloves and facial mask and was afflicted with a soar throat, becoming incapable of eating, swallowing and spitting. She had to spend 20.000Rps at the hospital and for

medication, nothing of which was reimbursed and the administration did not even give her leave when undergoing medical treatment.

At the end of the public hearing, the participants observed one minute silence as paying homage and honouring the conservancy workers, who died of asphyxiation. This hearing was conducted in solidarity with Tamil Nadu Conservancy workers Federation, TAAMS, Tamil Nadu Land Rights Movement, SWATE, Dalit Rights Awareness Liberation Movement, Janodhayam and AREDS. Next, the jury will turn each deposition into a case to be filed with the respective department and take legal action against the erring officials and departments, with the support of the solidarity movements.

First Minimum wages established for domestic workers in Rajasthan, India

Media reported another small victory in the efforts to set minimum wages for domestic workers in India.

In a first such initiative, the government of Rajasthan in India has enforced fixed minimum wages for domestic help and has set limited working hours. The move comes after the state labour department's notification dated December 21, 2015, which had mentioned the implementation of labour reforms in the unorganised sector.

"Domestic workers were included in Scheduled 27 of the Minimum Wages Act eight years ago. But, we have now fixed the number of working hours for them to ensure they are paid well," said  Dhanraj Sharma, Additional Labour Commissioner as per a report by DNA.
The minimum wage has been set at Rs 5,642 per month for an eight-hour which will include cooking, washing, baby sitting and other daily chores. It is exclusive of food, clothing, accommodation or any other benefits.

Here is all you need to know about the new rule:

• In case of overtime, they will be paid double the minimum fixed per hour for each hour beyond the mandated eight hours.
• For just washing dishes and laundry, they will have to be paid a minimum Rs 705 per month for a household of four people. If the households consists of more than four people, 10% extra will have to be paid over the minimum.
• Labour inspectors will  carry out surprise checks in every district and the violators will be penalised. Domestic workers will be eligible for compensation as high as 10 times the difference between the minimum wage and the amount he or she was received.

Climate Change and the importance of social protection

People in developing countries—particularly the agricultural poor—face a host of risks to their lives and livelihoods, including those stemming from globalization, climate change, and weather shocks. These experiences highlight the importance of social protection, which can have a potentially significant impact on reducing poverty and vulnerability when implemented with the optimal design, targets, and resources. ‪ Social protection could address the short-term consequences of negative shocks to agriculture, employment, or health, and in doing so could also help to address the medium-term impacts on productivity and income growth.

In light of today being the start of the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris #‎COP21, to reach a legally binding and universal agreement on climate, discover more on the topic from the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) here.

Increase minimum wage to 177USD in Cambodia: start of online campaign!

 Is 177$ for Cambodian garment workers really too much to ask for?
Standing in solidarity with Cambodian workers today who make clothes.

Tweet it: Cambodian workers need $177 a month. @hm @ca_europe @levis #weneed177

Put it on their facebook pages:
- http://www.facebook.com/ca.belgium
- https://www.facebook.com/#!/hm/timeline
- https://www.facebook.com/#!/Levis.benelux
- https://www.facebook.com/Zara/?fref=ts

Take a picture with the sticker and post it online, and send it to wouke.oprel@wsm.be

Place of elderly in Belgium and Bangladesh: look and learn visit between OKRA and GK

With population growing ever grayer, both the north and the south are faced with realities and challenges of how to care for these elderly, integrate  them and offer them a dignified retirement. Clearly, social protection plays a major role in this. To share practices, a look and learn visit from OKRA, a Belgian member organisation of the Belgian Christian workers movement which caters for the specific needs of the 55+, to GK in Bangladesh. 12 volunteers from OKRA, including Jef Van Hecken, who was previously based in Dhaka for WSM, and two colleagues from WSM are participating for two weeks. 

You can follow their blog (in Dutch) here.

MoU to assist Nepali migrant workers in Qatar

In a bid to protect the rights of Nepali migrant workers in Qatar, which numbers to over 450,000 workers in varied sectors, the National Human Rights Commission of Nepal and the National Human Rights Committee of Qatar signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and activation plan.

National Human Rights Commission Nepal Chair Anup Raj Sharma and National Human Rights Committee Qatar Chair Dr Ali Bin Al Marri signed this agreement to provide mutual assistance for the protection of migrant workers. The Nepalese delegation consisted of Mr Kamal Thapa Chettri and Ms Kalpana Jha as commission officers. Mr Laxman Basnet, SARTUC General Secretary, also accompanied the Nepalese delegation. SARTUC played a crucial role in bringing the two Human Rights Commissions together for facilitating the signing of this MoU. Solidarity Centre provided assistance for this accomplishment. Mr Laxman Basnet hailed the signing of MOU as a great step towards protecting Nepali migrant workers’ rights, and also stressed that such agreements shall be facilitated between NHRC Nepal and other countries of destination for Nepali migrant workers.

