Women of the World -News

Life Work Balance for Young Women: discussion by Trade Unions (23.10.09)

sandra — 2009-10-23T13:37:13Z

After attending workshops about women issues, the women of trade unions presented the situation in their country and their ideas about how to tackle problems and challenges young women to participate.

In India there will be trainings and seminars about time management and stress management on mothers day in 2010. In Brazil the goal is to make maternity leave part of the convention. In Indonesia there will be gender trainings and campaign material about sexual harrassment will be distributed.

Trade Unions in South Africa will work on a better focus on maternity protection whilst in Zimbabwe trade unions create time for women to participate at the negociation table and making them part of the bargaining process.

Cultural issues in Angola are more urgent than lack of regulations so trade unions focus on change of cultural issues due to which women are not treated as equals at home.

In Kazakhstan in the past, there were no collective agreements. These days however young people response to all kinds of activities whilst in Ukraine the biggest issue is that provisions of the convention should be better implemented in the collective agreements.

Opening Decisions for life (22.10.09)

sandra — 2009-10-22T15:23:19Z

Brussels, October 22, 2009

In Angola the trade unions try to reach young female workers by with the help of a big radio station. In Ukraine young enterpreneurs are having big trouble to balance work and private due to extreme long working hours.

In the morning a group of around 50 women and one man gathered in the building of ITUC in Brussels. Women from all four directions of the world: from Zambia to Ukraine and from South Africa to India and México. All are involved in the Decisions for Life Project (DFL) and many are working at trade unions. Together they share ideas about how to reach young women and help them to become aware about career decisions and work life balance.

In Angola the trade unions try to reach young female workers by working together as and launch campains with the help of a big radio station. In july, oktober and december these young females are and will be trained by providing them information about their rights concerning working conditions.

In Ukraine trade unions found out their main target group are the enterpreneurs in sales because they work very long hours and do have serious difficulties with work life balance.

Woman of the afternoon, Veena singh, Wednesday October 21

Amitesh — 2009-10-21T14:43:45Z

The pre-lunch session on the last day of the conference was about young women at work. The discussion took an interesting turn when the question came up – has the employment status of young women at work improved?’

“The positive developments in recent years regarding the participation of women in paid employment has certainly made their economic contribution more visible. This is a great time for women in business. There are more opportunities available than ever before, and there is a high demand for people with leadership, management and marketing skills” says Veena Singh – Chairperson, Central Women Workers Committee (INTUC).

However, women still continue to face challenges in getting ahead, achieving the recognition they deserve, and integrating the career and personal life they most desire. Agreeing to it Veena says “two of the biggest challenges women in general (regardless of their age) face are glass ceiling that still blocks them in their companies from advancing to their full potential and the formidable task of balancing career, family and personal lives. But the women of younger generation are much better placed and are strong to stand for their rights”.

“In early days women lacked the confidence and tend to shy away from attention while men were afraid that women won’t perform their traditional duties if they take on other roles. But women of today have exhibited a great potential to play multiple roles. Today women are taken seriously not just in office but at home and even in society”.

But one would argue that women who find support within an organization stay but there are yet many women who reach a point where they feel that nobody's interested in backing or training them. To this she said “why should women wait for someone to support or back them. They are powerful enough to find their own footing in the workplace.”

It is true that women have come a long way and still struggle to find the right path in terms of their career and professional development. But as Veena said “women of today are smart, intelligent and here to stay.”

Woman of the morning, Manuela Tomei - Wednesday, October 21

Amitesh — 2009-10-21T14:05:10Z

Manuela Tomei, Chief of the Conditions of Work and Employment Programme, Social Protection Sector in the ILO, has been heartened to see the support that trade unions are giving to the cause of domestic workers.

"I know that members have so many issues and campaigns to address. But many, many trade unions are recognising the crucial role that domestic workers play in the work cycle," she says. "Before, there was a school of thought that saw domestic workers as marginal. This has changed, and people are really getting behind the cause."

"What is also changing is the merging of migration and labour policies. A lot of domestic workers are also migrants, and face attendant problems. Developing policies that take both migration and labour into account makes perfect sense," says Tomei.

