REPORT ON ACTIVITY
TRAINING COURSE ON TRADE UNION ACTIONS FOR ACHIEVING
DECENT WORK FOR MIGRANTS
TOM MBOYA LABOUR COLLEGE, KISUMU, KENYA
21 – 25 MAY 2012
1. Introduction
A five-day regional training course on trade union actions for achieving decent
work for migrants was organised by ACTRAV-Turin at the Tom Mboya Labour
College in Kisumu, Kenya from 21 to 25 May 2012. The course was attended by 15
trade union representatives who were selected from the following trade union
organisations: CETU-Ethiopia, NCEW-Eretria, GTUC-Ghana, COTU-Kenya, MLCMauritius, COSATU-South Africa, FETUS-Somalia, SLLC-Sierra Leone, TUCTATanzania, NOTU-Uganda, ZCTU-Zimbabwe, BWI-Africa, PSI-Africa, ITUC-Africa
and OATUU (represented by ZCTU-Zambia). The course was co-facilitated by
Fredrick Parry, Senior Specialist in Workers’ Activities, ACTRAV-Addis Ababa and
Mban Kabu, Programme Officer, ACTRAV-Turin. The course was co-financed by
RBTC and ITCILO.
The course was officially opened by Mr. Alfred Abwao, Acting Principal of the Tom
Mboya Labour College. In his opening speech, he thanked ACTRAV and ITCILO for
choosing the TMLC as venue for the five-day regional training course on “trade
union actions for achieving decent work for migrants.” He welcomed the participants
and facilitators on behalf of Mr. Francis Atwoli, Secretary General of the Central
Organisation of Trade Unions of Kenya who was unavoidably absent due to his prior
engagement in other important trade union functions. Also, he apologised for the
absence of Mr. Moses Kachima, the substantive Principal of the TMLC who was on
sick leave. He explained that Mr. Kachima was responding well to treatment and that
they were expecting him back in the office sometime in June. Furthermore, Mr.
Abwao informed the audience that the TMLC has since the beginning of this year
started conducting regular training courses on contemporary trade unionism,
business management and ICT. He concluded his statement by wishing the
participants and facilitators a very pleasant stay in Kisumu, Kenya.
2. Development Objective
The course from a long-term perspective aimed at contributing to the strengthening
of trade unions’ capacity to participate in shaping migration policies and promoting
sound labour migration practices with a view to making sure that the benefits of
migration, when it occurs, are maximized for all.
3. Immediate Objectives
At the end of the course, participants were able to:
 Describe the situation of international labour migration and the ILO’s efforts
to protect migrant workers through a right-based approach.
 Analyse the situation of migrant workers in the context of the raging global
economic crisis and its impact on labour migration.
 Analyse the working and living conditions of migrant workers.
 Appraise the situation of migrant workers and the need for trade union action.
 Explain the content of the ILO Conventions and related instruments
concerning the rights of migrant workers.
 Describe the key governance principles, the role of social dialogue and
labour inspection in labour migration as well as the strategy for strengthening
policy coherence.
 Examine the linkage between migrant workers’ priorities with ILO’s Decent
Work Agenda.
 Suggest trade union actions aimed at addressing the root causes of labour
migration in Africa and for achieving decent work for all.
 Prepare individual Action Plans to guide their trade unions’ efforts in
defending and promoting migrant workers.
4. Expected Outcomes
The following expected outcomes were realised:
-
-
Participants gained improved intellectual fund on the subject of labour
migration and its impact on Africa’s development.
Participants suggested strategies to guide African trade union movement’s
effort in dealing with labour migration through a right-based approach.
The participants created an expanded regional trade union Network to deal
specifically with issues of labour migration. The participants unanimously
agreed that the Network should be coordinated by Slyvain Kiza KAPANGULA,
Liaison Officer, ITUC-Africa based in Nairobi, Kenya.
The participants developed individual Action Plans on what they intend to do
in the field of labour migration when they return to their respective countries.
5. Course Structure and Contents
The course comprised the following sessions:
 Orientation and self-introductions
 Current work and challenges of ILO’s international labour migration
programme
 International labour migration: a bird’s eye view
 Regional economic integration and migration
 Trade union perspective on unsafe migration, prevention and protection
 The working and living conditions of migrant workers and the need for
protection
 The international normative framework: international labour standards and
labour migration
 Governance of labour migration: coordination among institutions and issues
of policy coherence
 Role of social dialogue in good governance and labour migration
 Labour inspection and migrant workers: special challenges of a new age of
globalisation
 Presentation of country situational reports on labour migration
 Linking migrant workers’ priorities with ILO’s Decent Work Agenda
 The social protection floor
 Preparation of individual Action Plans
 Policy clinic: conclusions and recommendations
 Course evaluation
 Closing ceremony
6. Proceedings of the training course
Session 1: Introductions and Course Orientation
Self-introductions
This icebreaker exercise afforded every participant an opportunity to introduce himself
or herself to the rest of the people attending the course and to state his or her
expectations from the course. Below is a summary of the expectations of the
participants:
 Have a clear understanding about the problems facing migrant workers and
how to improve the status quo.
 Learn more about migrant workers’ rights and know how to defend them.
 Know more about the plight of Zimbabwean migrants living in South Africa.
 Develop strategies on how to achieve decent work for all and create a climate
that can help to slowdown and/or completely eliminate forced migration.
 Propose trade union strategies for ensuring protection and respect for migrant
workers’ rights.
 Have a better knowledge about the role of trade unions in relation to labour
migration.
