3 November, 2008
On 26 October, ICEM Asia-Pacific Region’s Working Women’s group met in Jakarta, Indonesia, to continue its work on maternity protection. This work has been ongoing for at least a year, and was reflected from the seven points that arose out of the 2007 Women’s World Conference.
The meeting was attended by women from ICEM affiliates in Indonesia, Japan, India, Thailand, Malaysia, and Australia. The women came from different industries – mining, cement, chemicals, glass, pharmaceuticals, and electric power.
Pregnant women and new mothers continue to face discrimination in most countries of the world. The global financial crisis just makes this discrimination more acute.
Women’s needs for maternity protection, or parents’ rights, differ greatly in the Asia-Pacific Region. Due to the ageing societies and skills shortages in Japan and Australia, for instance, it is dawning on decision-makers that providing women with incentives to bear children may provide the solution. In other countries, women’s rights are under threat due to outsourcing.
It was decided to campaign for the ratification of ILO Convention 183, the Maternity Protection Convention, since no country in the region has ratified it. Nevertheless, many unions have successfully achieved some level of maternity protection through collective bargaining, and these efforts must be continued and strengthened.