7/16/2020
Call for an Urgent Justice Mechanism for Repatriated Migrant Workers
procedures where millions of workers will be returning without their earned wages or
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workplace grievances being heard, nor seeing justice in their situation.
This is a gross violation of labour rights on a large scale. Wage theft will account for
millions of dollars to the detriment of workers and the benefit of businesses and
employers who will be exempted from any accountability, even if states and banks
extend a helpline to reestablish themselves and adjust to the new normal.
The repatriation procedures have been undertaken hastily by countries of both origin
and destination, without any proper redress mechanism, since courts and other
labour dispute mechanisms have also been closed during the period of the
lockdown. Therefore, these violations will pile up and either not be addressed or
overburden the existing dispute resolution mechanisms.
In this regard, Migrant Forum in Asia (MFA), Lawyers Beyond Borders
(LBB) Network, Cross Regional Centre for Migrants and Refugees
(CCRM), South Asia Trade Union Council (SARTUC), and Solidarity
Center (SC) call upon countries of origin and destination to urgently
put in place a transitional justice mechanism with the following
objectives:
1. The transitional justice mechanism will address grievances, claims and labour
disputes of repatriated workers who have lost their jobs as a result of the
pandemic. That the mechanism needs to be expedited, accessible,
affordable, and efficient.
2. It should be a priority to guarantee that all repatriated workers with legitimate
claims are able to access justice and some kind of compensation.
3. While it must be of the utmost importance to ensure that cases are resolved
as soon as possible, without delay, especially in cases involving labour
disputes, safeguards must be put in place to ensure that migrants are able to
pursue their cases post return. Access to legal advice and support, facilitating
power of attorney procedures, and easing requirements for in-person
testimony and court appearance or appearance in front of a
tribunal/grievance mechanism are paramount.
4. States should require employers and businesses to keep all employment
records, including payroll, employee lists, and hours worked and allow
workers to take copies of their records with them.
If we are to ‘Build Back Better’, we cannot continue to turn a blind eye to the issue of
wage theft that has been persistent across migration corridors for years, and will be
unprecedented in the case of repatriated migrant workers in the COVID 19
pandemic.
https://macimide.maastrichtuniversity.nl/call-for-an-urgent-justice-mechanism-for-repatriated-migrant-workers/
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