 Improve our knowledge about how to assist migrant workers to obtain better
working and living conditions.
 Learn about research findings on labour migration and improve our
understanding about the root causes of labour migration.
 Share our experiences about the existing laws and policies governing labour
migration in our respective countries.
 Share experiences about best practices concerning the proper administration
and management of labour migration.
 Improve understanding about the push and pull factors of labour migration.
 Deepen our understanding about the gender dimension of labour migration
and formulate a trade union response.
 Develop strategies that will entice African labour migrants to transfer
remittances through official channels that could of benefit to national
development.
Course orientation
During this session, participants were introduced to the objectives, contents and
structure of the course, as well as the methodology and evaluation procedures. At the
end of the presentation, the participants applauded and unanimously adopted the
programme.
Session 2: Current Work and Challenges of ILO’s International Migration
Programme
This session unravelled the situation of labour migration from the ILO’s perspective and
underscored
the Organisation’s basic objectives and commitment of ensuring the
creation of productive employment and decent jobs in all countries. The ILO’s official
position on labour migration, the challenges it facing and its efforts in protecting migrant
workers were explained. It was pointed out that the ILO holds a neutral position vis-à-vis
the desirability of more or less migration. As such, the Organisation has no stake in
either pushing for more or less migration. Rather, it is only concerned about protecting
the rights of migrant workers and emphasis that migration should be the result of a
choice, not a necessity. The ILO’s unique tripartite character, approach and system of
governance enable representatives of workers’ and employers’ organisations to have
decisional power along with governments on this and other related issues. The ILO’s
action on international labour migration is based on the four interrelated pillars of the
Decent Work Agenda namely:
-
Employment creation;
Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work;
Social Protection;
Social Dialogue.
The ILO seeks to make sure that social partners are involved in the determination of
migration policy and benefits from its capacity building programmes. It is the only UN
agency with constitutional mandate to protect migrant workers. It has adopted two
Conventions that deal directly with migrant workers’ rights. These Conventions are C.97
and C.143. That notwithstanding, it was explained that all ILO Conventions are
applicable to migrant workers, unless otherwise stated in the Convention. It was noted
that the ILO pursues an integrated approach on migrant workers’ issues: standards,
technical cooperation, advisory services and in developing the knowledge base. At the
global level, the ILO contributes through active engagement in the Global Migration
Group (GMG) that consists of 14 UN agencies working on various aspects of migration,
plus the World Bank and the International Organisation for Migration. It was noted that
the ILO was concern about many challenges in the field of labour migration including
the treatment and protection of migrant workers, growth in irregular migration, braindrain from developing countries, job matching across borders on flexible basis, issues of
competition for global talent, segmentation of labour markets, portability of social
security rights for migrant workers, poor integration of migrants in host societies, poor
governance of migration, and enforcement of ratified conventions.
In the ensuing debate, participants acknowledged that poverty and the mounting
problems of decent work deficits; armed conflicts, human and trade union rights abuses
as well as extreme weather conditions in terms of drought and floods were the main
compelling factors behind the mass exodus of people, especially workers from the
developing countries to the developed countries in search of the so-called greener
pastures. Participants underscored that many trade unions were not adequately
informed about issues of labour migration and that they do not even have established
structures to address the concerns of migrant workers. Coupled with this was the lack of
a clear-cut policy or legislation in many African countries to tackle labour migration amid
the low rate of ratification of ILO Convention No. 97 and Convention No. 143 dealing
with labour migration. The participants tasked themselves to show case over the push
for tackling these problems in the name of ensuring worker dignity. They urged trade
unions in Africa to rise up to these challenges with a view to protecting and promoting
the interests of migrant workers.
Sessions 3 and 4: International Labour Migration: A Bird’s Eye View
The presentation on the above-mentioned topic covered the following elements:
definitions, statistics, gender and migration, factors behind labour migration,
contributions to economies and labour markets of host and origin countries, labour
migration policies and protection of migrant workers, the ILO mandate and approach to
development. It was stated that globally, there were 214 million migrants in 2010 alone
comprising nearly 3.1% of the global population. Approximately 105 million of the 214
million people living outside their countries of origin were migrant workers. About 50% of
the migrant workers were women. Migrant workers’ contributions to economies of their
countries’ of origin in terms of remittances was said to be the second largest source of
external source of funding for developing countries. It was suggested that by promoting
development and combating poverty through the creation of employment and decent
work in countries of origin, the rate of flow of labour migration will reduce. Participants
pointed that labour migration at the moment adversely impact Africa’s development
through brain-drain of trained and skilled personnel from vital sectors such as health,
education and engineering. They maintained that a realisation of the four strategic
objectives of the Decent Work Agenda and the MDGs in African countries can
contribute to a gradual process of halting labour migration and alleviating poverty.
Session 5: Regional Economic Integration and Migration
The session commenced with a brainstorming exercise on the rationale behind
economic integration and the following points were made by participants:




Facilitation of trade through the free movement of goods and services;
Facilitation of the free movement of people;
Promotion of cross-border employment;
Promotion of common economic policies and programmes including Customs
union, common taxation regime, and the like;
 Achievement of benefits from the comparative advantages of each member
States;
 Enhancement of Inter-State cooperation;
 Promotion of development opportunities for the mutual benefits of the member
States.
After the brainstorming exercise, participants were taken through the presentation on
this topic. It was pointed out that regional economic integration will enable small States
to participate effectively in today’s highly competitive globalized world dominated by
giant economic spaces. Also, it was noted that regional groupings provide larger and
diverse pools of capital, resources, skills and labour. Furthermore, greater political and
economic power accrues when dealing as blocs with giant economies or other regional
blocs.
