KARACHI – Hundreds of home-based women workers and civil society members on Monday demanded ratification of the ILO Home Workers Convention C-177. In the national convention of Home-Based Women Workers, they demanded introduction of laws as well as ratification of the international law so that they could have legal protection.
The convention was arranged by the Home-Based Women Workers Federation of Pakistan in collaboration with the Labour Education Foundation, HomeNet-Pakistan and HomeNet-South Asia.
The home-based women workers – both from the remotes places of the country as well as from the developed urban areas – shared their plight at the convention and complained that they were exploited by middlemen. They said that they were not only exploited in finances terms but also exposed to serious health hazards as they are forced to work in their dingy homes for up to 18 hours at a stretch, with little provision for proper sunlight and ventilation.
They also demanded that they and their child must be covered under the social security network with mandatory education and health facilities for their children.
