Members of Parliament from the Forum of Labor, Decent Employment, and Productivity are advocating for Uganda’s government to ratify the International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention 189, which specifically addresses the rights and treatment of domestic workers, commonly referred to as house helps.
The convention provides essential guidelines for the fair treatment of domestic workers, both within Uganda and internationally.
Despite Uganda’s membership in the ILO, Convention 189 remains unratified, prompting MPs to push for its implementation due to the growing number of Ugandans engaged in domestic work, both locally and abroad.
The convention mandates that domestic workers receive at least 24 consecutive hours of weekly rest and are entitled to fair access to legal processes, ensuring their rights are protected on par with other categories of workers.
The urgency to ratify Convention 189 was highlighted during a parliamentary training session on decent employment interventions organized by the government of Belgium through Enabel Cooperation.
Roland Ndy’omugyenyi, chairperson of the forum, expressed dissatisfaction with the government’s slow progress in ratifying critical labour conventions, stressing that all workers deserve decent employment conditions, including those in domestic roles.
A key concern raised is the significant number of Ugandan migrant workers employed as domestic workers, estimated at over 220,000 primarily in the Middle East, as reported by the Ministry of Labor and Social Development (MoGLSD) in 2024. However, the exact figures for the local labour market are yet to be determined.
Apollo Onzoma, MoGLSD assistant commissioner for labor and industrial relations, acknowledged the initiation of the ratification process for Convention 189 and other labour conventions advocated for by MPs.
He attributed delays in communication regarding progress to an information gap, clarifying that certain conventions addressing harassment and violence have already been ratified.
Onzoma outlined the ratification process, which involves extensive consultations, resource allocation, and alignment of convention clauses with national laws, overseen by the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs. He assured that work is underway to develop regulations ensuring equitable treatment for domestic workers, highlighting existing protections under the Employment Act.
Despite the delay in formal ratification, Onzoma emphasized the government’s commitment to safeguarding workers’ rights, emphasizing the ongoing efforts to develop specific regulations benefiting domestic workers.
He underlined that the absence of ratified conventions does not signify inaction, as national laws already provide essential protections for workers.
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