The presentation also shed light on the European Union which has adopted the most
advanced Treaty on the free movement of workers; the Economic Community of West
African States (ECOWAS) which has enacted a Protocol on Free Movement of Persons,
the Right of Residence and Establishment since 1979; the Southern African
Development Community (SADC) which is in an advanced stage of adopting a Protocol
on the Facilitation of Movement of Persons; and the East African Community, which has
adopted the Common Market (free movement of workers) regulation.
In the ensuing plenary discussion, participants noted that despite the adoption of
treaties on the free movement of persons, the right of residence and establishment,
treaty implementation was a big challenge in the various countries of the African
regional economic groupings. They underscored that this was partly as a result of
widespread lack of awareness among the population about these treaties. They called
upon their respective trade unions to make it a point of duty to make known the contents
of the treaties to their members and the wider public. They also suggested that the trade
unions of their respective countries and regions should demand space in the decisionmaking to enable them influence and shape the policies including migration policies.
Session 7: Trade Union Perspective on Unsafe Migration, Prevention and
Protection
During this session, the following issues were covered: migration and globalisation,
growth of world migrant population 1965 - 2012, global migration – driving forces, are
migration and trafficking trade union issues, vulnerable workers, role of government,
role of trade unions and efforts made by ITUC. From the oust set, it was emphasized
that migration was not a problem, but a phenomenon as old as history and that it was
likely to increase in the future, not decrease. Therefore, the issue of focus should be on
how to regulate or govern – and not how to stop migration. Globalisation, it was noted
has made least progress in relation to cross border mobility of people and labour in
particular. It was pointed out that the ILO and the international community now see
migration as a positive factor benefiting both source and destination countries and
migrant workers and their families. It was acknowledged that respect for migrant rights
was essential for ensuring and sharing benefits from migration, hence the need for more
and better migration policies – not more and better controls and policing. Migration and
trafficking were dully recognised as trade union issues given that they concern working
people who need help and union protection. The role expected to be played by
governments were identified as follows:





Promulgation of right-based migration policy;
Ensuring effective labour inspection;
Regulating the private employment agencies;
Ensuring respect for freedom of association;
Involving social partners and other stakeholders in policy development and
strategic planning on labour migration;
 Knowledge development based on research findings.
On the other hand, the following were identified as the role expected to be
undertaken by trade unions:
 Training and awareness raising targeted at working people and the public at
large;
 Establishment of reception and counselling centres for migrants in both sending
and receiving countries;
 Ensuring pre-departure information dissemination to would-be migrants on the
rights of migrants and information about recruitment agencies;
 Provision of legal advice to migrant workers;
 Working with companies to salvage the plight of migrant workers;
 Campaigning for and influencing migration policies;
 Fight against racism and xenophobia;
 Mobilise support for migrants in destination countries.
The following efforts made by ITUC in the protection and promotion of the interests of
migrant workers were recognised:
 Creation of the global trade union alliance to combat forced labour and human
trafficking;
 Campaigning for the ratification of UN and ILO Conventions concerning migration;
 Monitoring and reporting to the ILO, UN and WTO;
 Adoption of a Special Action Plan on Migrant Workers;
 Promoting the ratification of the ILO Domestic Workers’ Convention;
 Participation in the Global Forum on Migration and Development.
Session 8: Working and Living Conditions of Migrant Workers
The topic was introduced through a brainstorming in which participants were asked to
share experiences about the working and living conditions of workers. It was stated that
migrant workers were often times subjected to exploitation and were engaged in what
they called the “3-D” jobs i.e. difficult, dangerous and degrading. They observed that
most migrant workers were employed in sectors that were renowned for high levels of
fatal accidents, injuries and diseases including agriculture, construction, mining, meat
processing, recycling, etc. This position was reinforced and buttressed by the findings of
studies undertaken in Europe that revealed that occupational accident rates were about
twice as high for migrant workers as for non-migrant workers. This, according to the
participants could be attributed to issues of language and cultural barriers which
hindered migrant workers’ understanding of specific occupational safety and health
communications, instructions and training; excessive working hours often times
involuntarily imposed on migrant workers by their employers; inadequate labour
inspection services and lack of union protection. Also, participants observed that many
migrant workers around the world are compelled by circumstances to live in makeshift
accommodation, shantytowns and other sub-standard dwellings. Besides many migrant
workers have been denied their right to join and form trade unions and/or hold positions
in trade union leadership structures. Also, the majority of the migrant workers the world
over were poorly paid – they strive on low wages and sometimes suffer huge wages
disparities with nationals. Migrant workers suffer discrimination in employment. They
were often times the first to be laid off in time of economic crisis. Unemployment rates
for migrants were higher than for nationals. Migrant workers were often given short-term
contracts being used as an excuse for avoiding social security liabilities for most migrant
workers. They were victims of racism and xenophobia and were vulnerable to HIV
infection because migrants live and work in conditions of poverty, social exclusion,
loneliness and anonymity and were also victims of sexual abuse. The journeys from
origin and receiving countries of migrants were often dangerous and many of them
perish on the way. Sometimes migrants were harassed by immigration and customs
authorities when they return to home countries.
Session 9: The International Normative Framework: International Labour
Standards on Labour Migration
The topic was introduced by a question on why do migrant workers need protection?
