1. OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY
FOR INFORMAL WORKERS
“Social Protection in Africa:
Sharing Experiences on the Informal Economy”
EC & AU Commission Capacity Building Workshop
10-11 March 2011, Nairobi, Kenya.
Masuma Mamdani
IHI

2. WIEGO
A global research and advocacy network, working in some 40 countries, promoting and advancing the interests of poorer informal workers, especially women
Informal work is normal and not residual
Does NOT represent MBOs, works with, builds & strengthens networks of informal worker organisations (MBOs).
Gives MBOs visibility, recognition and validity

3. EXPANDED DEFINITION OF THE INFORMAL ECONOMY (IE)
IE - the diversified set of economic activities, enterprises, and workers that are not regulated or protected by the state.
IE (or informal employment) includes:
Self-employment in informal enterprises: self-employed persons in small unregistered or unincorporated enterprises, including:
employers
own account operators
unpaid contributing family workers
Wage employment in informal jobs: wage workers without social protection through their work who are employed by formal or informal firms (and their contractors), by households, or by no fixed employer, including:
non-standard employees of informal enterprises
non-standard employees of formal enterprises
casual or day labourers
industrial outworkers (also called homeworkers)
Notes:
1. WIEGO promoted this expanded definition in collaboration with the ILO and the International Expert Group on Informal Sector
Statistics (the Delhi Group): it was endorsed by the International Conference of Labour Statisticians (ICLS) in 2003
2. T he elements of this expanded definition that were not included in the earlier ICLS 1993 definition of “informal sector” are in italics
Notes:
# 1 – this new expanded definition of the “informal economy” or “informal employment” has been endorsed by the 2002 International Labour Conference and the 2003 International Conference of Labour Statisticians
# 2 – the international definition of the “informal sector” that was adopted by the 1993 International Conference of Labour Statisticians included only those who work in informal enterprises (shown in italics above)

4. Since 1923, the ICLS (International Conference of Labour Statisticians )has been convened every five years by the ILO. The ICLS is asked to make recommendations on selected topics of labour statistics, in the form of resolutions and guidelines, which are then approved by the Governing Body of the ILO before becoming part of the set of international standards on labour statistics.
Informal Sector: employment and production that takes place in small, unincorporated and unregistered enterprises ((ICLS 1993) .
Informal Employment: broader definition that includes informal employment inside and outside informal enterprises (whether carried out for formal sector enterprises or households (ICLS 2003)

5. SEGMENTED LABOR MARKETS/ EMPLOYMENT STRUCTURES
What do we mean by ‘segmentation’?
Constraints exist which prevent individuals from moving into better employment opportunities (or improving the quality of existing employment)
What causes ‘segmentation’?
Discrimination, social norms, unequal wealth/assets, unpaid care responsibilities, lack of credit, lack of public goods/services, and more, etc
Why does ‘segmentation’ matter?
Reinforces existing patterns of poverty and social exclusion.
Issue of equity: gender, racial, caste segmentation.
Issue of basic rights and the choices available to individuals.
In summary: a social justice issue

6. SEGMENTATION OF THE INFORMAL ECONOMY: BY SEX, AVERAGE EARNINGS, AND POVERTY RISK
Predminantly women : high poverty risk, low earnings - base of the pyramid

7. WORKING POOR IN THE INFORMAL ECONOMY
In Unregulated Factories:
garment makers
shoe makers
In Small Workshops:
scrap metal recyclers
weavers
garment makers and embroiderers
paper-bag makers
On Streets or In Open Spaces:
street vendors
push-cart vendors
garbage collectors
roadside barbers
construction workers
In Fields, Pastures, and Forests:
small farmers
agricultural labourers
shepherds
forest gatherers
At Home:
garment workers
embroiderers
shoemakers
artisans or craft producers
assemblers of electronic parts
Who is engaged in the informal economy:
“plucky entrepreneurs” – to borrow Hernando de Soto’s term
working poor – as depicted in this slide

8. EMPLOYMENT, INFORMALITY, POVERTY
Employment - the most important way in which the benefits of growth can be shared.
Most of the world’s poor – especially in developing countries – are working.
Informal rather than formal employment is on the rise.
The vast majority of the working poor – those who earn less than US$ 1 per day - earn their living in the informal economy where:
average earnings are low
risks are high
Poverty reduction is not possible without
Increasing formal employment opportunities AND
Increasing the assets and earnings AND
reducing the risks of those who work in the informal economy.
90% of working Ghanaians >15 yrs, ….% of working Tanzanians over 15 yrs are employed informally

9. INSTITUTIONAL REFORMS
There is a need to address the following:
Institutional “mismatch”: existing means of legal and social protections vs. reality of work today
Policy biases & Power imbalances: in favor of capital vs. labor + larger firms vs. micro firms + formal labor vs. informal labor
Downloading of risks: from lead firms -> suppliers -> intermediaries -> dependent workers and producers at the bottom of production and distribution chains

