Objetivos e público alvo
The organization aims to contribute to the strengthening of the profession of domestic workers. With emphasis on the fight for rights, the achievement of freedom and autonomy of the class’ representation, it seeks to ensure better living and work conditions for its constituents, with the goal of promoting a more just and democratic society.
With the project approved in 2011 the group will receive the support of Brazil Fund for the second time. The plan now is to broaden the domestic workers’ networks in the fight for rights in the state of Paraíba and to stimulate their access to police and judicial instances in search for solutions to cases of human rights violations.
Atividades Principais
Workshops will be conducted on the following topics: gender, race, ethnicity, identity and human rights issues; human right to work – sexual division of work, bullying and sexual harassment; trafficking of people as a human rights violation; and access to justice – Women´s Police station, Prosecutor´s Office and the Judiciary, Public Defender´s Office and the Police.
Fight strategies will be defined after the encounters and taken to the National Congress which will be held in the second semester of 2011 in Olinda (Pernambuco).
The association also aims to produce informative leaflets designed to domestic workers to be used by State organizations. All the material produced will be sent to the National Federation of Domestic Workers and made available electronically to other organizations in the country. It will also be presented at the congress.
It is expected that 20 workers from Campina Grande and 10 in João Pessoa will be directly benefitted, additionally to their families. With the release in the local press, the project aims to bring information to society in the cities of João Pessoa, Santa Rita, Cabedelo, Bayeux, Alhambra and Campina Grande, making the information reach 1.4 million people.
Contexto
In Brazil the Federal Constitution treats domestic workers unequally in the sense that it excludes them from the general set of labor rights, treating them in a special way. Only 9 out of the 34 rights guaranteed to urban and rural workers are extended to the group. This unequal treatment constitutes a human rights violation and also triggers other forms of violence – patrimonial (low wages), moral, physical and psychological, amongst others. Inequalities arising from relations of gender, race and class domination/subordination, lack of knowledge of laws and access to justice are added to that context.
Sobre a Organização
Apart from providing the workers with legal aid, the association carries out activities with the purpose of widening their labor rights and combating violence against women. For instance, it organizes manifestations and acts allusive to the Domestic Worker National Day – April 7th – and the International Women’s Day – March 8th. Courses, workshops and informative and educational materials are offered to the class.
Parcerias
The association is part of the Joint Women Network in Paraíba (AMB-PB) and is liaised with World Women March , Afro-descendant Observatory and National Federation of Domestic Workers , which mobilizes the unions in Brazil. Locally, the association liaises with social movements and NGOs that fight for women’s rights.
