Goal:
To call on governments worldwide to help end domestic slavery by ratifying Convention 189 to protect domestic workers.
Summary:
For the first time in history, Convention 189 (also known as the Convention on Domestic Workers) offered a global standard to protect domestic workers. Officially, the Convention concerning Decent Work for Domestic Workers is a convention setting labor standards for domestic workers. It lays out rights such as daily and weekly rest hours, entitlement to minimum wage, and the right to choose the place where they live and spend their leave.
Outcome:
In April 2012, the government of Uruguay became the first country to ratify it, and South America continues to lead the way with the most countries per region who have followed suit. Following our campaign, in June 2015 Belgium ratified International Labour Organization Convention No. 189 to protect domestic workers. To date, 23 key countries have signed on, and they are calling on the rest of the world to join them in ensuring that domestic workers are protected. During a three-week period in September 2016, 52,412 advocates took action. Following this pressure, Jamaica ratified in October 2016.
