On 25- 26 May, OHCHR –Europe Regional Office, with the participation of the International Labour Office (ILO) Brussels, organised a Legal Colloquium on the applicability of existing international human rights norms to the situation of migrant domestic workers in Europe.

Over the past decades Europe has observed an increase of migrants among domestic workers, the overwhelming majority of whom are women. The challenges faced by migrant domestic workers in the full enjoyment of their rights have prompted several studies and analyses in the region indicating the lack of recognition of their work as a proper job; their heavy dependence on the employer, particularly when they are live-in; the often abusive conditions of work; and above all the lack of a clear legal framework and jurisdiction to prevent and protect them from abuse, as critical challenges to be addressed.

Possible ways of addressing these issues were identified by the participants. On the international level, the adoption of a new ILO Convention appears essential for providing general guarantees such as information on terms and conditions of employment, working time provisions (including rest and freedom of movement during rest), choice (but not requirement) of residing in the home of the employer, provisions against child labour, prohibiting employers from keeping domestic workers’ documents, and protection against abuse and harassment.

On the national level, the participants highlighted the need for legislation providing the same standard of rights for domestic workers as for other categories of workers. It might be necessary to address some of their specific vulnerabilities in legislation but their specifics should certainly not be used as an excuse to restrict the rights of these workers in comparison to others. The need to overcome the obstacles stemming from excessively restrictive immigration legislation applying to migrant domestic workers, such as restrictions on their right to change their employer or occupational sector was underlined.

UN experts participating in the colloquium included Ms. Rashida Manjoo, UN Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women and Mr. Abdelhamid El Jamri, Chairperson of the UN Migrant Workers Committee. Participants in the Colloquium included representatives from EU Member States (France, Slovakia, Romania, the Netherlands, Sweden, Poland, Belgium, Portugal, Spain, Finland, Bulgaria and Lithuania) and from Norway, UN agencies and civil society organisations from Belgium, Spain, Cyprus, The Netherlands, Greece, France, United Kingdom and Italy and the National Human Rights Institutions of Spain and Belgium as well as academics from different research centres in Europe.