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Fair recruitment and decent work for women migrant workers in South Asia and the Middle East - Regional Component - Final Evaluation

eval_number:

2350

eval_title:

Fair recruitment and decent work for women migrant workers in South Asia and the Middle East - Regional Component - Final Evaluation

location:

region:

Asia and the Pacific

country:

Nepal

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region:

Arab States

country:

Jordan

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region:

Inter-Regional

country:

Inter-Regional

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region:

Asia and the Pacific

country:

Bangladesh

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region:

Arab States

country:

Lebanon

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region:

Asia and the Pacific

country:

India

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eval_url:

https://analyticstest.ilo.org/ievaldiscovery/eval/2350

lessons_learned:

description:

Organising workers has not been possible in the countries of destination of Jordan and Lebanon. In both countries, Freedom of Association is not granted to migrant workers. In Jordan, although domestic work is covered under the labour law, domestic workers cannot organise. In Lebanon, too, migrant workers cannot organise, so the Domestic Workers’ Union (DWU) has not been allowed to register as a separate union, and currently operates as a part of the National Federation of Worker and Employee Trade Unions in Lebanon (FENASOL). When workers raise their voice, their contracts are ended; they are reported to authorities and deported to their countries. In 2016, in Jordan 110 Bangladeshi workers went on a strike to protest against dirty residential quarters and being subjected to insulting treatment at work. The factory was shut down by the authority. The leader who had organised the workers to voice their concerns was deported to Bangladesh. In Lebanon, there have been cases of women being deported to Nepal. In these situations, where organising is illegal and raising voice results in punitive action, association is risky rather than rewarding. Moreover, leaving an employer (termed as the option of “exit” (Hirshmann 1970)) is denied to MDWs because they are legally tied to their one employer to preserve their residency permits. They cannot unilaterally exit the labour relation and change employer. MWs have no tools to respond to decent work deficits through direct participation to collective bargaining, and they remain dependent to local, native trade unions’ representatives and/or MRCs and NGOs mediation.

context:

The right of freedom to organise is denied in Lebanon to workers because of the non-ratification of the ILO Convention 87. The article 86 and 87 of the Lebanese labour code prevent workers’ syndicates to be legally recognised without the previous ministerial approval. Migrant workers are also excluded from a proper representation within existing and established syndicates by the Articles 91 and 92 of the national Labour Code. The reforming of the labour code and the ratification of C87 appear as necessary preconditions to build an effective representation for migrant workers in Lebanon and achieve the ratification of the C189. The ratification of the C87 would have a major impact on the capacity of all workers in Lebanon to freely organise. Any special law concerning domestic workers rights in general, and the right to organise in particular, could have negative outcomes since it might diffuse the problem and sectorialise the demand for freedom of organisation and representation. By building on Articles 86, 87 and 91 and 92 of the labour code, the Lebanese Ministry of Labour did not issue the license for the DWU, which is forced to operate informally and through the intermediation of the established syndicate FENASOL.

success:

This issue was tackled by supporting Migrant Community Centres or Workers Centres, where workers could come ostensibly for recreation or learning, but which also offered opportunities to provide social support and mediation (See also the Good Practice relating to Workers’ Centres).

challenges:

The lack of a legal framework under which migrant workers can organise poses difficulties for workers to come together and make representations to their employers or the government. This results in their wages being kept low, and their working conditions being poor: long working hours, no leave, lack of sleep, insufficient food, and no medical attention when needed. As leaders from migrant communities gain power, organisations report them to the authorities. In Lebanon, an NGO reported leaders of the Nepali community to the government, and they were deported. Migrant workers who create or join informal associations to represent their issues are at conflict with the law in the country of destination.

administrative_issues:

In ILO supported networks, too, women leaders have been fired from their jobs and deported. This is a high a price to pay, which an ILO programme can never compensate. For these reasons, ILO needs to find ways of organising where risk created for individuals is not too high, or covered by the programme.

comments:

All donors and agencies drawing programmes for safe migration and rights of migrant workers in West Asian countries such as Jordan and Lebanon (and also all Arab states where Freedom of Association is not permitted).

url:

https://analyticstest.ilo.org/ievaldiscovery/lessons/201119

themes:

theme:

Trade Union - capacity building

category:

Constituents

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