Invisible: Domestic work in Ukraine
On June 16, International Domestic Workers Day is celebrated worldwide. This day marks the anniversary of the 2011 passage of the International Labor Organization (ILO) Convention 189 for Decent Work for Domestic Workers, establishing international labor standards for domestic workers. In Ukraine, the majority is unaware of this day. However, according to the national statistical data, the number of domestic workers is about 162,000.
Special to this day, Labor Initiatives is honored to present a new episode of Union TV with Tetiana Lauhina, the Head of NGO “United Home Staff” – the country’s first organization for domestic workers created in 2019. As of now, United Home Staff has 200 members.
In the video story, George Sandul, in the role of Union TV anchor, and Tetiana Lauhina talk about the working realities of domestic workers, the challenges they face, obstacles in organizing, and the aim and tasks of her NGO. She also emphasizes the importance of advocacy regarding legalizing domestic workers’ status.
Domestic workers are those workers who clean the house, cook, wash and iron clothes, take care of children, elderly or sick members of a family, etc. 76% of the world’s domestic workers are women.
Around 80% of domestic workers are informal. They lack social and labor guarantees as their work is in the shadow economy. Specifics of domestic work and the necessity of regulation in this sphere led to the adoption of the ILO Convention 189.
Under the Convention, domestic workers are entitled to the same basic rights as those available to other workers in their country, including weekly days off, limits to hours of work, minimum wage coverage, overtime compensation, social security, and clear information on the terms and conditions of employment. The new standards oblige governments that ratify to protect domestic workers from violence and abuse, to regulate private employment agencies that recruit and employ domestic workers, and to prevent child labor in domestic work.
Ukraine is not among the 36 states who ratified the Convention. Although in 2020, the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine published a draft law on ratification of Convention 189 for public consideration. One of the first legislative initiatives on regulating domestic workers was introduced to the parliament in 2015.
The parliament has already passed in the first reading (on April 10, 2023) one of the last draft laws (No.5695) on this issue, and now the draft is waiting for the second reading. The draft introduces a new chapter ХІ-1 – Employment of domestic workers to the valid Labor Code. It enshrines the term “domestic worker”, defining the obligation to conclude a written employment contract with a domestic worker. Under legislative clauses, domestic workers will be covered by all labor rights and guarantees. Domestic workers are subject to general provisions on regular hours of work, overtime compensation, periods of daily and weekly rest, and paid annual leave in accordance with national laws considering the particular characteristics of domestic work.
Moreover, this draft law stipulates that persons working under an employment contract with other individuals (particularly domestic workers) will independently pay a unified social contribution.
