Ei-iE

New campaign: Latin American unions join forces against harassment and violence in the world of work

published 24 November 2021 updated 24 January 2022

Education International Latin America (IEAL) and the Women Education Workers’ Network (RED de Trabajadoras de la Educación) are campaigning to promote the ratification of International Labour Organization Convention 190 (C190) and Recommendation 206 (R206). C190 is the convention on eliminating violence and harassment in the world of work, adopted on 21 June 2019 by the International Labour Conference.

The aim of the initiative is to provide member organisations with the tools and resources required to promote the ratification of C190 and R206 in all the countries in the region.

Despite the adoption of the Convention at the ILO Centenary Conference in 2019, the only Latin American countries to have ratified C190 are Uruguay, Argentina, and Ecuador. It is against this background that action is needed to promote the Convention’s ratification in the other countries of the region, to guarantee the right to workplaces free from violence and harassment.

Working without violence or harassment

As part of the campaign, a brochure was created in order to present and explain the main points of Convention 190.

The publication also highlights the importance of ratifying C190, providing trade union organisations and their members with practical information and recommendations for promoting the convention in Latin America.

#YSomosTodas

The IEAL campaign for the ratification of ILO C190 includes the song “Y Somos Todas” (We Are All [United]) by Maf É Tulà and Anyul Arévalo, featuring the female percussion ensemble Toca el Tambó and singers Guadalupe Urbina, Manu Saggioro, Nakury, Sharow Granera, Kumary Sawyers, and Berenice.

The song is available at this link, on Maf É Tulà’s Spotify account and other platforms.

Singer-songwriter Maf É Tulà has also produced an English version of the song, along with Anyul Arévalo and Toca el Tambó, called “Bridge the Gap”, which you can listen to here.

A music video of “Y Somos Todas”, featuring all the artists involved in making the song, is also available on IEAL’s YouTube channel.

The IEAL and Women Education Workers’ Network campaign for the ratification of ILO C190 is backed by solidarity support from the Swedish teachers’ union Lärarförbundet, the Norwegian teachers’ union UEN, the Canadian Teachers’ Federation (CTF/FCE) and the National Education Association (NEA) of the United States.