write to your member of parliament

If you are in the UK, you can also write to your Member of Parliament asking them to support the HOME ALONE: End Domestic Slavery campaign by writing to the Business Secretary, Vince Cable, urging him to reconsider the Government’s current position and support the adoption of a new ILO convention on domestic work.

To find out who your MP is and email them visit www.writetothem.com or post a letter to:
(NAME) MP
House of Commons
London, SW1A 0AA

You can use the sample letter below and adapt it with your own words before sending if you wish.

sample letter

Subject: Please urge the Government to support a new ILO convention on Domestic Work

Dear (NAME) MP

I am writing to ask for you to support Anti-Slavery International's HOME ALONE: End Domestic Slavery campaign by calling upon the Government to support the adoption of a new International Labour Organization (ILO) convention on domestic work. 

I am deeply concerned about the situation of domestic workers in the UK and around the world, many of whom suffer from abuse, exploitation and slavery.

Working behind closed doors in a private household, domestic workers, the vast majority of whom are women and girls, face extremely long hours of work, often for very low wages or none at all, without breaks, days off or holidays. Some are denied adequate food, and many are subjected to physical and sometimes sexual violence.

Domestic work is all too often undervalued, unrecognised and unregulated. In many countries, domestic workers are excluded form national labour legislation. Existing international conventions have failed to address the unique circumstances of domestic work and have not provided domestic workers with adequate protections against exploitation and slavery.

The UK government has made significant efforts to address the abuse of domestic workers in this country. The UK is well ahead of other countries in providing protections to domestic workers including the National Minimum Wage, proper rest periods, holiday pay, and prohibiting employers from confiscating the passports of domestic workers.

I am therefore extremely disappointed that the Government is not, at current, supporting the creation of a new ILO convention on domestic work.

I would be very grateful if you could write to the Business Secretary, Vince Cable, urging him to reconsider the Government’s current position and ensure that:

-The Government supports a new robust ILO convention on domestic work, supplemented by a Recommendation, at the 2010 and 2011 International Labour Conferences.
-The Convention recognises the special conditions in which domestic work is carried out, sets out clear rules to prevent abuse, and promotes equality for domestic workers under labour laws.
-The Convention contains specific provisions to protect child and migrant domestic workers.

Thank you for your consideration. I look forward to your reply.

Yours faithfully,
(your name)

Many thanks for joining our HOME ALONE campaign and helping to END DOMESTIC SLAVERY.

Please send any responses you receive to Gemma Wolfes at g.wolfes@antislavery.org  or post them to:
Anti-Slavery International
Thomas Clarkson House
The Stableyard, Broomgrove road,
London, SW9 9TL

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