10. POLICY AND INSTITUTIONAL REFORM: THROUGH DIALOGUE AND NEGOTIATION
Key stakeholders: government, private sector, civil society (trade unions + MBOs of working poor + NGOs working on labor and employment issues)
Tripartite dialogues and negotiations: should include MBOs of working poor as well as trade unions, employer associations, and government
Multi-partite initiatives: initiatives involving multiple relevant stakeholders – such as Fair Trade and Ethical Trade initiatives and the Global Compact - should be encouraged and supported
Multi-partite reform processes: policy and legal reform processes should involve all relevant stakeholders including representatives of MBOs of the working poor
Policy reforms should be done through dialogues and negoiations
Coops = large and growing share of self-employment, especially own account work

11. Social Protection: The Context
Vast majority of poor who work informally:
precarious & high risk exposure
have no social security coverage to protect against short term risks or life-time contingencies
cannot afford private insurance, have little access to social insurance
Poorer people live and work in poor communities, where it is hard to insure against risk
In developing countries:
state systems of social insurance do not target informal workers, wage employed or self-employed
state systems of social assistance for poorer and vulnerable people do not target able bodied people of working age

12. SOCIAL PROTECTION: DIFFERENT STRATEGIES FOR DIFFERENT SECTORS
Evidence from a) value chain research and b) risk analysis of place of work and c) analyses of existing social protection schemes:
different elements of the ‘welfare mix’ may be more or less appropriate for different types of workers

13. SOCIAL PROTECTION: DIFFERENT STRATEGIES FOR DIFFERENT SECTORS
Street and market vendors:
Focus on local government (not national government) policies
Encourage infrastructural service delivery to reduce risk AND increase productivity AND protect both informal workers and the public
Domestic workers:
more potential for integrating into existing labour policy and legislation in line with ‘extend social protection’ campaign

14. SOCIAL PROTECTION: DIFFERENT STRATEGIES FOR DIFFERENT SECTORS
Industrial outworkers:
Encourage infrastructural delivery to private homes
Extend employer/ owner-of-capital insurance to include private homes
Integrate social protection for informal workers into trade agreements/ codes of conduct
Waste-pickers:
negotiate with municipalities/private sector for provision of safety equipment and reduction of hazards at the place of work
provide access for workers to local government/private sector social provision – health services and health insurance, training courses, educational bursaries

15. MAINSTREAMING SOCIAL PROTECTION FOR INFORMAL WORKERS: THE CASE OF OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY (OHS)
VISION
The integration of the working conditions and health status of poorer informal workers, and
The inclusion of informal work places, into the discipline and practice of occupational health and safety

16. OHS FOR INFORMAL WORKERS
How to re-think OHS as a more inclusive discipline, for different types of informal workers?
What institutional reform would be necessary – at national and local government level - to reach more workers?
How can informal workers be integrated in inclusive and sustainable platforms for negotiation and policy development?

17. OHS FOR INFORMAL WORKERS: THE VISION - HOW?
Voice: Support/assist MBOs of informal workers in shaping focused demands for OHS interventions and in negotiating for policy change and implementation
Visibility: Integrate module on OHS for informal workers into Labour Force Surveys; improve the country-based statistics on occupational hazards and injuries to regulating bodies such as the ILO
Validity: Modify legal and institutional barriers to the inclusion of informal workers; develop a model for expanded and integrated curriculum for OHS for informal workers into mainstream public health schools

18. OHS PROGRAMME DESIGN
Africa (Ghana, Tanzania), Asia (two sites in India), Latin America – Brazil, Peru
Focus on different occupational groups – including street vendors, homebased workers, informal recycling workers, domestic workers, agricultural workers, seaweed farmers

19. Understanding the Context
RESEARCH
Understanding the Context
Paper 1: Size and Shape of the Informal Economy
Paper 2: Institutional Mapping and Analysis
Participatory research on risks and hazards with MBOs
Focus groups discussions, mobility mapping, time and motion studies, household/ enterprise interviews, photography, health checklists
Institutional Mapping and Analysis - legislation, national/local govt domain, who controls the physical environment where informal workers are active, training institutions and curricula, platforms/forums for involvement of informal workers in discussions of work conditions and work improvements

20. IMPROVING DATA ABOUT RISKS AND HAZARDS IN INFORMAL WORK
Improved statistics on occupational injury and disease for informal workers
Work with National Statistics Bodies
Labour force survey modules – pilot in two countries
Identify gaps in procedures for accident reporting

21. TANZANIA: DATA ON OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES
Available data on occupational injuries are hugely underestimated
Reporting is limited to the workers covered by the system- those largely working in the formal sector - does not include most of those working in the informal sector, as well as in the agricultural sector

22. TANZANIA: DATA SYSTEMS
Opportunities for strengthening the routine collection and monitoring of progress, structure and scale of the informal economy as well as pertinent OHS indicators (through targeted (and nested) questions in periodic surveys (HBS, LFS, DHS, census) at national, as well as at district/council level?
Coordination of ongoing data collection activities?
Strengthening the role of Municipalities or Councils at the Local Government (LG) level in the management of OHS - facilitate information as well as provide national and local decision makers with insights into the complexity of OHS affairs.

