7 CAMPAIGN MILESTONES: SUSTAINING MOMENTUM “It is notable that these are just a fraction of the actual numbers of migrant workers that suffer wage theft across the globe compared to actual numbers that go unreported and are invisible due to lack of documentation. Sector-wise and even gender-wise we may see under-representations in the data. The data we collected was only possible due to concerted efforts of our members and partners” – William Gois, Regional Coordinator (MFA) The Justice for Wage Theft is a campaign launched by a large coalition of civil society organizations and trade unions on June 1, 2020, appealing to governments to establish an “Urgent Justice Mechanism” that addresses the plight of millions of migrant workers whose wages have been unjustly withheld by their employers. Subsequently, four more appeals were issued focusing on actions to be taken by UN bodies, governments, and businesses to take concerted action in engaging with existing cases of wage theft and lack of justice as well as the creation and maintenance of effective mechanisms for continued progress. This section looks back at the past year of the campaign, recounting milestones of progress for the cause. Since 2019, MFA members and partners have engaged with local and national governments to improve migrant worker protection during COVID-19 and with a view to improve future prospects. Efforts include, among others: - In Bangladesh, a national consultation on research findings to promote access of migrant workers to the justice system was held, together with strong advocacy efforts for the inclusion of migrant workers in the Social Safety Net Program and to prevent discrimination and exploitation faced by migrant workers. At the regional level, organizations have been lobbying for the creation of a standard contract for migrant workers, which includes the provisions of wage protection and social protection. - In Singapore, MFA partners have engaged, among others, with the Ministry of Manpower to learn about upcoming plans on the handling of the pandemic and to highlight concerns shared with them by migrant workers. These efforts led to the implementation of changes in the legislation improving the balance of power between employers and employees. - In Nepal, organizations effectively engaged with global, regional, national and local level policy dialogues on safe labour migration and decent work and advocated for the ratification and transposition in national laws of relevant international instruments, such as the ILO Convention no. 189. Others in the country advocated for support on economic reintegration, for the implementation of policies to protect the economic security of migrant workers and the introduction of programs to educate and empower migrant workers, particularly women, on safe migration options. Disclaimer: The figures, statistics within the report are based upon the limited documentation of cases submitted to the JFWT platform or separately to MFA. It does not intend to implicate any country, government, industry, employer, etc.