Toward decent work agenda: case study of domestic care workers in Thailand's care economy

Abstract

Ageing population is global phenomenon. As it causes deficit workforce and family structural change, more care job opportunities are provided. Nevertheless, global care workers are experiencing poor working conditions involving low wage, less social security and hard work. The purpose of this study is to investigate the causes of indecent work among paid domestic care workers in Thailand, with the aim to give voice and enhance visibility of them. Research methodology includes decent work related regulations and a set of care policies review and eight in-depth interviews of paid domestic care workers. Results are that (i) Thai regulations is inadequate to reward more decent work and unfriendly for representation of care workers. Care policies recognize the role of unpaid volunteer care work. (ii) All paid domestic care workers in this study experienced indecent working conditions and perceive care work as indecent work. Significant finding is that paid domestic care worker are trapped within indecent care work because of three factors, which are invisibility, structural inequality and cultural norms. Apart from changing legal framework, three interventions approaches are recommended: (i) making care work more visible; (ii) tackling inequality within care policies for all workers; and (iii) development of people’s decent work definition.