Representatives with FTUC executives at the Policy discussion for youth, women and migrant wages
The FTUC conducted the first round of consultations on wages policy for different sectors including the migrant workers. Young workers and women are highly vulnerable to wage stagnation and need wage increments to meet the high inflation rates. Similarly migrant workers also need to be empowered on their rights as they are believed to be offered lower than market rates .
With assistance from the ILO, the FTUC will continue consultations in other parts of the country.
A national campaign for migrant workers will be launched at the end of next month to draw attention to the issues faced by workers brought in from overseas countries.
An AI Overview says that the International Labour Organization (ILO) has a number of resources and programs to support women migrant workers, including:
Convention on eliminating violence and harassment in the world of work (C. 190)
This convention guides projects to change social norms around violence against women and ensure safe migration for women.
Global Strategy to support decent work for domestic workers
This strategy includes the MIGRANT program, which aims to protect the rights of migrant domestic workers, promote their labor market integration, and address their vulnerabilities.
Regional Labour Mobility Principles
The ILO is working with the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat (PIFS) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) to develop these principles to strengthen the protection of migrant workers.
The ILO defines a migrant worker as someone who is engaged or has been engaged in a remunerated activity in a state of which they are not a national. Women migrant workers often face discrimination and exploitation, particularly in domestic work and care giving, where they are often not protected by labor legislation.
Some recommendations for improving the situation of women migrant workers in Fiji include:
*Collaborating with banking and financial institutions to simplify procedures for sending and receiving remittances
*Establishing insurance schemes for women migrants
*Designing and implementing an education curriculum and programs for migrant worker training institutions
*Distributing fliers with contact information for emergencies and other migrant needs at every point of entry into the country