Because agricultural manual labour is often seasonal employment, job insecurity among farm-workers is chronic and prevalent. Their irregular and insecure employment restrains them from effectively organizing for decent wages and better working conditions. According to the ILO: (1) agricultural workers are among the groups with the highest incidence of poverty in many countries; (2) only 5 per cent of the world’s 1.3 billion agricultural workers have access to any labour inspection system; (3) the majority of waged agricultural workers are excluded from social protection; and (4) probably less than 10 per cent of the world’s waged agricultural workers are organized and represented in trade unions or rural workers’ organizations.
Programme of Action
- Lack of political independence of trade unions
- No legislated and implemented living wage
- No equal wages based on gender, ethnic background, resident status
- Rights to housing and land, education for workers’ children
- Right to work for 6 hours, right to overtime pay beyond 6 hours
- Practice of seasonal, casual or part-time work
- Social security and health benefits– lacking opportunities for child care and reproductive rights
- Child labour and unavailability of child education and care
- Organise independent trade unions
- Lobby, advocacy and action research
- Awareness campaigns for workers’ rights both locally and nationally.
- Bringing issues to upper management & policy makers via policy dialogue or campaigns
- National strikes
- Strengthen national laws and reforms, campaigns
- Campaign on the Right to Work and Employment
- Campaign on coverage of agri workers and migrant workers under national labor law
- Campaign against criminalization or harassment of agri workers or their leaders for asserting their rights
- Develop a regional campaign
- Study C110 (plantation convention) and draft a common position and launch action research accordingly, using it as a platform for education and campaigns
- Coordinated campaign on issues of oil palm plantation workers – one
policy advocacy issue being RSPO - Simultaneous protests
- Identify common campaigns, protest actions
- Organize common campaign on May Day
- C188 (work in fishing convention) – study and draft plans