Ultimately, based on research and development that has been carried out over the last year or so, it is hoped that a convention, or some variation thereof, be developed to estabish International Labour Standards on Domestic Workers. The goals of the convention include that it covers as many domestic workers as possible, it be clear and simple, and ratifiable.

Tomei says that it is crucual to organise in the domestic work sector as it is increasingly becoming the mode of work for millions of women around the world. There are, however, many challenges which need to faced, by virtue of the unique nature of the job.

"Firstly,domestic workers do not generate a profit for their employers, which places them outside many collective agreements," explains Tomei. "Additionally, it is 'invisible' work, carried out behind closed doors, which further excludes workers from protection from unions."

"The nature of this work, which takes place in private homes, leaves workers open to harassment and abuse. There is often no space for negotiation, whether it concerns working hours,salaries or leave, and workers are ofetn threatened with dismissal if they do question their conditions," she says.

"Therefore it is crucial that we recognise domestic workers as a growing but undervalued sector of the workforce, and that they are a very vulnerable group," she continues.

"Key issues to look at include rest and annual leave, payment schedules, contracts, working hours and social security," says Tomei.

"Yes, there are many challenges around organising domestic workers - but this is one of the largest labour groups in the world, and the workers are mainly women. Especially at an event such as the 1st World Women's Conference, one is very moved to see the extent of support," she concludes.

Woman of the evening, Denise McGuire - Tuesday, October 20

Amitesh — 2009-10-21T09:18:21Z

Climate change is often described as representing one of the major contemporary environmental challenges humankind is facing today. The potential effects of climate change are very diverse, and are likely to alter basic elements of life, such as food, water, health, use of land and the environment, and disproportionately more damaging with increased warming.

Denise McGuire, World Women’s President of UNI Global Union says “Strategies to combat climate change and create awareness about green jobs are set to become an increasingly important part of employment, and responsibility of labour ministers, as well as the activities of employers’ organizations and trade unions.”

Denise says “A green economy is based on the efficient use of energy, reducing polluting emissions, and the use of renewable sources of power and uses these investments to create new opportunities, good jobs, and stronger communities. However, the labour force needs to be trained in identifying these green jobs and its potential.” This also means developing their skills and knowledge required in green economy. This is where she mentions “trade unions can play a vital role. Trade Unions can have a dialogue with the government and employers and highlight what skills are needed, what training is required, role that schools and colleges can play in preparing the young crowd to take up jobs in green economy. Trade Union has the power and resources which just needs to be tabbed”.

Though slow progress, but there is growing awareness about how employment and labour policies can contribute to a smooth transition to more sustainable growth by identifying opportunities for green jobs.

-Denise McGuire works with BT and is World Women’s President of UNI (Union Network International) Global Union which represents people working in the skills and service sectors worldwide.

Woman of the afternoon, Buyelwa Sonjica - Tuesday, October 20

Amitesh — 2009-10-21T09:09:23Z

"Wathint' Ababfazi, Wathint Imbokodo - You strike a woman, you strike a rock." These words are synonomous with the struggle against apartheid in South Africa. But, as Buyelwa Sonjica, South African Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs says, they are also applicable to the global struggle against climate change.

"Climate change threatens fundamental aspects of life, from access to fresh water to food production. Women, particularly those from developing countries, are at the coalface of poverty, and are most adversely affected by the negative spin-offs of climate change," she says. "We are talking about problems with food security, with the threat of drought and disease. Therefore, it is imperative that women are central in all efforts that deal with climate change."

Sonjica says that this means women will need to be empowered so that they can play a pivotal role in all climate change policy and decision-making. "Women must be instrumental in designing policies and programmes, and in pursuing the broader goals of enhancing social and sustainable development," she says.

"To be frank, I find that women are not involved so much at this stage. Much of the debates are elitist and tend to exclude women. This has to change," she reckons.

"There is a slogan that members of the disababled community use. They say: 'Nothing about us, without us.' I like this, and I think it applies equally to women and climate change. As we are the ones who will be most affected, we need to be the ones who are centrally involved in making decisions," she continues.

Sonjica says that according to certain reports, over 250 million people in Africa will face a water crisis by the year 2050. "We need to be prepared for this. Women need to be prepared for this," she urges.

"We need to move away from the concept of 'business as usual' and explore creative alternatives to dealing with this challenge," she says. "We need to encourage girl children to study around these issues. We must train women in water resource management. There is much to be done."

