What is the Domestic Workers' Day?
This short concept paper explains what will happen during the big day. Click here for the English Version.
Araw ng Kasambahay 2006
Theme: “Kilalanin ang halaga ng mga kasambahay.
Batas Kasambahay, agad na ipasa!”
30 April 2006, Quezon Memorial Circle
The Araw ng Kasambahay is marked on the last Sunday before Labor Day to honor and give recognition to kasambahays, our partners at home, a hidden but massive army of everyday workers. Since 2000, the Visayan Forum Foundation and Samahan at Ugnayan ng mga Manggagawang Pantahanan sa Pilipinas (SUMAPI) have spearheaded the celebration of this special day together with their partners from the government, international institutions like the International Labour Organization (ILO), non-government organizations, schools and faith-based groups. And through the years, the observance of the Araw ng Kasambahay has provided domestic workers and advocates an effective platform to intensify public awareness on the importance, contribution and plight of domestic workers.
This year, the Araw ng Kasambahay celebration comes on the heels of some major advances in the campaign for the welfare of domestic workers. For instance, the First National Domestic Workers Summit held last October 2005 signaled the start of the inclusion of domestic workers’ concerns in the national development agenda. The resulting National Agenda on Domestic Work serves as a road map for the formulation and implementation of policies and programs by national and local governments, civil society and other stakeholders. While the Social Compact provides stakeholders with a framework for partnership in order to effectively advance the National Agenda on Domestic Work.
Moreover, the social partners of Visayan Forum and SUMAPI, such as the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), are now initiating their own programs and promoting the welfare of domestic workers. Likewise, more and more local government units are adopting Kasambahay Programs and the 1- million signature campaign in support of the Magna Carta for Household Helpers or Batas Kasambahay was accomplished.
Despite these developments, however, not a single step has still been done to pass Batas Kasambahay. This proposed law recognizes the basic rights of domestic workers, sets clear parameters on their working conditions and establishes appropriate implementing mechanisms. But it has languished in Congress for 10 years now, in spite of the supportive pronouncements of many legislators, the successful pioneering efforts of the Quezon City government in implementing its own Kasambahay Program and the concurrence of almost 70 percent of employers in the country with its passage, based on a 2005 SWS survey. That is why the nationwide Araw ng Kasambahay 2006 celebration will not only laud the significant contribution of domestic workers to society but also condemn the long-delayed passage of Batas Kasambahay.
Around 3,000 domestic workers and advocates are expected to gather in the Quezon Memorial Circle in Quezon City for this year’s main celebration. The event will feature a Service Fair, wherein government agencies such as DOLE and the Social Security System (SSS) as well as lawyers and medical groups are set to participate; a protest march interspersed with street presentations called “Hakbang Bayan Alay sa Kasambahay”; and a variety show highlighted by the presentation of the Natatanging Kasambahay award and the launching of the National Search for Exemplary Employers or Gawad Employer.
Simultaneous celebrations will be held in major cities such as Batangas, Cebu, Bacolod, Iloilo and Davao for the first time ever, although at a smaller scale. These festivities will also feature similar protest actions, service fairs and a broad media and advocacy program.
Download What is Araw ng Kasambahay 2006.rtf (size 24064)
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