The following responses were generated:




Migrant workers were at risk of exploitation in the recruitment process
Migrant workers often undertake hazardous journeys to their destinations
Migrant workers were non-citizens of the countries in which they work
Migrant workers were frequently employed in low-skilled sectors not fully
regulated under national labour laws.
 Migrant workers, especially female migrants workers were subjected to multiple
discrimination
 Migrant workers were more vulnerable if in an irregular situation.
In the light of the above, participants agreed that it was realistic to have a normative
framework on the protection of the rights of migrant workers. The 8 ILO core labour
standards, the ILO Conventions Nos. 97 and 143 concerning labour migration, other
ILO Conventions with specific provisions on labour migration and ILO Conventions
generally were considered as the bedrock of the legal framework for the protection of
the rights of migrant workers. The ratification, especially of Conventions 97 and 143 was
a big challenge in Africa. Only Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Kenya, Madagascar,
Malawi, Mauritius, Nigeria, Tanzania, Zanzibar and Zambia have ratified ILO
Convention No. 97. The ILO Convention No. 143 has been ratified only by Benin,
Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Guinea, Kenya, Togo and Uganda. Against this background,
participants were encouraged to urge the leaders of their respective national trade union
centres and ITUC-Africa and OATUU as well as Global Union Federation to vigorously
campaign for the ratification and subsequent domestication of these vital instruments.
Session 10: Governance of Labour Migration: Coordination among Institutions
and Issues of Policy Coherence
During this session, the following issues were discussed: concept and criteria for good
labour migration governance, actors and elements of migration governance, migratory
life cycle approach to governance, international legal framework for the protection of
migrant workers, policy responses to labour migration in countries of origin, policy
responses to labour migration in destination countries, international cooperation, the
ILO Multilateral Framework on Labour Migration, the ILO Plan of Action: other elements,
IOM’s approach to migration governance, programmatic approach, IOM’s partnership
approach and policy coherence. It was pointed out that international migration is a
complex human endeavour being shaped by local and global socio-economic and
political forces and factors. As such, there is no single, unified global regime to govern
migration. Rather, migration governance was said to be a multi-layered, multi-actor and
multi-dimensional phenomenon. The governance of international migration was said to
be the sovereign right of States, but that States are required to govern migration in full
respect of international law. This has given rise to States increasingly recognising the
importance of inter-State cooperation in governing migration. Also, over the past
decades, various institutional structures, processes and modalities have evolved for
advancing dialogue and cooperation to govern migration. The majority of these
organisations were pursuing a collaborative approach to enhance governance of
migration with a view to working together in a mutually reinforcing way to achieve
common overarching goods. Political commitment and leadership, strategic policy
framework, clear definitions and good analysis of issues, decision-making process to
resolve priorities, mechanisms to resolve policy conflicts and capacity to ensure
consistency were identified as the key elements of policy coherence.
Session 11: Role of Social Dialogue in Good Governance of Labour Migration
This topic was introduced through a brainstorming exercise during which participants
were asked to define the concept of social dialogue. The concept of social dialogue was
defined as all types of negotiation, consultation or exchange of information among
representatives of governments, employers’ and workers’ organisations on issues of
common interest related to social and economic policy irrespective of whether the
dialogue is institutionalised or informalised. It was noted that social dialogue can take
different forms namely: bipartite, tripartite or tripartite plus. Also, it was acknowledged
that social dialogue can take place at international, regional, national, sector/branch and
enterprise levels. The ILO was cited as a pace setter of social dialogue. Furthermore,
the following were identified as preconditions for constructive social dialogue: freedom
of association, democratic foundations, legitimacy of social partners, political will and
commitment to engage in social dialogue, technical competence and capacity to deliver.
Narrow vested interest, blocking reforms, lack of agreements on economic
analysis/prescription and lack of democratic accountability and legitimacy were
identified as the pitfalls of social dialogue. The issues addressed in social dialogue,
benefits of social dialogue, standards related to social dialogue (C.87, C.98, C.151,
C.154 and C.144), social dialogue and migration, role of employers’ and workers’
organisations climaxed the discussion.
Session 12: Labour Inspection and Migrant Workers: Special Challenges of a New
Age of Globalisation
Labour inspection was defined as a public function of labour administration that ensures
the application of labour legislation in the workplace. Its role is to convince the social
partners of the need to observe the law at the workplace and their mutual interest in this
regard, through preventative, educational and, where necessary, enforcement
measures. It was emphasized that labour inspection services promote and ensure
compliance with national legislation, in such areas as occupational safety and health,
working conditions and other aspects of the employment relationship. These services
also help to increase the effectiveness of employment policies at the enterprise level,
preventing the conflict, addressing the negative consequences of globalisation and
promoting social peace. Undeclared work was associated with migrant workers because
they are undocumented. This state of affairs rendered them susceptible to serving as
vectors to undermine respect for, and enforcement of decent work conditions and
standards in national labour markets.
The challenges of labour inspection in relation to labour migration were identified as
follows:
 Sub-standard conditions of employment of migrant workers;
 Migrant workers often have lesser knowledge of legal standards;
 Informal employment agreements leave migrant workers with little or no basis for
upholding claims to wages/payments;
 Difficult to ensure compliance along sub-contracting claims;
 Widespread imposition of measures that compel labour inspectors to conduct
immigration enforcement activity as part of their workplace inspection agenda:
this can intimidate precarious migrant workers from exposing their abusive
conditions.
