PWWSD helds workshop on Importance of Social Protection Strategies

The Palestinian Working Woman Society for Development conducted a workshop on social protection on Tuesday 20^th 2011. In cooperation with Solidar and IFWA, the PWWSD hosted many women participants, secretaries, kindergartens workers and unionists from 7 villages in Ramallah, as well as many other unemployed women.

The participants discussed the social protection report conducted by the PWWSD on women’s conditions in Gaza. The report explores the reality of women who work in houses, kindergartens, sewing and embroidery, in addition to hairdressers. The report documents the types of harassment these women face in their work, including low wages, lack of legal protection, and the weak unionist role to protect their rights. The report points out to:

1.      The need to advocate the Ministry of Labor, in order to:

1. Activate the articles in the law of labor concerning minimum wages, and the role of control and inspection unit at the Ministry.
2. Reinforce the legal authority in order to resolve the workers’ cases brought before the court
3. Integrate the issue of social protection within the government’s strategy for development, and allocate appropriate budgets
4. Consider household chores productive and part of the GPA therefore exert protection policies for household women.
5. Reinforce labor unions’ role and represent then within the decision-making circles

After a thorough discussion of the report, unionist Naela Oudeh, talked about the importance of implementing the law of labor, and enforcing a social insurance system for working women, in order to guard them against unemployment, poverty and to guarantee a healthy life for them. Moreover, Naela emphasized unionist work as a tool to achieve more rights for working women, regarding the low wages, the maternity leaves and the annual holidays.

Afterward, Ms. Amal Khreishe explained the concept of social protection as a core pillar of decent work. According to Khreishe social protection is based on the basic rights and concepts of the ILO, and the basic Palestinian law for 2000. It is also based on the right to work, and principals of social dialogue. Therefore, social protection requires a developmental vision achieved through a set of procedures, policies and budgets in order to guarantee decent working conditions for working people, which are based on cooperation and a just distribution of profits.  

Khreishe added that social protection is a fundamental component of the social economic rights system, which obliges the PA to implement strategic interventions based on the concepts of human rights in order to achieve a comprehensive development. Consequently, this approach will reinforce the resilience of the Palestinian people and establishes the ground for social security. In addition, it will also help put an end to the impoverishment policy and the systematic deconstruction of the Palestinian social fabric by the Israeli Occupation. In order to stand up against the Israeli violations against Palestinian citizens and economy, we are obliged to:

1. Draw policies to found and activate the funds aimed to protect workers, and apply the law of labor
2. Develop programs for social insurances to deal with unemployment, poverty, sickness, aging and retirement.
3. Develop protection strategies for working women in the informal economic sector, as well as in the household chores and the maternal roles.
4. Establish a fund to support the education of workers’ children

Khreishe also pointed out the Palestinian legal environment and the Palestinian economy that is annexed to the Israeli economy due to a reality created by the Israeli Occupation, and the imposition of the Paris economic agreement. She elaborated on working women’s professional experience regarding wrongful discharge, low wages that fluctuate between 200 – 600 for hairdressers, and lack of health insurances.  In addition, the General Director of the PWWSD Mrs. Khreishe talked about the delays in signing contracts with working women. Therefore, the labor unions have to increase efforts to support these women, and to pressure the Ministry of Labor to agree on a minimum rate for wages. The unions have the responsibility to develop a set of social protection systems for the women who work in sectors excluded from any official legal protection. In addition, they have to pressure for new modifications to the Palestinian law of labor, and for the reactivation of the social insurance law.