23. Limited capacity to enforce the many laws and regulations and ensure H&S at the workplace : few inspectors, lack of other trained staff, transport facilities and other essential resource: around 4,000 workplaces are registered out of an estimated total of 50,000 workplaces in mainland Tanzania
Environmental hazards are widespread, especially in the informal sector and in small and medium-sized companies where the majority of the work force is employed.
Workers are often unaware about OHS issues and remain unprotected from occupational accidents and diseases

24. Tanzania
Existing labour laws are designed to cover most Tanzanian workers, including many of those in the informal economy. However, informal sector workers on the whole, still tend not to benefit from the legislation.
Need to enhance the implementation of the labour laws - in the formal and the informal economy => calls for an effective labour administration and inspection service.

25. TANZANIA
Many protective laws, policies, programmes & projects,
Involving multiple state and non-state actors
Scattered, ill-coordinated and the general impact of these has been limited.
It is therefore not just about building new systems and new programmes. It is also about assessing the effectiveness or rather weaknesses of existing systems and programmes.
The issue is not always of more money but better use of available resources

26. SURVEY OF OHS SYSTEMS IN EA
Legislation and Government authorities are relatively well developed, the implementation of legislation is weak, and the legal and particularly practical coverage of services is currently low.
Regulations may stipulate comprehensive content for services, the practical content may often be very narrow, including only health examinations and curative general health services, based on the public health system.
Preventive activities are under-developed with weak systems for recognition and registration of occupational diseases and injuries.
There are substantial needs to develop financial systems for OHS by obligating employers to invest more in OHS and to organize alternative public service provision opportunities for the informal sector, agriculture and the self-employed.
(Rantanen and Lehtinen, 2010)

27. POOR OPERATORS LACK INCENTIVE TO MAINTAIN CLEAN WORKING ENVIRONMENTS
Street Net Ghana Alliance: survey of 20 chop bars (informal eating establishment):
Bar operators on average spent around US$ 1,142 annually on water, refuse removal, use of toilets, cleaning equipment, employee health certificates & fire fighting equipment
How to make OHS more affordable for informal businesses?

28. GHANA & TANZANIA: INSTITUTIONAL ANALYSIS
Local Government (LG) is an important player in determining workplace conditions, with specific links to both formal and informal sector employments, and administration related issues
LG is not effective in maintaining an acceptable work environment:
General lack of resources
Institutional Issues

29. OHS
Multi-disciplinary and inter-sectoral- addressed by a range of legislation under different departments / ministries and organisations.

30. GHANA & TANZANIA: INSTITUTIONAL PROBLEMS OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT
Lack of horizontal coordination between local government departments that have jurisdiction over various aspects of health and safety
Problematic vertical alignments between LG and national govt
Lack of institutionalised communication between LG and informal workers
Poor dissemination of public information (laws, policies, regulations, by-laws…)
Insufficient regulation of privatised services

31. INTERVENTIONS: PREVENTION OF RISKS, IMPROVING WORK CONDITIONS
Participatory health screenings on morbidity and risk
Development of prototypes of improved equipment
Assessment of impact of new/ modified equipment
Exchanging good practices between countries; and between national, regional and international organisations & networks of informal workers

32. Sharing the learning
Diagnostic workshops between workers and those who control OHS
Multiple stakeholder policy dialogue
Integrating the learning into MBO planning and strategy
Development of accessible materials on organising around OHS issues
Regional meetings to share the learning
Papers at international policy conferences
Articles in influential journals
Influence on OHS curriculum

33. TOWARDS SUSTAINED INSTITUTIONAL CHANGE: KEY ENABLING CONDITIONS
Representative Voice
more and stronger organizations of the working poor in the informal economy
representation of such organizations in relevant policy-making, rule-setting, and collective bargaining institutions and processes at all levels
Official Visibility
improved labor force and other economic statistics that measure all economic units and workers - including their earnings + contribution to GDP
analysis and dissemination of these data to policy-makers, advocates of informal workers, and organizations of working poor in informal economy
research on the characteristics and situation of informal workers
documentation of promising examples of policy, regulator, legal, and programmatic interventions in support of informal workers
Legal and Policy Validity
legal identity and rights of informal workers as workers, asset holders, and citizens
legal recognition of the member-based organizations of informal workers
legal empowerment through inclusive legal and policy reform processes and appropriate legal and policy reforms
A LONG TERM PROCESS
Improved statistics:
= improved understanding of labour markets and economy as a whole
= informed policy and policy making
= forces attention of policy makers = secret weapon in the hand of organizations of women workers (Ela Bhatt)

35. Women in Informal Employment Globalising and Organising1