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Convention on Domestic Workers

Absolutely, particularly on issues that have taken years of discussion to get to our current position. Let us return to how the articles in the convention are worded. They state that we should try to make national laws that apply to the general work force apply to domestic workers. That is not easy because domestic workers are often the hardest to reach. Nevertheless, we need to educate people and use the stick as well as the carrot. The Government have said that they"““do not consider it appropriate or practical to extend criminal, health and safety laws, including inspections, to private households employing domestic workers. It would be difficult, for instance, to hold elderly individuals employing carers to the same standards as large companies.””" Let me remind the Minister of two parts of the convention: article 13 and the relevant recommendation. Article 13 states that each member should take appropriate action,"““with due regard for the specific characteristics of domestic work,””." It is clear that the convention views work undertaken by corporations and that carried out in people's homes as different, and does not demand that they be treated similarly.