Making decent work a reality for domestic workers in the Middle East: Progress and prospects ten years after the adoption of the Domestic Workers Convention, 2011 (No. 189)

To mark the tenth anniversary of this historic Convention and to explore the progress made over the last decade, a global report has been produced by the ILO. Recognizing the importance of the domestic work sector in Middle East, the ILO FAIRWAY developed this regional summary of the situation of domestic workers in the region.

This regional brief for the Arab States, based largely on the ILO global report Making Decent Work a Reality for Domestic Workers: Progress and Prospects Ten Years after the Adoption of the Domestic Workers Convention, 2011 (No. 189), examines the situation of domestic workers in the Arab States, in light of the Domestic Worker Convention, 2011 (No 189) (hereafter ‘Convention No. 189’) and the accompanying Recommendation No. 201 (hereafter ‘Recommendation No. 201’) adopted by the International Labour Conference a decade ago. The brief estimates the current number of domestic workers in the region, levels of formality and the degree to which domestic workers are included in legal and social protections, and outlines possible areas for future reform, including implementation and enforcement of legislation.