U.S. Backs UN Business Guidelines, Steps to Safeguard (Domestic) Workers

[pampango]

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2011/06/16/bloomberg1376-LMWE1D1A1I4R01-2SBQVTC5MC5AM42M42J6PD4S6U.DTL

The Obama administration today backed steps by United Nations human rights and labor bodies to protect as many as 100 million domestic workers and prevent human rights abuses by transnational corporations.

The U.S. joined 46 other nations on the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva in endorsing the first global standards detailing government duties to regulate business activities and corporate responsibilities to respect human rights. The council created a working group to monitor implementation of the voluntary guidelines and asked Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to report on how the UN and related agencies can assist.

The International Labor Organization, holding its 100th annual conference in Geneva, set the first standards for treatment of domestic workers, including reasonable hours of labor and rest, limits to in-kind payments, clear conditions of employment and the right to collective bargaining. The standards "promote the notion that they deserve the same protection as all other workers," Robert Shepard, the U.S. Department Labor's director of international affairs, said after the vote.

The ILO said domestic work performed in a household is often "hidden and unregistered," and often involves underage migrant workers.

Sounds like progress in conjunction with UNHCR and the ILO.