Template on Standard Terms of Employment (STOE) for Women Migrant Domestic Workers

Establishing a Standard Terms of Employment (STOE) for women migrant domestic workers is crucial as they are excluded from national labour laws of most countries, both countries of origin and destination. They are doubly vulnerable through their status as migrants and as woman. Furthermore, domestic work takes place in informal, private settings and thus it is very important to formalize domestic work to protect the rights of migrant domestic workers. Countries of origin and destination agree on the importance of having a standard employment contract to protect workers despite gaps in the legal framework, and UN Women built on this agreement and initiated the development of a gender responsive STOE for migrant domestic workers. Countries of origin and destination have used different standard contracts, and UN Women advocates that employment contracts adhere to international standards of labour and human rights protection for women migrant domestic workers.

UN Women Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific instituted a participatory and consultative process to develop a gender responsive model STOE template that may be executed between the contracting parties namely the migrant domestic worker and the employer. This process entailed collecting inputs and insights from multi-stakeholders in Asia...