During the Qatar visit, SARTUC organised meetings and held discussions with Qatar-based Nepali organizations and groups regarding their conditions. The NHRC Nepal team and SARTUC General Secretary visited labour camps and the Nepalese Embassy in Qatar.

WSM Asia partners support the Social Protection 4 All campaign

All WSM Asia partners expressed their support to the Social Protection Campaign 4 All during the Continental Planning Workshop in Indonesia...

Youth and social protection

One of the challenges, not only in Asia but also in Europe and around the world, is how to get youth involved in social movements and prioritized by policies and social protection. At the beginning of 2012, the world population surpassed 7 billion with people under the age of 30 accounting for more than half of this number (50.5%). According to a UNESCO survey, 89.7% of people under 30 lived in emerging and developing economies. But to which extent are they involved in the political choices of the societies they live in, have access to decent jobs and decent wages, and how much of a priority are youth for politicians? Most youth and especially young workers are excluded and ignored, very often working in the informal sector or leaving the country as migrant workers, and so they fall outside of the regulations and labour laws.

This is the topic some of the WSM partners discuss currently in Hong Kong, during a seminar conducted by the Young Christian Workers movement, where both the national YCW movements, meet with some of WSM trade union partners.

It is organized by the regional secretariat from YCW Asia and Pacific, and had input and facilitation from WSM, the International YCW, IMA and AMRC. One of the suggestion that came out of the workshop was to consider youth as a crosscutting issue, same as gender and environment, an angle that should be examined for each topic discussed. When we look at social protection, migration but also aspects from the organisations, like leadership or capacity strengthening, we should each time ask ourselves the question to which extent youth are affected and involved.

The meeting also offered the opportunity to explore some of the labour issues in Hong Kong, and field visits were done, first to KUCE place, in which IMA functions and where there was an interaction with some of the migrant workers. Participants also posed for a picture for online protest against the forest fires in Indonesia and the subsequent haze, which is causing air pollution and victims in the region. Sunday, Victoria Park in central Hong Kong was visited, where Indonesian migrant workers, mostly domestic workers, gather to share meals, perform dances and cultural events, and in general have fun and organize.

CFTUI from India gets full membership with ITUC

After many years of associated membership, CFTUI, a WSM trade union partner in India, was finally granted full membership during the 15th Meeting of the ITUC General Council in Sao Paulo, Brazil. This is an important achievement, as it will serve to increase the recognition of CFTUI as a social partner in India, alongside the three other affiliates to ITUC from India: INTUC, HMS and SEWA.

In India, there are 13 Central Trade Unions, almost all with links to different political parties, and which are included in social dialogue and tripartite structures. CFTUI still has to go through a verification process in which the Indian central government audits its membership. There seems to be little doubt however that CFTUI meets the formal criteria (minimal 800.000 members and presence in at least eight states and eight industries). It is hence a main priority for CFTUI to lobby for, meticulously prepare and participate in any upcoming verification process by the Indian authorities, hopefully within the next five years. These General Verifications do not take place very often: in 1980, 1989, 2002 and the latest in 2013. Results of the verification are published by the Ministry of Labour (link).

CFTUI is an Indian Confederation of Trade Unions, Trade Federations, Associations, Societies and other organizations of India, dedicated towards welfare and development of the society in general and workers in particular. CFTUI is absolutely free from any control or attachment with the political parties or groups. It relies solely on the workers unity to fulfill its objectives. It believes that there cannot be a true labour movement unless the Trade Unions are independent in thinking and free to decide their strategies.As of 2014, CFTUI has 277 affiliated trade unions across 21 states representing 12 sectors in India with a total membership of 1.313.747.

CFTUI looks forward, though a full membership status with ITUC and ITUC-AP to increase its credibility and increase our fight to promote workers’ rights, in India, Asia and the world.

Cambodia: garment minimum salary from 128USD to 140USD, still below demanded 160USD

The Pnomh Penh Post reported today that, following an at-times turbulent process, Cambodia yesterday set the 2016 minimum wage for garment workers at $140 per month, a $12 increase from the current rate of $128 but well below union demands for $160.

Labour Minister Ith Samheng announced yesterday that the government’s wage-setting group, the Labour Advisory Committee, first voted on increasing the wage to $135, after which Prime Minister Hun Sen mandated an additional $5, as he did last year.

