Campaigning for Maternity Protection

The Maternity Protection Coalition &

ILO Convention 183

Chris Mulford, RN, IBCLC

Chrismulfo@aol.com

WABA Women & Work Task Force

Objectives

After this presentation, participants will be able to

• Identify a framework for action on Maternity Protection. • Describe seven key concepts of maternity protection.• Explain why it is important for breastfeeding advocates to

work in support of all seven concepts.• Identify potential allies and strategies for a Maternity

Protection Campaign.• Discuss ratification of C-183 as a strategy to strengthen

Maternity Protection.

Defining workMen’s & women’s work

• 1995 UN Development Programme Report

• $23 trillion—official estimate of “global output”

• $16 trillion more was not included—unpaid, invisible, undervalued work

• Most of this unpaid work is caring work. Most of it is done by women.

The 1995 UNDP Report

Women’s paid work

Women’s unpaid work

Men’s paid work

Men’s unpaid work

1/3

2/3

3/4

1/4

Above the break: $23 trillion marketplace workBelow the break: $16 trillion unpaid work—invisible, undervalued

What the UNDP didn’t show

Women’s paid work

Women’s unpaid work

Men’s paid work

Men’s unpaid work

1/3

2/3

3/4

1/4

Menstrual cycle, pregnancy, childbirth, lactation

Women’s reproductive work

Men’s reproductive work

“No society can progress half-liberated and half-chained. Human development, if not engendered, is fatally endangered.”

--- Mahbub ul Haq

Principal Author and Coordinator

1995 UNDP Report

International Human Rights Instruments

• Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR )• International Covenant on Economic, Social and

Cultural Rights (ICESCR)• International Covenant on Civil and Political

Rights (ICCPR)• Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of

Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)*• Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)*

Other International Documents

• Innocenti Declaration (1990)

• Beijing Platform for Action (1995)

Both specifically mention protection for breastfeeding women at the workplace.

ILO Conventions and Recommendations

• C3, 1919

• C103, 1952 (no longer open for ratification)

• R95, 1952

• C183, 2000

• R191, 2000

• Others (such as C184…) that mention MP

Regional Directives

• ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations)

• CONOSUR • EU (European Union)• MERCOSUR • NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement)• OAU (Organisation of African Unity) • SADC (Southern Africa Development

Community)

National or local laws

Legislation may be drafted at various levels:

• National or federal

• State, Province, Canton

• Local: municipal, communal

Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs)

• Agreements that affect an entire sector or profession

• Agreements between a specific union and an employer or a group of employers

• Agreements for a specific workplace

Workplace Policies

These policies can be:

• Agreements for a specific workplace

• Agreements for a specific firm or corporation

Policies of multinational corporations tend to differ from country to country, and in some cases from one plant to the other.

“Maternity protection is a precondition of genuine equality of opportunity and treatment for

men and women.”

--- International Labour Organization,

Maternity Protection at Work, p. 51, 1997

Tools to aid women at work

• Innocenti Declaration• WABA’s Mother-Friendly Workplace • Quezon City Declaration• Maternity Protection Convention, C183

& Recommendation, R191• ICFTU / PSI / EI Kit• MP Coalition Action Kit• GIMS

Innocenti Target 4

All governments should… [enact] imaginative legislation

protecting the breastfeeding rights of working women

and [establish] means for its enforcement.

Mother Friendly Workplace Initiative

• Time

Biological rhythms, interactive time, institutional schedules and deadlines

• Space

Mother and baby are a biological unit.

• Support

Bf is valued. Women have many options.

Quezon City Declaration

• Spread awareness of the importance of breastfeeding for optimal maternal and child health.

• Create and strengthen social security systems that recognize families’ reproductive and productive needs equally, in ways that do not lead to discrimination against women in the workplace.

• Act locally with women in the entire range of work situations…to empower them to realize their human rights as workers and mothers.

The ILO

• International Labor Organization, a branch of the United Nations

• Goal: social justice• Tripartite structure: governments, employers,

workers • Works to create a socially stable climate in which

the wealth that is created by workers benefits the workers as well as their employers

The ILO & Maternity Protection

• MP: a priority since 1919

• Protection for the health of mother & baby

• Protection for the mother’s job

• Two rationales: – special treatment (Women are different.)– equal treatment and equal opportunity in

employment (Women are the same.)

Maternity Protection: concepts

• Scope—who is covered?

• Leave—maternity—additional—parental

• Benefits—medical—cash

• Health protection

• Job protection

• Breastfeeding breaks

• Breastfeeding facilities

ILO’s C183 Maternity Protection Convention

• Adopted by ILO in 2000

• Sets international minimum standard

• 3 countries have ratified: Slovakia, Italy, Bulgaria

• The Maternity Protection Coalition (IBFAN, WABA, ILCA, and Linkages) is advocating for ratification.

ILO’s C183 & R191 Maternity Protection Convention

and Recommendation, 2000

Web address for ILO Conventions:http://ilolex.ilo.ch:1567/english/convdisp1.htm

Web address for ILO Recommendations:http://ilolex.ilo.ch:1567/english/recdisp1.htm

What we learned at ILO 1999-2000

• Some forces wanted to remove breastfeeding from the Convention entirely, or, if that failed, to weaken support for bf.

• The average person doesn’t know much about breastfeeding.

• We had a lot to learn about the concerns of other sectors.

Strategies from campaign at ILO conference, 1999-2000

• Place breastfeeding in a human rights context.• Listen and learn.• Focus on giving information.

Provide real-life examples.

Show economic value of breastfeeding

to offset cost of bf protection

Strategies from campaign at ILO conference, 1999-2000

• Use the opportunity to have input through advisory role with government delegations.

• Enlist the health sector—we got strong support from WHO, UNICEF, ICN.

• Listen to the concerns of all partners; educate ourselves about the wider issues.

• Link with TUs and women’s NGOs.

WABA’s GIMS:Global Initiative for Mother Support

• Calls for mother support – in all parts of the world– at all stages of the reproductive cycle

• Sectors that should give mother support:– Health care system– Family– Community– Workplace

ICFTU / PSI / EI Kit

• International Confederation of Free Trade Unions www.icftu.org

• Public Services International www.world-psi.org

• Education International www.ei-ie.org http://www.icftu.org/displaydocument.asp?Index=991213340&Language=EN

Click on “campaign kit”

MP Coalition Action Kit

• Goal 1: to aid breastfeeding advocates to work for better MP laws & better conditions for women at work, and to support ratification of C183

• Goal 2: to help trade unionists, employers, and governments understand their role in supporting breastfeeding

MP Coalition Action Kit

• Plan: preview at WABA Global Forum II in Arusha, Tanzania, September 2002

• Plan: available through WABA Secretariat and IBFAN & ILCA offices for cost of mailing

• Plan: downloadable from the web

Choosing your campaign path

• Ratify C183

• Improve MP laws: nation, state/province

• Take a step—close a gap– Widen scope to include more women– Work to set up a model: one TU, one industry,

one enterprise– Propose a new scheme for financing benefits– Inform women, TUs, and employers