Session 13: Linking Migrant Workers’ Priorities with ILO’s Decent Work Agenda
This topic shed light of the following issues: age of mobility, migrant workers’ priorities,
the ILO’s mandate, the rights-based approach, what is decent work, the four pillars of
decent work, problems facing trade unions and the task for trade unions. A famous
quotation by Mr. Ban Ki-Moon, UN Secretary General which states: “we live in an age of
mobility, a time when more people are on the move than at any other time in human
history” was read out. It was explained that 214 million people including 105 million
migrant workers were living outside their countries of origin. It was emphasised that
labour migration was inevitable (and not undesirable) part of human development. An
appeal was made for more attention to be focused on making it work for countries of
origin, destination and migrant themselves. Issues of priority concerned for migrant
workers were identified as follows: protection of human and labour rights of migrant
workers, protection of migrant workers against abuses and malpractices, xenophobia
and racial harassment, high work uncertainty (poor working conditions, low wages, work
permit, job insecurity, temporary jobs, etc.), administration and management of
migration flows, bilateral and regional consultations and agreements, role of social
partners in migration issues, control of trafficking of women and children, information
campaigns and orientation as well as family reunification. The ILO’s mandate was reechoed i.e. to promote opportunities for men and women to obtain decent and
productive work, in conditions of freedom, equality, security and human dignity, which is
summed up by the expression “Decent Work as a global goal.” Decent Work was
defined as work that is productive, gives fair income, security in the workplace and
social protection for the family, equal opportunities and treatment, better prospect for
personal development and social integration, freedom to organise and participate in
decision making. Some of the task expected to be performed by trade unions were
defined as follows:
 Cooperate with trade unions in other countries to protect and promote the rights
of migrant workers;
 Organise migrant workers into viable trade unions as this was the best way to
protect them;
 Lobby authorities and other stakeholders to tackle the root causes of irregular
migration flows;
 Negotiate for the safe return of irregular migrants in conditions of dignity;
 Lobby sending countries to adopt policy and pursue programmes to reduce
emigration pressures.
Session 14: The Social Protection Floor and Migration
The presentation first shed light on the history of social security systems. It then
touched on the current global coverage stating that 20% of the world’s population has
adequate coverage, 50% are not covered, less than 10% are covered in the least
developed countries, 20% to 60% are covered in middle income countries and close to
100% are covered in most of the industrialised countries. It was explained that in the
wake of the current global economic crisis, there has been growing concern for
extending social protection to excluded populations, hence the call for a universal social
protection floor for all. The notion social protection floor is about holistic and coherent
vision of national social protection systems; identification and closing of crucial
protection gaps through coherent and efficient measures; concerted actions of UN
agencies, national governments and, stakeholders as well donor agencies; and
increase the resilience of societies against the impact of crises through the
implementation of automatic social and economic stabilizers. The social protection floor
aspires to attain the following:
 Universal coverage – guaranteed minimum protection;
 Poverty alleviation;
 Minimum income allowing to retain some purchasing power, remain active & be
able to move upwards, by having:
1) Access to essential health care for all;
2) Income security for children;
3) Assistance to unemployed, underemployed and poor;
4) Income security for the elderly & disabled.
To ensure effective access to social security, Governments should provide an
appropriate policy, legal and institutional framework, effective governance and
management, foster coherence of social security policies with employment,
macroeconomic and other social policies; develop a national two-dimensional social
security extension strategy, promote gender equality, address the needs of women,
men and children and the specific needs of vulnerable groups. On the other hand,
employers’ and workers’ organisations should raise awareness and build public support
for social security and the ILO social security standards, actively participate in social
dialogue processes aiming at the design, implementation and monitoring of national
social security strategies and policies, as well as the establishment of national social
protection floors, jointly develop initiatives to support the transition to formal
employment and formal enterprises and to actively participate in the governance of
social security institutions.
Questions were raised about how the social protection floor was to be funded? In reply
to this question, it was suggested that this can be achieved through taxation and special
contributions from the state and international agencies. It was pointed out that between
3 to 5% of GDP will be required by least developed countries to deliver on this
praiseworthy initiative that can help tackle poverty and assure the dignity of humanity.
Session 15: Presentation of Country Reports
Each participant was allotted time and space to present his or her country report. After
every presentation, participants were allowed to ask questions, make comments and
demand clarifications on each country report that was prepared based on the following
format:
 Trends in the labour migration situation of your country;
 The working and living conditions of migrant workers in your country;
 The effects of labour migration on your country’s economy and social
development;
 Key provisions of national policy and labour laws concerning migrant workers’
rights and benefits including the right to organise, right to recognition of the
union, right to collective bargaining and right to strike; legal issues concerning
precarious employment and contract workers;
 Trade unions’ response to the plight of migrant workers;
 Situation regarding the ratification and implementation of ILO’s International
Labour Standards in general and ILO Conventions concerning migrant workers;
 The state of affairs concerning labour inspection in your country;
 Description of national social dialogue structure if any in terms of composition,
main functions, frequency of its meetings and respectability of its decisions;
 Bird’s eye view of the Decent Work Country Programme (DWCP) and the state
of the Millennium Development Goals.
Session 16: Format for Preparing Individual Action Plans
The format for preparing the individual Action Plans was given as follows:
1. Title of the project that you wish to undertake
2. Background
3. Goal i.e. high level statements that provide overall context for what the project is
trying to achieve, and these should align to the trade union goal.
4. Objectives i.e. concrete statements describing what the project is trying to
achieve. The objectives must be:
 Specific
 Measurable
 Achievable
 Realistic
 Time-bound
They are the end products that can be reasonably achieved within an expected
timeframe and with available resources. They are the basis for policy and
performance appraisals.
