On World Day for Decent Work, the Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development (APWLD) continues to demand for decent work for all women across workplaces in the Asia-Pacific region.
Women in the region remain highly represented in labour sectors which are often not recognised as work, where they are devalued, forced to work in precarious conditions without social security.
Not all women workers can be found in the factories, many of them work in their homes, other people’s homes, on the streets, or in digital spaces. They are migrant workers, healthcare workers, domestic workers, masseuses, home-based workers, platform and gig workers and other informal workers.
These workers receive a wage that does not allow them and their families to meet even their basic needs such as food, shelter, clothing and healthcare. Worse, since they are not considered workers, they are not provided with social protection, and are prohibited from enjoying their collective bargaining rights such as forming associations or joining unions.
At the recent Asia Pacific Feminist Forum (APFF) in Chiang Mai, Thailand, we interviewed women workers, women migrant workers, trade union leaders, women’s human rights activists and APWLD partners from the Migration and Central Asia Feminist Participatory Action Research (FPAR) to tell us what decent work means to them and why it is important for all workers.
Watch and share the full video here.
