The care economy has moved to centre stage in global policy agendas. The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated pre-existing gender inequalities in the labour market and the imbalance between women and men regarding unpaid housework and care work. These additional demands on women forced many to quit paid work altogether, making their re-entry into the labour market more challenging as economies and societies recover from the pandemic. Regarding care as a sector, according to the ILO Care work report, the global care work-force represents 11.5 per cent of total global employment, and it is estimated that increasing investment in the care economy to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will result in a total of 475 million jobs by 2030. The global care workforce includes care workers in various sectors such as education, health and social work, domestic workers and non-care workers in care sectors, who support care service provision. Overall, care workers remain some of the most vulnerable workers in the global economy. This situation has exposed the urgent need to address the unequal share of unpaid care work between women and men and between families, communities, the market and the State, with a significant regulatory role, beyond provision. Investing in frameworks of transformative care policies with quality care jobs benefits all workers, children, businesses, societies, and the planet. Through this capacity-development programme, participants will explore how to successfully promote decent work in care work and enable a more balanced sharing of family responsibilities. The course includes live virtual sessions with international experts and self-guided online modules, covering strategies and tools to identify transformative policies in care work and the care economy, with a strong focus on international labour standards.
Representatives from Ministries of Labour, Gender Equality and Social Policies fields, Social partners, academics, Equal opportunities Units, Associations of domestic workers, long-term care workers, nursing personnel, and persons interested in care work and the care economy.
The three-day debate aims to provide an outstanding opportunity to analyse and discuss the implications and challenges brought about by the effects of the current decent work deficits and the impact on labour disputes concerning substantive rights for care workers.
Drawing on the guidance from International Labour Standards (ILS), the knowledge sharing facilitates also a comparative.
More specifically, the event intends to promote an international debate on the guiding role and effective implementation of the International Labour Standards (ILS) in a fragmented and challenging context related to the safeguard of minimum rights and protections for all workers in the care economy.
During the three-day event participants will have the opportunity to update knowledge and share experiences & case studies on the following topics:
The programme is designed to engage participants in immersive debate to discuss the tough challenges. The programme will be interactive and participatory and will be structured as follows:
The online knowledge-sharing event is structured in two main components:
The event offers an interactive discussion facilitated by international experts from the ILO, EU, OECD, Social Partners and Academic institutions worldwide.
The course is offered in English and Spanish. A good command of the working language is required.
The tuition fee for the course is 470 Euros.
Tuition cost must be paid in advance before the beginning of the activity by the participant or the sponsor through bank transfer or credit card.
Note: on the bank transfer form, the participant’s name and the activity code should be indicated. For payments by credit card, please e-mail to ils@itcilo.org.
For detailed information regarding payments, cancellations and refunds, please consult: https://www.itcilo.org/applications-payments-cancellation
The deadline for submission of applications is 18 June 2023. Candidates must submit the application by clicking on the following link: https://oarf2.itcilo.org/DST/A9716077/en
A limited number of fellowships are available to qualified candidates coming from eligible countries.
As an Organization dedicated to promoting social justice and internationally recognized human and labour rights, the ILO is taking a leading role in international efforts to foster gender equality. In line with this ILO focus, women are particularly encouraged to apply to ITCILO courses.