Social security for domestic workers in Paraguay is in practice a health insurance that includes maternal protection, and also provides health insurance to dependents such as children, spouse, and parents. Until now, domestic workers were not entitled to retirement protection like other workers, even though in theory it is possible for them to register as self-employed.
Librada Maciel has been working for 20 years as a domestic worker in the region of Itapúa, a rural area in Southern Paraguay. “I took this job because I had no choice,” she explained.
“I come from a poor family. We were 16 children at home living in the countryside. Our only option was to go to the nearest city and find the only job offered, and that meant becoming a domestic worker.”
Like most domestic workers in Paraguay, Librada Maciel worked between 12 and 14 hours a day, without being covered by any kind of social protection.
A law passed in 1967 made it compulsory for all domestic workers in Asunción, the capital of the country, to register with social security. It was even extended to the whole country in 2009 but it was rarely applied.
A new law which is currently being discussed should make it possible for them to acquire pension rights in line with the ILO’s Domestic Workers Convention, 2011 (No. 189). Paraguay was the fourth country in South America to ratify the Convention in May 2013. The ILO Convention is considered as a major step forward in improving working and living conditions for domestic workers around the globe.
However, the reality is that so far just over 10 per cent of domestic workers are registered with the Social Protection Institute (IPS), the government agency in charge of social security.
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SOURCE & COPYRIGHT: © ILO