Female domestic workers. New challenges raised by the ilo convention
| Autor | Dolly Natalia Caicedo Camacho |
| Cargo | Profesora Lectora de Derecho Constitucional de la Universidad Barcelona |
| Páginas | 1-24 |
Periódico do Núcleo de Estudos e Pesquisas sobre Gênero e Direito
Centro de Ciências Jurídicas - Universidade Federal da Paraíba
V. 5 - Nº 01 - Ano 2016
ISSN | 2179-7137 | http://periodicos.ufpb.br/ojs2/index.php/ged/index
1
DOI: 10.18351/2179-7137/ged.v5n1p1-24
Seção: Contextualizando Gênero
FEMALE DOMESTIC WORKERS. NEW CHALLENGES RAISED BY THE
ILO CONVENTION
Dolly Natalia Caicedo Camacho1
RESUMEN: Este artículo analiza la
Convenio de la OIT num.189 de trabajadoras
del hogar desde una perspectiva feminista y
legal. El Convenio de la OIT incorpora el
reconocimiento del trabajo doméstico como
una actividad laboral. Esta declaración
represente un paso adelante para el
reconocimiento de la contribución del
trabajo doméstico a la sociedad y a la
economía global, mas aún, cuando esta
continúa siendo una actividad feminizada y
socialmente devaluada. El Convenio de la
OIT reconoce un conjunto de derechos
laborales y sociales como el salario mínimo,
periodos de descanso, condiciones de salud
y seguridad, libertad de asociación, entre
otros. La incorporación de unas condiciones
laborales mínimas pueden representar
cambios importantes para las legislaciones
de los Estados miembros caracterizadas por
la inequidad del régimen laboral o incluso
por la ausencia de legislación sobre
trabajadoras del hogar. El artículo también
examina el impacto que las migraciones
internacionales han tenido sobre el trabajo
doméstico y desarrolla el marco teórico de la
1 Profesora Lectora de Derecho Constitucional de la Universidad Barcelona. Doctora en Derecho con
mención europea por la Universidad de Barcelona (2012).
globalización del cuidado y las relaciones
inequitativas entre norte y sur. El artículo
resalta la ausencia de la perspectiva
migratoria en la Convención de la OIT.
PALABRAS-CLAVES: trabajadoras
domésticas, derecho internacional,
derechos laborales y sociales, género.
ABSTRACT: This article analyses the 189
ILO Convention on domestic workers from
a feminist and legal point of view. The ILO
Convention opens with the recognition of
domestic work as a labour activity. This
statement represents a step forward for
the acknowledgment of the domestic work’s
contribution to society and the global
economy, moreover when it still being a
highly feminized and socially devalued
activity. The ILO Convention also allocates
a set of labour and social rights like wages,
rest periods, conditions of health and safety,
freedom of association, among others. The
incorporation of a minimum working
conditions may represent relevant
challenges for the member states, since its
domestics labour laws are characterized for
Periódico do Núcleo de Estudos e Pesquisas sobre Gênero e Direito
Centro de Ciências Jurídicas - Universidade Federal da Paraíba
V. 5 - Nº 01 - Ano 2016
ISSN | 2179-7137 | http://periodicos.ufpb.br/ojs2/index.php/ged/index
2
DOI: 10.18351/2179-7137/ged.v5n1p1-24
the inequality regime in labour conditions or
even the absence of any legislation on
domestic work. The article also goes on the
impact that international migration have had
on domestic work, by pointing out the
framework of the globalization of care in a
highly unequal relationship between north
and south. The article highlights the absence
of a migration perspective of the ILO
Convention.
KEYSWORDS: domestic workers,
international law, social and labour
rights, gender
INTRODUCTION: THE SOCIO-
LEGAL CONTEXT OF FEMALE
DOMESTIC WORKERS
Housework, throughout history,
has been seen as an activity that requires
no specific qualifications and which
makes no contribution to the creation of
wealth. For these reasons, domestic work
is not recognised as a formal labour
market activity. Indeed, worldwide the
sector is characterised by the highly
precarious working conditions of female
domestic workers, often exposed to
situations of exploitation and abuse
favoured by the principle of the privacy
of the home. The International Labour
Organisation’s (ILO) Convention No.
189, on female and male domestic
workers, of 16 June 2011, and
supplementing Recommendation No.
201, on decent work for female and male
domestic workers, are the first
international regulations to provide a
response to the precarious employment
situation of these workers. Convention
No. 189 aims to promote the
development of the domestic legislation
of the signatory States so as to guarantee
minimum working conditions
comparable to those provided for all
other workers. Moreover, in order to
make these measures effective,
Convention No. 189 provides for the
protection of female workers that find
themselves in situations of abuse or
violence by guaranteeing them right of
access to the courts and labour
inspections.
The situation of female
domestic workers is closely linked to the
gender division and spatial distribution
within patriarchal societies. This is based
on the historical premise that the external
or public sphere belongs to the man,
while the internal or private realm is
reserved for the woman, inasmuch as she
is responsible for providing care and
reproductive tasks. This public vs.
private divide has come to embody a
different social and economic value to
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