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Findings from South Africa suggest that supporting informal employment could help countries reach development goals by Mike Rogan & Paul Cichello Informal workers are all too often seen simply as “vulnerable” and “unproductive” workers trapped in a cycle of poverty. It’s true that informal workers –...
Since the tragic collapse of the Rana Plaza buildings in Bangladesh in 2013, the decent work deficits in global supply chains have enjoyed renewed focus. The tragedy has resulted in the Bangladesh Accord on Fire and Building Safety, the Bangladesh Alliance, and, ultimately, in the 2016 International...
Over the last couple of weeks, we’ve been exploring technologies used by informal workers to improve their productivity and some of the challenges they face in upgrading this “technology” – often simple tools, such as knives, ropes and wheelbarrows. The results are based on a report conducted by...
Informal worker organizations need solidarity, clarity and accountability to record bargaining wins It might be surprising to learn that workers in the informal economy – just like those in formal employment – engage extensively in collective negotiations. This common strategy is one of the most...
By Kendra Hughes In recent years, there has been an increasing emphasis on the potential for technology to lift millions out of poverty. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set out global benchmarks to ensure the poor and vulnerable have equal rights to economic resources, including appropriate...
Technology and innovation at the base of the economic pyramid Nisha is nineteen years old and spends her days hunched over a small board on the ground, rolling incense sticks for a local contractor in Ahmedabad, India. Rolling incense sticks by hand is hard work, and Nisha earns just 10-12 rupees...
In August 2016, Mexico City's Commission on Human Rights (CDHDF) issued the first-ever recommendation on waste management service to address the labour conditions of the city’s waste pickers. It includes measures that the central government and the delegations (municipalities) should implement to...
Down a small alleyway off of a busy Bangkok road, a residential workshop the size of a small corner store rarely stops humming. The workers, who spend long hours hunched over machines, produce intricately designed bronze flatware that has been a tradition for generations in the Pradit Torakarn...
By Carlin Carr WIEGO’s newly appointed Organizing and Representation Director Jane Barrett recently returned from a trip to Tanzania where she visited the Mchikichini Market in Dar es Salaam. The majority of traders in the market are women who sell locally produced cloth or home-produced clothes...
Creating “inclusive cities” is a hot topic right now. Habitat III has just wound up in Quito, Ecuador – the UN’s urban conference that brought together urban leaders from around the world – and the recently adopted New Urban Agenda sets forth a roadmap for creating a more just and sustainable urban...
Videos / Slideshows / Audio
Millions of women work long hours, in dangerous conditions, for little pay. They are fighting for change, with the help of ILO Convention 189 on Decent Work for Domestic Workers. Watch this video to learn how.
Workers Education/Organizing Materials
This manual helps street vendors learn more about the regulations that govern public space and how to defend the right to work in public space. It describes successful actions taken by street vendor organizations. And it offers information to help you organize and negotiate with local government.
WIEGO Working Papers
Mike Rogan reviews how informal workers are taxed, why there is growing interest in taxing them, and whether they should be included in the tax net.