28 February, 2011
The 55th Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women is running in New York City at UN headquarters. The annual Commissions runs from 22 February to 4 March and some 2,000 delegates from 27 nations are in attendance. On opening day, they heard former Chile President and current UN Under-Secretary General for Women Michele Bachelet.
Nearly 200 trade union women are participating in the annual conference, which this year has as its theme access and participation for girls and women in education, training, science, and technology.
The trade union women, behind their union banners and in step with the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), Education International (EI), and Public Services International (PSI), also used opening day to join New York area trade unionists at Fox News broadcast offices in Manhattan to protest legislative attacks on public-sector collective bargaining rights in the state of Wisconsin. “We are Wisconsin” was the unified chant protesters shouted at America’s right-wing mouthpiece.
Michele Bachelet
Inside the 55th UN Women’s Commission, trade union women called for full rights and protections for domestic workers by adoption of a Domestic Workers’ Convention. The Convention is to be considered at this June’s 100th Labour Conference of the ILO. EI Deputy General Secretary Jan Eastman delivered a statement on the subject in a plenary calling for “full opportunities for education and training for girls and women … leading to productive employment and decent work.”
This year’s Commission on the Status of Women sees the merger of four UN gender institutions into one, the UN Entity for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment. Bachelet said in her opening remarks this “has a unique and clear mandate to help ensure a seamless relationship” between Member States and UN activities on overcoming gender imbalances.
Bachelet warned not to postpone actions for women’s empowerment on account of the global jobs crisis, stating that progress to date has been “uneven and fragile.”
Canadian Trade Unionists Surround Rona Ambrose
photo: CAW Women’s Programs, Canada
Bachelet said: “As we sit in this room today, there are still too many women and children being trafficked; too many domestic workers who left their families to live in new places, unprotected by labour laws or policies; too many girls forced to leave school or marry too early; too many women and girls who lack access to services. And worldwide,” she added, “there are too few women who are at decision-making tables where peace, trade or climate change agreements are being negotiated.”
Canadian trade union women attending the Commission got a chance to question Rona Ambrose, Canada’s Minister of Public Works and Government Services and Minister for Status of Women. She spoke at the Commission on 24 February. The union representatives questioned Canada over lack of action and lack of outrage over 800 Canadian women being killed by men, on lax gun registry laws that perpetuate violence, and Canada’s misuse of federal funds for programmes and work on missing and murdered Aboriginal women.