GAATW in Times of COVID-19
The COVID-19 pandemic and its harsh containment measures have had disastrous consequences for billions of workers globally. Migrant workers, workers in the informal economy and people without any social security have been hit the hardest. States have set up relief measures by doing cash transfers and home delivery of food and other essential items for those in need.
But as always, there are many people who do not come under the official lists of people in need. The undocumented workers, the workers whose work the state does not recognise as work, people who are not officially “below poverty line” and many others. Our members and partners have joined other like-minded organisations and individuals to reach out to such people. We at the GAATW Secretariat feel honoured to have been able to contribute to some of these emergency aid initiatives. We are grateful to our grant making partners who allowed us to use part of the project funds for this much needed urgent assistance. Below are a few (but by no means all) examples of the actions we and our members have taken.
Our project partners in the states of Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh in India are providing rice, wheat and pulses to marginalised communities living in rural areas who have no access to food and other amenities. They are also distributing face masks, hand sanitisers and medicines and sharing information among migrant workers and their families on Covid-19 and the importance of physical distancing. Our partners in the states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka are supporting the government in providing immediate relief to stranded migrant workers in the garment and construction sectors. They are negotiating with the State government and employers to pay salaries of the workers in the lockdown period. Our partner in the Middle East is aiming to help provide 1,000 workers of all faiths and nationalities with a hot meal, fruits, and dates every day this Ramadan. TWC2 in Singapore raised funds that allowed them to give 10-dollar mobile top ups to 28,000 migrant workers who could no longer afford to buy phone credit. Across our membership, emergency services such as shelters and hotlines remain open, although sometimes at reduced capacity and with extra measures to protect the health and safety of employees and residents. Counselling services continue too, over phone, Skype, WhatsApp and other means.
Our members who work with sex workers have also provided support to their communities. In Switzerland, FIZ is gathering information about the situation of sex workers and making it available to counselling centres as well as to sex workers in various languages, in addition to financial support for sex workers in regions where no counselling services exist. In Hong Kong, Action for Reach Out (AFRO) received a donation of 5,000 bottles of hand sanitiser and 1,000 face masks for children from business partners in Hong Kong. AFRO used the donation during its outreach work to distribute among sex workers in the city. In the state of Jharkhand, India, Srijan Foundation is providing rations to sex workers who do not feature on the lists of the government. In Vancouver, Canada, SWAN has been making public health information accessible to migrant sex workers through translation and dissemination, in addition to raising donations for those most in need. Furthermore, with financial support from the City of Vancouver, SWAN created several part-time positions for im/migrant sex workers who lost income due to the pandemic. The women will deliver emergency COVID-19-related services and information and develop SWAN's response to evolving issues facing sex workers. In Mexico, Brigada Callejera prepared and handed out meals to sex workers and distributed condoms. In Norway, PION established a crisis fund to help sex workers with money for food and basic needs.
Apart from relief support, our members and partners are also advocating for stronger state actions. In Europe, ICRSE published a Call for Action demanding that European governments provide income, housing and health support to sex workers, end fines, raids, arrests and prosecutions, and, in the long term, implement social and economic reforms to end the marginalisation and inequality experienced by migrants, including those without papers, LGBTQI people, and sex workers. La Strada International and its members published a statement calling on EU and national governments to implement a human rights approach to containing the pandemic and to ensure the protection of the rights of trafficked and exploited people.
In Latin America, AMUMRA (Argentina) and SINTRASEDOM (Colombia) joined other domestic worker rights organisations and unions and sent an urgent appeal (in Spanish) to their governments and civil society demanding the protection of the rights of domestic workers as women, workers and citizens, and a recognition of their contributions to the national economies. Brigada Callejera lobbied the Mexico City government to ensure support for medication, access to unemployment and the establishment of a shelter for sex workers who were left on the streets after hotels and inns closed due to the pandemic.
In Asia, OKUP called on the Bangladeshi government to ensure social safety nets, food security and protection to all migrant workers abroad as well as those who have returned. Transient Workers Count Too (TWC2) in Singapore highlighted the crowded living conditions of migrant workers in dormitories long before the outbreaks there began, and called on the government to provide suitable accommodation for migrants and ensure that employers respect the provisions for medical leave that migrants are entitled to.
No one knows how long the current situation will continue and whether it will improve or worsen again. Whatever happens, GAATW remains committed to supporting those who need support.
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