As a result of a series of actions led by the IDWF team in Latin America and our affiliates SINTRADESPY and SINTRADI, a multisectoral tripartite table was established in Paraguay to promote the effective implementation of the Domestic Work Law and the access of domestic workers to social security.
In 2021, after the visit of our President Carmen Brítez to the country, during which she demanded that the Government respect the rights of domestic workers enshrined in Law 5407 (enacted in 2015 and amended in 2019) and ILO Convention 189 (ratified by Paraguay in 2013), a dialogue table was formed between domestic worker organizations and Government representatives, who committed to combatting informality in domestic work, ensuring payment of the minimum wage, encouraging registration of workers with the Social Security Institute (IPS), and implementing effective labor inspection mechanisms. Three years later, due to the inaction of authorities and the worsening of precariousness in the sector, the IDWF and its affiliates have succeeded in reinstating social dialogue.
Our regional team organized a series of workshops with SINTRADI and SINTRADESPY affiliates to design advocacy strategies and develop mass campaigns focused on the full implementation of Law 5407, domestic workers’ access to social protection, and the ratification of Convention 190. Our leaders also held meetings with key stakeholders and authorities, leading to the formation of a multisectoral tripartite table that includes domestic workers’ unions, the Ministry of Labor, the Ministry of Women, employers’ representatives, and the Journalists’ Union of Paraguay.
For our category, the priority issue to be debated in this new space is the urgent need for domestic work to be regulated only by Law 5407 and not by Law 6339 on part-time employment, which sets insufficient pension contributions for part-time and multi-job domestic workers to access all social security benefits and have the right to retirement. In line with the Domestic Work Law and C189, trade unions propose that the IPS implement a prorated system, whereby different employers of a worker contribute to social security in proportion to the hours worked by their employee.
Despite the tireless efforts of local unions leading to significant labor legislation victories, in practice, domestic work remains one of the most neglected sectors in Paraguay. According to official data, the sector employed almost 254,000 people in 2021, accounting for 7.4% of the country’s workforce. Of them, only 5% were registered with the IPS, meaning more than 240,000 domestic workers have no access to medical care, pensions, or other social security benefits.
“Paraguay is among the first ten countries to ratify C189 and quickly modify its national legislation to align with the convention. That’s how we won the right to the minimum wage, social protection, an 8-hour workday with breaks, overtime pay, and mandatory written contracts… But none of that is implemented. Applying the part-time employment law to our sector, instead of implementing the law that pertains to us, has taken away the rights we won. We will continue to fight until our rights are respected. We demand that our law be applied and that a fair social security contribution system be implemented, which will also be very beneficial to employers.”
Marciana Santander, SINTRADESPY’s General Secretary