Ath Thorn, president of the Coalition of Cambodian
Apparel Workers’ Democratic Union,
places his vote at the Ministry of Labour yesterday
for the garment industries 2016 minimum wage. Heng Chivoan

The 28-member LAC, 14 from the government and the other 14 equally split between unions and employers, overwhelmingly voted for the government figure of $135 submitted by a tripartite working group on Wednesday night.

The announcement of the final $140 rate, far less than union demands, angered some. Ath Thorn, president of the Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers Democratic Union, said he would begin talks with other unions to potentially hold mass strikes after the Pchum Ben holiday. “I cannot accept this figure. I need $160. I expect that there are between 50 to 60 per cent of workers who will not accept this figure,” he said.

Full article here.

7 Oct - Decent Work Day globally supported, and in Asia!

Trade unions around the world are once again mobilising on October 7, the World Day for Decent Work, under the banner “End Corporate Greed”, with activities stretching from Japan to Ecuador and South Africa to Russia. Also WSM and ACV-CSC mobilized in Belgium, while many of our partners organized activities in India, Bangladesh, Indonesia or Cambodia.


According to the ITUC website, activities in 33 countries have already been registered on the special website http://2015.wddw.org, and many more are uploaded to the site  here.

Brussels, the “Capital of Europe”, came to a standstill with a huge demonstration organised by the Belgian trade unions against austerity, while unions from the manufacturing sector will hold events across the globe to demand an end to precarious work, organised by Global Union Federation IndustriALL. In India, domestic workers raised their hands and voices to demand decent work.

“Once again the voice of working people will be heard around the globe on the World Day for Decent Work. The global focus this year is on ending corporate greed, eliminating precarious work and formalising informal jobs, as well as living minimum wages. We need to transform the exploitative supply chain model which robs workers while filling the coffers of multinational companies, many of which are culpable of the most egregious exploitation including the use of modern slavery. The trade union movement stands with the most exploited and vulnerable in the global economy, and on this day, the World Day for Decent Work, we will show our determination to build a better world for working families and for the generations to come,” said ITUC General Secretary Sharan Burrow.

Labour migration and informal economy on SAARC agenda....

Currently, an exciting opportunity has come up on the South Asia level to tackle labour migration and the informal economy. Since the SAARC Declaration of November 2014, South Asian leaders had agreed to come up with policy papers on certain issues: labour migration (which would be developed by Nepal), minimum wage (Bangladesh), social security (Pakistan) etc. For more on SAARC and its relevance, see this post.

To influence this process, SARTUC organized a conference in Colombo, Sri Lanka 28-29 September 2015 with delegates from the trade unions from Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and India. ITUC-AP, some TUSSOs (trade unions support and solidarity Organisation, like the Danish LO/FTF or WSM and Global Union Federations, like UNI, as well as Migrant Forum Asia (MFA) also attended and provided input.

The meeting led to a couple of important documents to be used for advocacy: recommendations on labour migration and informal economy, draft minimum standards for bilateral agreements for labour migration to Gulf Countries and a draft standard contract which all SAARC countries could start using and which would provide better workers’ protection.

Since the WSM partners from SAARC also had a position paper regarding labour migration, WSM and its partners which were present convinced the other participants of three key issues to be included:

• Reference to minimum wages in accordance to ILO Convention art. 3 on Minimum Wages, though the proposal of a common minimum amount of 500USD per month was not kept;
• Ensuring access to social protection by hosting countries, the request for Welfare funds in sending countries was not retained however;
• To avoid abuses by recruitment agencies: “All costs linked to recruitment and travel should be employer based and made transparent and publicly available”

All affiliates will now lobby for these agendas in their respective countries, since SAARC doesn’t interact directly with civil society but only functions as a multilateral institution. For one of the first times however, SARTUC itself will also be attending the meeting of the focal points beginning of December in Pokhara, Nepal.  Let’s hope some of these recommendations make it through…

Amin from NGWF honored Nuremberg International Human Rights Award

Amirul Haque Amin, President of the National Garment Workers Federation (NGWF) today received the Nuremberg International Human Rights Award for his more than 3 decades long fight for the rights of garment workers in Bangladesh, for the improvement of their living conditions.

Does the new Nepali Constitution work for the workers?

After five years, six months and 26 days of work as well as two elections, two major earthquakes and close to 500 aftershocks, a new dawn supposedly rises on Nepal: the new Constitution is proclaimed today. But who supported and opposed, and what kind of provisions does this new Constitution reserve for the workers and the right to social protection?