Wages and Employability for Domestic Worker

 

At Wednesday, August 12, 2009, RTND perform a socialization Draft of ILO Convention to friends in the same spirit in protection for Domestic Workers rights, such as: Kongres Operata Yogyakarta (KOY), Serikat PRT Tunas Mulia, Jaringan Perlindungan Pekerja Rumah Tangga (JPPRT), Perisai, Perhimpunan Solidaritas Buruh (PSB), Serikat Buruh, Institut Hak Asasi Perempuan (IHAP), Mitra Wacana, SAMIN, PSW UGM, KPI DIY, and other NGO’s. Also attending representatives from the government is Mrs. Niken from Social, Labour and Transmigration Department and delegation from Province Women's Empowerment Department.

 

Lita Anggraini as workshop facilitator doubled delegation of JALA PRT (Jaringan Nasional Advokasi PRT) tell that this socialization is follow-up attitude of JAKERLA PRT (Jaringan Kerja Layak PRT) represent society for questionnaire shared by ILO since last March which must be delivered on January, 2010, coming. The aim of this questionnaire is to ask spatial member state view about the proposed scope and instrument content, after consult with entrepreneur organization and most representative worker organization and the accepted answer will make ILO compile a report for Conference.

 

In this way, still according to Lita, JAKERLA PRT for the protection advocacy of domestic worker at ILO Convention is the result of Consolidation Workshop and Strategic Plan late May which study answers to ILO questionnaire that reflecting rights and requirement of domestic worker in Indonesia which is continued by Consolidation Workshop of Migrant Worker by Migrant Care and finally agreed to form an alliance network of domestic and migrant workers. Hopefully with joint responses compilation of questionnaire for the ILO Convention about Rights of domestic worker by this JAKERLA PRT will really becoming consideration of ILO three-partition member so that later JAKERLA PRT can develop and advocate this proposed that will be packed into formal proposal to Indonesian Government. JAKERLA PRT then held meeting in Geneva, Palembang, Pontianak, Mataram, Yogyakarta yielding second draft to be studied and criticized.

 

Even so, not all necessarily go smoothly. Participant of socialization highlight if indeed the ILO Convention for protecting domestic worker and labour finally field goal, there is fear later will become a boomerang remembering debate until now still going on, like about form which is taken in the upcoming ILO Conference come what is only recommendation, convention, convention enclosed by convention and recommendation which consist of provision and not binding.

 

While problems of questionnaire content that the most widely debated are about child workers, rights (wages) and employability for domestic worker. For child workers, some participants agreeing abolition to child worker, but some other do not agree because abolition will result many children loss their economics access. So that seems right if in Labour Law, child workers have special protection, such as limitation of working hours which do not bother education that they take. As ILO has also been mapped competent work for the child workers.

 

About the rights of domestic workers, in terms of appropriateness wages, concern that arises is about how the minimum standard of wages per country, considering the diverse conditions in each country. For this case, JAKERLA PRT will conduct research for 3 months on work load and proper wage to the people, how the labour and employer ability pay the wages of domestic workers. Most importantly, according to Lita, how to campaign to the community about justice, rights that became the standard for better life of domestic workers.

Besides, the unfinished debate is about the difference between the wages of domestic workers with the wages of labours, though it was categorized both workers. Especially if that employ domestic workers is labourers or lower-class employer, of course the wage they receive is different from the domestic workers employed by top-class employer. Revealed proposal in this socialization is about the establishment of the feasibility component for domestic workers and workers remuneration in the industrial sector. Because if specifying nominally will change and disparate, while component stipulating is flexible so that can avoid differentiation wage of class employer upper and lower. When employ domestic workers, the employer with no view from the top or bottom employer class must pay according to the appropriate standard of fulfilments rights.

Lita concur that the classification wages should not based on class stratification, middle and bottom, but based on the volume of work, type of work and work load. Therefore, becoming big homework is what kind of component which included in employability components.