The Place of Domestic Work in Europe

Abstract

The recent Decision of the Council recommending ratification of ILO Convention No. 189 fails to recognise the ways in which European Union (EU) law has facilitated cheap informal labour in the domestic sphere so as to enable participation in the formal labour market. This article examines the approach taken by EU Member States to the drafting of Convention No. 189 and argues that, despite its resultant diluted content, this instrument requires certain fundamental changes to the current treatment of domestic workers in the EU. We further propose a reorientation of the ‘flexicurity’ principle to enable reform, such that contemporary modes of work can be reconsidered and transformed.