5. Expected outcome i.e. a description of what the project should achieve in order
to show that a particular problem is resolved. It is a written statement of specific,
measurable and realistic results of the goal attainment. The expected outcome
describes significant and essential results the project has achieved and can be
reliably demonstrated as an outcome of project.
6. Target group(s)
7. Cooperating partners
8. Activities
9. Who is responsible for what?
10. Resources i.e. human, finance and material
11. Monitoring and Evaluation mechanisms
12. Assumptions:
‐ Positive side (opportunities)
‐ Negative side (risks)
13. Reporting and accountability
14. Timeframe
All the participants showed absolute commitment towards this process and they were
able to develop and present their individual Action Plans during the plenary session.
Almost all presentations received some comments which concerned participants
promised to include in the final versions of their Action Plans.
Session 17: Policy Clinic – Conclusions and Recommendations
Through brainstorming participants were first asked to make an analysis and critical
evaluation of the factors that have greatly influenced labour migration in Africa. In this
analysis, the following were identified:
 Unemployment and under-employment, which weigh heavily on young people;
 Political and economic instability;
 Widespread poverty (low income levels);
 Poor working conditions including low wages/salaries;
 High cost of living;
 Extreme weather conditions (drought and floods);
 Bad governance often characterised by human and labour rights abuses;
 Growing inequalities including unprecedented huge income disparities between
the rich and poor within countries and between Africa countries and the
developed world;
 Globalisation being governed by policies of liberation, privatisation, free market
economy, and the like;
 Armed conflicts and civil wars;
 The growing demand and search for talents by developed countries;
 Demand for foreign labour as cheap source of labour.
Furthermore, the following lessons were drawn based on Africa’s past experiences in
the area of labour migration:
 Many African migrant workers are facing inhuman treatment, xenophobia and
racial attacks in their countries of destinations;
 Africa’s development agenda has been affected by brain-drain;
 Africa has benefited from remittances;
 Africa has profited to some extend from brain-gain;
 African trade unions have not positioned themselves well to deal with issues of
labour migration;
 There is absence of proper legal framework at all levels to effectively deal with
the issue of labour migration;
 There is hardly any order process of administration and management of labour
migration;
 Governments have paid serious attention to proper administration and
management of labour migration, rather their efforts are geared more towards
prevention and control measures.
 Issues of migration, especially labour migration have not been adequately
addressed in the educational curricula in most countries in Africa.
On the basis of the above analysis and lessons learnt from Africa’s past in the area of
labour migration, the following recommendations, reflecting the concerns arising from
this training course and which if implemented will enable your regional trade union
organisations, Global Union Federations and national trade union centres contribute to
addressing the challenges facing African labour migrants within the framework of the
DWCPs were proposed:
Governments
 To create sufficient decent employment opportunities to tackle the challenges of
decent work deficits and meet the needs of job seekers;
 To ratify and domesticate the Labour Migration Conventions (i.e. C97 and C143),
the Core Conventions (C87, C98, C100, C111, C29, C105, C138 and C182) and
the Priority Conventions (C81, C129, C122 and C144).
 To revamp the labour inspection services and allocate more resources to support
staff training aimed at enhancing the effective operations of the labour inspectors.
 To include representatives of social partners in decision making hinging on
issues of labour migration, trade, investment and cooperation.
 To appoint labour attaches in foreign High Commissions and Embassies to deal
exclusively with issues of labour migration
Trade Unions
 Campaign for the ratification and effective enforcement of all relevant ILO and
UN Conventions on labour migration.
 Provide training on labour migration.
 Negotiate for the inclusion of special clauses on the protection of the rights of
migrant workers.
 Create a line of contract with counterpart trade union organisations in receiving
countries and fully collaborate with them to jointly network on issues of labour
migration.
 Organise migrant workers into viable trade unions and negotiate better terms and
conditions of employment.
 Undertake knowledge development and create a data bank on labour migration.
Employers’ Organisations
 Uphold labour laws and respect international norms with a view to ensuring fully
protection of the rights and promotion of the interest of migrant workers.
Communities and Other Stakeholders
 To uphold rule of law and respect the fundamental liberties of migrant workers.
 Fight against xenophobia, racial and all forms of discrimination.
7. Participants
Fifteen trade unionists whose responsibilities are in one way or another related to labour
migration from a selected number of trade union organisations in English speaking
African countries including CETU-Ethiopia, NCEW-Eretria, GTUC-Ghana, COTU-Kenya,
MLC-Mauritius, COSATU-South Africa, FETUS-Somalia, SLLC-Sierra Leone, TUCTATanzania, NOTU-Uganda, ZCTU-Zimbabwe, BWI-Africa, PSI-Africa, ITUC-Africa and
OATUU (represented by ZCTU-Zambia) attended the five-day training course.
8. Methodology
The learning methods used in the course acknowledged participants' level of
competence and experience and took into account that they already had practical
experience in the areas of labour migration. An active learning methodology was
employed throughout the course, which encouraged the participants to fully involve
themselves in all aspects of the training.
