Social Protection and Work Freedoms for Women

The Palestinian Working Women’s Society for Development organized a meeting for women working in the nongovernmental sector, kindergartens and the private schools. Over 60 women participated in the meeting, which took place in the office of the PWWSD in Nablus. The coordinator for the Women’s Empowerment program Mrs. Samar Hawash led the meeting, while civic educator Maysara Subuh facilitated the discussion.

In the beginning of the meeting, a brainstorming session took place, during which many questions were raised about social protection for working women, the main obstacles and challenges that working women face in work locations, and the possible ways of securing a decent life and work conditions for working women.

Mrs. Samar Hawash explained that work has become an essential requirement for living, and one of the most important social values; therefore, social protection for working women is a basic human right requires protection. Mrs. Hawash talked about the political, cultural and economic factors that play role in the absence of social protection for working women, in addition to the lack in awareness and education. She also talked about the challenges women encounter including low wages, the oppressive work conditions, the limited holidays and illegally extended work hours, the cuts in pension and the lack in facilities for working mothers like nurseries.

Mrs. Hawash also talked about the flaws in the Palestinian Law of Labor, in addition to the legal challenges that obstruct women from achieving their rights, due to the dominant stereotypical image of women.  She also explained the failures in implementing the laws, especially by the monitoring and control unit in the Ministry of Labor. She stressed the need for these institutions to abide by the international standards, and to provide respectful work conditions for women who suffer from gender-based discrimination in all sectors. She called for recognition of women’s household work and work in agriculture, which should be represented in the GDP.

In the end of her speech, Mrs. Samar Hawash stressed the need to organize women in unions and cooperatives to defend and represent their interests. Also, she stressed the need to continue to lobby and pressure the decision-makers in order to adopt social protection policies that include a minimum for wages, social security, and law for pensions of women working in the private and NGOs.

Civic educator Maysara Subuh added that work is a basic human right, and a need for living, for its economic, social and political benefits. Women’s right to work also shatters the stereotypical image of women, and is the primary step to achieve concrete development. Current reality could not be changed without awareness and educational activities, or the support and engagement of all sectors. There is also a need for a national Palestinian vision and clear and objective-oriented policies concerning women’s rights.

In the end of the meeting, the participants submitted the following recommendations:

1.    -- To continue to hold awareness and educational activities for women

2.      For business owners to be flexible with women in the work locations according to the official laws, in order to encourage more women to join the productive labor force

3.       -- To combat the gender-based discrimination by issuing a minimum rate for wages based on the Law of Labor.

4.       -- To continue to lobby and pressure the decision-makers to provide social security for women, and to adopt policies that guarantee social protection for workers in the private sector

5.      -- To provide crediting system (marketing and crediting cooperatives) that help women working in the informal sector and within the household.

6.    -- To activate the monitoring and control procedures by the Ministry of Labor in order to assure the implementation of the Labor of Law.

Participants also called for support for the women working in the kindergartens and private schools to be represented before the government and the decision-makers by the unions and syndicates.