Recommendation 1970 (2011) Final version

Protecting migrant women in the labour market

Author(s): Parliamentary Assembly

Origin - Assembly debate on 15 April 2011 (18th Sitting) (see Doc. 12549, report of the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Population, rapporteur: Ms Frahm; and Doc. 12578, opinion of the Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men, rapporteur: Ms Circene). Text adopted by the Assembly on 15 April 2011 (18th Sitting).

1. The Parliamentary Assembly refers to its Resolution 1811 (2011) on protecting migrant women on the labour market.

2. The Assembly deems it essential to ensure the protection of the fundamental rights of migrant women in the Council of Europe member states. It recognises the work previously carried out by the Committee of Ministers in promoting the rights and the legal status of migrant workers and of persons admitted for family reunification.

3. The Assembly calls on the Committee of Ministers to:

3.1. encourage the governments of member states to step up the ratification of relevant legal protection instruments, notably the European Convention on the Legal Status of Migrant Workers (ETS No. 93) and the Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (CETS No. 197);

3.2. urge Council of Europe member states to sign and ratify the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (CETS No. 210) as soon as possible and to ensure that it is applied to all women without discrimination, whether their residence status is legal or not;

3.3. encourage the governments of member states to actively participate in the drafting of the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) future convention on domestic workers and to adhere to its provisions;

3.4. launch an awareness-raising campaign in the member states aimed at recognising the work of domestic workers as real work and eliminating practices such as withholding passports and/or wages, and physical, sexual and psychological abuse of domestic workers;

3.5. encourage member states to develop and implement activities to prevent and combat discrimination against migrant women and girls and promote their active participation in political, public and economic life, including in labour unions and other associations protecting and promoting labour rights;

3.6. urge the European Union and its member states to involve migrant women in developing immigration and social policies;

3.7. strengthen the partnership between Council of Europe member states and countries of origin in order to respect the human rights of migrant women, promote gender equality, including in civil law, and empower women;

3.8. re-examine, in co-operation with the European Union, the availability of legal migration channels for women, safeguarding their migration opportunities and their protection in the context of reducing irregular migration.