9. Evaluation
The course was evaluated on a daily basis by gauging the activism of participants and
the effectiveness of group exercises that generated continuous feedback between the
participants and the resource persons. Also, an end of the course, standard evaluation
questionnaires on the training and organisational aspects of the programme were
administered for participants to express their opinion and provide the ITCILO, the
trainers and organisers with suggestions for the improvement of future courses. The
graph below summaries the views expressed by the participants:
A155169 ‐ Trade union actions for achieving decent work for migrants for English‐speaking Africa
Percentage of 4 & 5 answers by questions
100%
93%
100%
90%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
100%
93%
93%
100% 100%
93%
93%
80%
80%
70%
93%
64%
80%
10. Conclusions
The five-day training course contributed to the realisation of ILO’s outcome 7 i.e. more
migrant workers are protected and more migrant workers have access to productive
employment and decent work and ILO’s outcome 10 i.e. workers have strong,
independent and representative organisation.
The participants commended the relevance and timeliness of the course. Also,
participants expressed appreciation of the enhancement of their knowledge and skills
about international labour migration, regional economic integration and migration,
working and living conditions of migrant workers, the international normative framework:
international labour standards on labour migration, governance of labour migration, role
of social dialogue and labour inspection in good governance of labour migration, and
linkage between migrant workers’ priorities with ILO’s Decent Work Agenda and social
protection floor and migration. Furthermore, the course enabled them to improve their
knowledge and also facilitated the exchange and cross fertilization of information and
experiences among them. The contributions made by resource persons were generally
of very good level and provoked a good deal of discussions during the training. Each
participant prepared an Action Plan to guide his/her work vis-à-vis the furtherance of the
momentum generated in their respective countries. The Action Plans will also serve as
reference point in determining follow-up activities and for undertaking an impact
assessment at a future date. Mr. Slyvain Kiza Kapangula who represented ITUC-Africa
at this training course was unanimously agreed upon by the participants to serve as a
focal person for the coordination of networking relationships among them on issues
concerning labour migration.
11. Appreciation
Participants expressed profound thanks and appreciation to ITCILO and ACTRAV-Turin
in particular for the opportunity of contributing to their capacity enhancement and for
facilitating the exchange and sharing of experiences among them – a platform that
pledge to maintain in the furtherance of the goal of emancipating migrant workers and
other vulnerable groups within the world of work in Africa.
A155169
Trade union actions for achieving decent work for
migrants for English-speaking Africa
21/05/2012 – 25/05/2012
ERITREA
Full Nam
e:
National
Centre:
Institution
:
Position:
Address:
Tel.:
Fax:
Mr. Berhane Kahsai AREFAINE
1
[NCEW] NATIONAL CONFEDERATION OF ERITREAN
WORKERS
National Confederation of Eritrean Workers
Legal adviser
Asmara, Eritrea; PO Box: 1188; 172.1; Asmara; ERITREA
00291-1-116187/7116044
00291-1-126606
Web:
E-mail:
wedibatse@yahoo.com, fewli2001@yahoo.co.uk,
wedibatse2007@gmail.com
Full Nam
e:
National
Centre:
Institution
:
Position:
Mr. Berhanu Deriba BIRRU
ETHIOPIA
Address:
Tel.:
Fax:
2
[CETU] CONFEDERATION OF ETHIOPIAN TRADE UNIONS
CONFEDERATION OF ETHIOPIAN TRADE UNIONS
Head of CETU’s department of planning reasearch and
infrmation
ADDIS ABABA ETHIOPIA; 3653; ADDIS ABABA; ETHIOPIA
+25115157997
Web:
E-mail:
birhanudriba@yahoo.com, cetu@ethionet.et, cetu@ethionet.et
Full Nam
e:
National
Centre:
Institution
:
Position:
Ms. Phyllis ASARE
GHANA
[TUC] TRADE UNION CONGRESS
GHANA TRADES UNION CONGRESS
INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS OFFICER
3
Address:
Tel.:
Fax:
GHANA TRADES UNION CONGRESS; PO Box: 701; 233302; ACCRA; GHANA
+233 208530899/244481639
+233 21667161 / 660618
Web:
E-mail:
phyllisasare62@yahoo.com, phyllisasare62@yahoo.com,
phyllisasare62@yahoo.com
Full Nam
e:
National
Centre:
Institution
:
Position:
Address:
Tel.:
Fax:
Ms. Ellen Makafui DZOKOTO
