The Domestic Service Workers Union in Ghana is advocating for the speedy adoption of an International Labour Organisation, Convention 189 which sets out specific rights and protection for domestic workers in the country.
According to the union, Ghana’s inability to ratify the convention is leading to many abuses of the rights of domestic workers across the country.
Speaking to Journalists after three days’ workshop to create awareness on the convention in Accra, Chairperson for DSWU in Ghana, Eva Attapah, lamented the kind of abuses members go through as a result of the government’s inability to adopt the convention which was recommended by the ILO.
“The Convention talks about our rights and the need for us to be protected because we’re also humans and not slaves as domestic workers. Because the convention is not ratified in Ghana, they treat us anyhow. Our employees look down upon us and so we need this convention to be adopted so that our employers know that we also have rights as human beings”.
“We want to press on the government and the Parliament of Ghana to take a critical look at this issue and push for adoption and implementation”, she furthered.
“Domestic work is a vital sector that often goes unrecognized and undervalued. It encompasses a range of tasks such as cleaning, cooking, childcare, and elderly care, among others. However, domestic workers face numerous challenges, including low wages, long working hours, lack of social protection, and limited access to labour rights” the Chairperson concluded.
Once ratified, the ILO C189 will have several positive impacts on domestic workers in Ghana.
It will provide legal recognition of the work, ensuring that personnel are entitled to fair wages, reasonable working hours, social security benefits, and protection against discrimination and abuse. Furthermore, it will enable domestic workers to access grievance mechanisms and seek redress for any violations of their rights” she said.
The three-day workshop was aimed at empowering domestic workers and enhancing their rights and working conditions.
Source: Ebenezer Sabutey