Empowering Domestic Workers Through Knowledge

On July 11, the Union of Home Staff (UHS), supported by LI, held a one-day training session in a series that combines union development with a skill-focused topic for childcare workers, in this case on the impact of technology and digital environments on children.

As frontline educators, private childcare providers manage children’s daily routines while parents are at work. Training on digital impacts teaches union members “active digital mediation” – how to guide screen use, select quality educational content, set healthy limits, and recognize signs of cyber-anxiety. 

By offering this specialized training, UHS actively elevates the professional status of childcare providers, transforming nannies into child development specialists with greater leverage to negotiate fair wages and working conditions. Furthermore, because informal domestic workers are highly isolated in private households, these sessions create a vital shared space for them to gather, connect, and build solidarity. 

This training is part of a series designed to build capacity and emergency response skills for UHS activists, members, and prospective members. These trainings also included discussions moderated by LI experts and UHS leadership on formal and informal employment of domestic workers in Ukraine and the importance of employment contracts, and it served as a platform to promote the union’s activities among care providers.