Sonjica says she is delighted that climate change has been accorded such importance on the agenda of the 1st World Women Conference. "It is so important to highlight the role of women in relation to climate change. It is an honour to be here to be a part of this," she says.

"Never underestimate the power that women have. We have used it before, and we will use it again," she smiles.

Woman of the evening, Nadia Shabana - Monday October 19

Amitesh — 2009-10-21T12:48:16Z

"My dream is to see many more women and youth being involved in the trade union movement."

Nadia Shabana comes from Palestine. 'In the Middle East, men rule," she says. "They take the decisions, they make the plans. They get to decde on everything."

"But," she says with determination, "It's time for things to change."

The young woman represents the Palestine General Federation of Trade Unions (PGFTU) and is also Vice-Chair of the ITUC Youth Committee. She is passionate about both women and young people in general being empowered to make positive contributions to the union movement.

"In European countries the youth, and women, are perhaps given a bit more space to operate in trade unions. Where I come from, and in developing countries in general, there is more of a hierarchy."

"But with all due respect, as young people we have much to offer. We have knowledge and skills, especially concerning technology and contemporary ways of communicating. We are able to connect!"

Shabana feels the 1st World Women's Conference gives women - both younger and older - the chance to share and discuss important issues that are common to all, regardless of the countries they come from.

"Discrimination, climate change, the global crisis - these are issues that affect all of us. What's great about this conference is that it has the possibility to empower and strengthen women. It makes us feel important - that people care, no matter where we come from," she explained.

She also thought it was necessary that people return to their home countries with information and action plans that they could feed back to their organisations and communities.

Shabana acknowledges the importance of getting younger women to join the union movement."We have to motivate them to join. And not only because of salary issues, and earning higher wages, which is often the reason given to women to join. They need to know that their voices and their opinions matter," she said.

Shabana herself is preparing for longterm investment in women's economic and union issues. After time spent working as a financial officer for a developmental agency, she is now doing her Masters Degree in Economics in London.

Woman of the morning, Anjali Bedekar - Tuesday October 20

Amitesh — 2009-10-21T12:51:39Z

Organising women and youth of today

Anjali Bedekar an active Trade Unionist is a perfect role model for many women in India. She was the first woman appointed as President of SBI Staff Union (Mumbai Circle) as well first woman for the post of Assistant Secretary of All India SBI Staff Federation.

Giving a brief about her trade union, she enthusiastically said “she belongs to an illustrious and militant staff union in State Bank of India (SBI). Her union has been very consistent and steady in improving wages and working conditions of its members with special attention to women members. Women are encouraged to take up leadership role in union activities. Women membership is around 35-40% , and has women representatives in Central Executive Committee”. She said “women have been very active since the foundation, but there is still a fair number or women who are not aware about the potential benefits of joining trade union and what union can do for them”.

With the increased number of women entering the labour force one would expect a rise in union membership among them. So why is it that women membership in Trade Union is so less. To this Anjali responded “it is true that women workers have been described as "hard to organize". This can be because they do not understand or appreciate the potential role of trade unions. The most important reason is women are still trapped in family responsibilities and do not have time to join or participate in union activities or they face objections from their spouses or families. The lower rate of trade union membership by women is not due to women being less inclined to join a trade union, but to the fact that they are concentrated in sectors where the rates of trade union membership are low anyway.

The other greatest worry she says for the Unions is low participation rate of youth. In past one and half decade there has not been any fresh recruitment in the Indian public sector, many employees who have been members of trade union are retiring and hence trade union membership is slowly eroding. However, she says there is still a small ray of hope. “Public Sector in India has recently recruited a total of 45000 young people in the finance, banking and insurance sector. SBI has appointed 23000 new recruits mainly in the age group of 18-28 years. Integration of this young people in the workforce will revive the Trade Union”.

It is true that globalization, technological advances and rapid changes in labour markets and work organization are challenging traditional union strategies. What the trade unions today need to do is address women and youth issue and take them up as priority. Have youth committee in unions to develop confidence of young workforce. She says “though the journey of organising women and youth is a tough task but definitely not impossible”.

