In December, the Union of Home Staff (UHS) held a series of events and meetings to increase the Union’s capacity and promote the UHS as a strategic partner for employment agencies.
On December 12, UHS held a strategic cooperation meeting with private employment agencies to foster beneficial social dialogue in this predominantly informal or semi-formal sector. LI, a long-standing partner of domestic workers, facilitated a meeting with several leading agencies, such as FreeMama and Territory of Modern Nannies, that either serve as intermediaries between households and care workers or act as employers themselves.
Care workers are and will continue to be a highly sought-after category of professionals, considering that, according to information presented at the meeting, over one million women in Ukraine have children aged from birth to six years old and are not participating in the labor market. Given the significant workforce demand in Ukraine now and in the post-war period, these women require support through facilities such as kindergartens and care workers.
Both the Union and the agencies responsible for care workers’ employment agree that formal employment and labor formalization are essential for sustainable relations. This approach will ensure sector predictability for both care workers and employers. For further collaboration, the parties agreed to develop formal relationships through memorandums of understanding to promote decent work for care workers in all possible ways.
Additionally, the employment agencies recognized the valuable training provided to UHS members by the Union. They committed to promoting these educational programs and UHS itself to care workers applying through their agencies.
In addition to engagements with employment agencies, UHS, as an affiliate of the FPU, also convened with representatives from the National Qualification Agency. They deliberated on the development of specific professional qualifications for various categories of domestic workers, aligning with European standards. An agreement was reached to eliminate the outdated and disrespectful qualification title ‘domestic servant’ from the National Unified Register of Qualifications. The parties attained a consensus and committed to ongoing collaboration on these issues.
Between December 20 and 21, UHS, with support from LI, conducted a second two-day training session focused on emergency first aid for a group of fifteen domestic workers engaged in childcare. The agenda covered discussions on formal and informal employment, importance of employment contracts, and served as a platform to promote the union’s activities among these care providers.
This was the second session in a series for UHS activists, members, and potential members. The union leadership sees these sessions as an opportunity to demonstrate that the union can provide workers with essential skills, potentially resulting in higher wages.
Furthermore, the Union uses these trainings to recruit new members. As a result of this training and the organizing work in November-December, 16 new members joined the UHS.
