Home-based workers work in their homes or at a workplace near their home that doesn't belong to the employer. They may do piecework for an employer, who can be a subcontractor, agent or a middleman or they can be self-employed on their own or in family enterprises. They can work in the new economy (assembling micro-electronics) or the old (weaving carpets). They are found in developed countries (Ireland and the Netherlands) as well as in developing countries (India and Vietnam).

What leads people to home-based working?
Home-based working arises from a combination of economic, social and cultural factors. Whereas some self-employed workers may choose to work at home for cultural reasons, those who work as subcontracted outworkers (also called homeworkers) generally do so at the decision of industry. Globalization and the resultant restructuring of production outsources production to homeworkers who remain outside the formal workforce.

How prevalent is home-based work?
Although there are statistical guidelines for what constitutes home-based work and how to collect data on it, few countries use these guidelines in data collection activities. Moreover, because much homework is either invisible to the enumerator or clandestine, it is likely to be underestimated.

• In several African countries over half of all enterprises are home-based
• Home-based workers comprise a significant share of the workforce in key industries, such as garments, leather, carpet making and electronics
• Today increasing numbers of home-based women workers are engaged in computer-based service industries such as teleworking

Wherever they are found and regardless of the industry, the vast majority of home-based workers are women: 90 % of bidi workers (cigarette rollers) in India are women 90 % of homeworkers in Europe (Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy and the Netherlands) are women 85% of homeworkers in the clothing and footware industries in Argentina are women

Problems of homework

• Poor pay and conditions of work
• Generally not covered by national labour laws
• Poor working conditions
• Long working hours, resulting from low piece rates
• Unstable employment-work depends on needs of employers
• Lack of organization for bargaining or comparing wage rates
• Absence of benefits, including pensions, insurance, safety and health protection, and paid leave
• Occupational health hazards arising from poor working conditions, harmful chemicals, instruments, and repetitive movement injuries
• Children working in order to augment family income
• Workers subsidize costs of production by providing tools, workspace and paying for raw materials