Organising the ‘Invisible' Sector: A Case Study on Household Workers in Lima

This paper examines the organisation of household workers in Lima. Household services is one of the biggest employers of female workers in Peru, and roughly a half of all household workers live in the capital Lima. Among other informal workers, household workers are regarded as one of the most precarious and marginalised group of workers in the labour markets. The lack of recognition, and the fact that the work is done in private households, makes the household sector ‘invisible’ and thus the workers’ rights, including working hours, wages and access to social security, are poorly controlled. Lima provides an interesting case for studying household workers’ movement. In recent years, household workers have increasingly mobilised on local, national as well as international level and formed new networks to promote their rights as citizens but most importantly, as workers. In 2011, the international labour conference accepted a convention for domestic workers, setting labour standards for persons working in household services. Peru has not yet ratified the convention, but especially the local household workers’ organisations have been actively campaigning for the ratification. This paper investigates the various forms of organising household workers in Lima. Special focus is given on household workers’ organisations and their networks, and the ways these promote decent work and job quality for workers in household services. Since informality in the sector is high and less than 1% of household workers in Peru are unionised, non-governmental organisations play a significant role in advancing the position of household workers in the labour markets and in the society.