Woman of the afternoon, Jane Hodges - Monday October 19

Amitesh — 2009-10-20T08:41:03Z

"THIS CONFERENCE HAS THE POTENTIAL TO GENERATE SERIOUS RESOLUTIONS".

TEASER: Jane Hodges, Director of the ILO Bureau for Gender Equality, believes the 1st World Women's Conference provides the space for serious resolutions on gender and women in leadership. >>

Woman of the morning, Diana Holland - Monday October 19

Amitesh — 2009-10-20T15:52:44Z

"A space to be inspired"
Diana Holland, Chair of the ITUC Women's Committee, said her dream for the conference was that it provides a space for owmen to be inspired. We are here to look at Making Things Better for Women and their Communities," she said. >>

Belgium chocolate for content - Brussels, 17 Oct. 2009

fonstuinstra — 2009-10-18T16:09:37Z

Image by Remon Rijper via Flickr

Do you have tips, pictures or videos on women and work, and are you attending the ITUC First World Women Conference? Then there is a fair chance you might win a genuine piece of Belgium chocolate as a bonus.

For your contribution, do get in touch with one of the members of our editorial team.

When you contribution makes it to one of our four websites, you might be eligible for our Belgium chocolate. Do not wait too long, our resources are limited.

Women-of-the-World week, reported on four websites - Brussels, 16 Oct. 2009

fonstuinstra — 2009-10-16T14:44:51Z

The upcoming ITUC First Women Conference starting Monday 19 October in Brussels, will be reported by four websites, in four languages, English, Spanish, Russian and Portuguese.

The conference will be followed later that week by a second conference on "Decisions for Life", a project focusing on female workers between 18 and 35. An example is the South African Women and Work section of the WageIndicator site MyWage.

The reporters are all journalists from the CIS-countries, Latin America, Europe and South Africa, belonging to different WageIndicator projects in the world.

Do visit this site regularly, subscribe to our rss feeds for the news section or follow us at Twitter @ITUCwomen.

Here you can link to the English site, the Russian site, the site in Portuguese and the Spanish one.

ITUC: Gender gap not narrowing - Brussels, 16 Oct. 2009

fonstuinstra — 2009-10-16T10:29:51Z

via Wikipedia

The difference in pay between men and women for the same work, the gender gap, is not getting smaller, says a report published by the ITUC on Friday 16 October, ahead of the ITUC First Women Conference next week in Brussels.

The gender gap exists for 28% of the full-time workers The report, prepared by the IDS, is based on data collected by the WageIndicator project, and based on research in Argentina, Brazil, the Netherlands, India, Mexico, Finland, Poland, the Russian Federation, Sweden, the UK and South Africa. IDS is the UK scientific partner of the WageIndicator. The research is part of the Decisions for Life project, and in the second half of the week the same delegates will attend a conference with this focus.

The report underlines more unsettling data concerning the gender gap, unsettling given that the gender gap has been addressed in many national policies for at least a decade, that have not generated much effect. Other conclusions of the report:

Women have less chance to get a promotion or a career, compared to men
More women work part-time especially when they have children
Single parents are more dissatisfied with their work-life balance compared to those who have a partner; most single parents are female
Between twenty and fifty percent of the people do overtime and are mostly not compensated for that; women are more affected than men.
Participation of women in pension and medical insurance programs is lower

You can download the ITUC press release or full report (pdf. 3.5 GB) here or find a summarizing slide show here.

Meet the WI-team at the ITUC first world women conference

Amitesh — 2009-10-15T07:38:40Z

- Brussel, 14 Oct. 2009

Paulien Osse

Next week the international trade union federation ITUC will hold its first world women conference on decent work and a decent life for women in Brussels. The ITUC expect 450 participants from 344 delegation, 80 observers from about one hundred countries for the event, from 19 till 23 October.

A team of journalists from WageIndicator sites all over the world will help to cover the event at four websites in four languages: English, Spanish, Russian and Portuguese.

Chief of the operation is WageIndicator director Paulien Osse. The 17-people strong team illustrates the global character of the WageIndicator operation as participants come from India, the former Soviet countries, Latin-America, Europe and South African countries.

A complete list and their contact details can be found here.

Part of the coverage will take part on Twitter and you can follow our activities on @ITUCwomen or by following the hash tag #ITUCwomen.

More about the conference you can find here.