Public Service International (PSI)
PO Box: 2994; Accra; GHANA - GHANA
+233 302500068/208156330/245697342
+233 302503563
Web:
www.ghananurses.org
E-mail:
info@ghananurses.org, edzokoto @AngloGoldAshanti.com.gh
Full Nam
e:
National
Centre:
Institution
:
Position:
Address:
Tel.:
Fax:
Ms. Alice Kabibi CHARO
GHANA
4
[TUC] TRADE UNION CONGRESS
Ghana Registred Nurses Association
KENYA
5
[COTU] CENTRAL ORGANISATION OF TRADE UNIONS
Building and Woodworkers International (BWI)
Deputy Director of Education, KUPRIPUPA
KENYA
+254 721607053
+254
Web:
E-mail:
alicecharo@yahoo.com, kupripupa04@yahoo.com
Full Nam
e:
National
Centre:
Mr. Sylvain KAPANGULA KIZA
KENYA
KENYA OTHERS
6
Institution
:
Position:
Address:
ITUC Africa
Tel.:
Fax:
Chief of Liason Office
Solidarity building, Digo Rd 8COTU-Kenya Headquarters); PO
Box: 4401; Nairobi; KENYA – KENYA
+254 020 676 85 28, 722 733 075
+254 020 676 85 29
Web:
www.ituc-africa.org
E-mail:
sylvain.kiza@ituc-africa.org, liaisonnairobi@gmail.com
Full Nam
e:
National
Centre:
Institution
:
Position:
Address:
Tel.:
Fax:
Mr. Said KIVALE
KENYA
7
[COTU] CENTRAL ORGANISATION OF TRADE UNIONS
KENYA UNION OF PRINTING, PUBLISHING, PAPER
MANUFACTURERS AND ALLIED WORKERS
Industrial Relations and Eduaction officer
KUPRIPUPA; PO Box: 72358; 00200; NAIROBI; KENYA
+254 722736936/721264159
Web:
E-mail:
kupripupa04@yahoo.com, kupripupa04@yahoo.com,
saidkivale@yahoo.com
Full Nam
e:
National
Centre:
Institution
:
Position:
Address:
Mr. Bholanath JEEWUTH
MAURITIUS
Tel.:
[MAURITIUS TRADE UNION CONGRESS] MAURITIUS
TRADE UNION CONGRESS
MAURITIUS LABOUR CONGRESS
8, Louis Victor de la Faye St.; Port Louis; Mauritius MAURITIUS
+230 212-4343
8
Fax:
+230 208-8945
Web:
E-mail:
mlcongress@intnet.mu, nurses-union@intnet.mu,
jvidhata@gmail.com
Full Nam
e:
National
Centre:
Institution
:
Position:
Address:
Ms. Nellista Lady-jane JOHN
SIERRA LEONE
Tel.:
Fax:
9
[SLLC] SIERRA LEONE LABOUR CONGRESS
HOTEL, FOOD, DRINKS, TOBACCO, ENTERTAINMENT
AND TOURISM WORKERS UNION
EXECUTIVE COUNCIL MEMBER
35 WALLACE JOHNSON STREET; + 232; FREETOWN;
SIERRA LEONE
+232 252 77900/76635952
Web:
E-mail:
countrylodgecomplex@yahoo.com, sierralabour@yahoo.com,
nellistajohn@yahoo.com
Full Nam
e:
National
Centre:
Institution
:
Position:
Address:
Mr. Abdiasis Ahmed ADEN
SOMALIA
Tel.:
Fax:
10
Federation of Somali Trade Unions - FESTU
Somali Maritime, Fisheries & Port Workers’ Union (SMFPWU)
FESTU executive Committee Member
Taleex, KM4 Area, Hodan District; Mogadishu; SOMALIA SOMALIA
+252 1 850013/615557008
+252
Web:
E-mail:
info@festu.org, cqanyare@gmail.com
Full Nam
e:
National
Centre:
Mr. Habofanoe Jon Thomas KETSISE
SOUTH AFRICA
[COSATU] CONGRESS OF SOUTH AFRICAN TRADE
UNIONS
11
Institution
:
Position:
Address:
Tel.:
Fax:
National Union of Mineworkers (NUM)
Policy Research Head
PO Box: 2424; 2000; Johannesburg; SOUTH AFRICA SOUTH AFRICA
+27 11 3772000/866098317/0828842754
+27 11 8369615
Web:
E-mail:
ZMADUNA@NUM.ORG.ZA, TKETSISE@NUM.ORG.ZA
TANZANIA, UNITED REPUBLIC OF
Full Nam
e:
National
Centre:
Institution
:
Position:
Address:
Tel.:
Fax:
Ms. Bridget SENGWAJI
12
[TUCTA] TRADE UNIONS’ CONGRESS OF TANZANIA
TAMICO
Legal Officer
PO Box: 72136; Dar es Salaam; TANZANIA - TANZANIA,
UNITED REPUBLIC OF
+255 2123875/755659185
+255 2123875
Web:
E-mail:
TAMICO@BOT.CO.TZ, SENGWAJIB@YAHOO.COM,
Full Nam
e:
National
Centre:
Institution
:
Position:
Address:
Tel.:
Ms. Harriet MUGAMBWA NGANZI
UGANDA
[NOTU] NATIONAL ORGANISATION OF TRADE UNIONS
Uganda mines, metal, oil, gas and allied workers’ union
Education & Organising Secretary
PO Box: 1735; Jinja; UGANDA - UGANDA
+256 77449010/772439236/755439236
13
Fax:
+256
Web:
E-mail:
MUGAMBWAH@YAHOO.COM,
UMMOGAWU@YAHOO.COM
Full Nam
e:
National
Centre:
Institution
:
Position:
Address:
Tel.:
Fax:
Ms. Ngoma Getrude CHIKUTA
ZAMBIA
14
ZAMBIA CONGRESS OF TRADE UNION (OATUU)
Railway Workers’ Union of Zambia (RWUZ)
Deputy General Secretary, Railway Workers’ Union of Zambia
President Avenue; PO Box: 70364; Ndola; ZAMBIA – ZAMBIA
+260 613067/977633412
+260 615636
Web:
E-mail:
gchikuta2000@yahoo.com
Full Nam
e:
National
Centre:
Institution
:
Position:
Address:
Mr. UNGANAI DICKSON TARUSENGA
ZIMBABWE
Tel.:
Fax:
[ZCTU] ZIMBABWE CONGRESS OF TRADE UNIONS
Federation of Food and Allied Workers Unions Of Zimbabwe
[FFAWUZ]
General Secretary of FFAWUZ
No. 7 Jason Moyo Ave Cnr Harare St.,3rd Floor,Gorlon
House,; PO Box: 4211; Harare; ZIMBABWE - ZIMBABWE
+263 4 748482/772426056
+263 4 748482
Web:
E-mail:
ffawuzdick@mweb.co.zw
15