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Delegates at WIEGO 2018 General Assembly

WIEGO

is a global network that supports the movement of workers in informal employment

View module on Home page (original page)(this link opens in new window)

Realizing Homeworkers' Labour Rights

View module on Realizing Homeworkers’ Labour Rights (original page)(this link opens in new window)

Careers

WIEGO team members working together on a laptop during a team retreat in Nairobi, Kenya, collaborating in a supportive environment.

WIEGO team members working together at a Team Retreat in Nairobi, Kenya.

View module on Work With Us (original page)(this link opens in new window)

Advocacy and Worker Education Hub

From worker education to toolkits and position papers, workers need tools and resources to support them in negotiations, advocacy and more. WIEGO designs content to help workers in informal employment strengthen their organizations and secure their rights.

View module on Advocacy and Worker Education Hub (original page)(this link opens in new window)
View module on Belo Horizonte (original page)(this link opens in new window)

WIEGO has adapted these techniques for the informal economy.  Informal Economy Budget Analysis (IEBA) examines how government budgets address the needs and interests of different groups of workers in informal employment. It also explores what opportunities exist for workers (or their representatives) to participate at different stages of the budget process.

View module on Informal Economy Budget Analysis (original page)(this link opens in new window)

OUR APPROACHThe global drive towards universal social protection emphasizes the need to extend social protection to all workers, including those in informal employment. However, significant coverage gaps persist, due to entrenched policy paradigms and ideas.

Policy ideas are important, and how they are framed is critical. This is the moment to actively question ideas  that ultimately lead to regressive outcomes for the majority of the world’s workers.

By commissioning high-level research and partnering with the International Labour Organization and academics, we sought to re-shape global narratives about the financing of social protection, about  interactions between social protection and the labour market, and about the structure of social protection systems.

For more information about the project, check out these episodes of WIEGO’s podcast on social protection (episode #26 and #32)

View module on Challenging the Economic Orthodoxies Undermining Universal Social Protection (original page)(this link opens in new window)

Goals What Are We Working to Achieve?

  • Climate Change Research and Action

  • Support to Participatory Solid Waste Multi-Stakeholder Platforms

  • Mapping of Health Risks and Capacity Building

  • Gender & Waste Project and Leadership Development

View module on Belo Horizonte (original page)(this link opens in new window)

  • Activities

    In mid-2009, WIEGO and its partners in the Inclusive Cities Project conducted interviews with home-based workers, street vendors and waste pickers in 14 urban locales in 10 countries across Africa, Asia and Latin America. A year later, we conducted a second round of research to assess whether there were delayed impacts from recession and/or signs of recovery for participating workers. Worker organizations used the study findings to develop common demands and advocated for more and better support for workers in informal employment.

  • Key Findings

    The research found that informal enterprises and wage workers were affected in many of the same ways as their formal counterparts. But those working informally had no cushion to fall back on. Respondents reported being forced to work longer hours, take additional risks, cut back on expenditure (including on food and health care), and still saw their incomes decline. The evidence showed that the global recession pushed workers in informal employment and their families further into impoverishment.

View module on Global Economic Crisis Study (original page)(this link opens in new window)

Long and complex supply chains make outsourcing to homeworkers a challenge to regulate.

To ensure decent conditions for homeworkers, sector-specific legal protections are needed. International laws recognize the importance of extending labour rights to homeworkers. But very few countries have translated these rights into domestic legislation.

Since 2019, we have collaborated with HomeNet International (HNI) and its affiliates on research, capacity building and technical support to advance their national and international advocacy efforts to realize homeworkers’ labour rights. The ultimate goal of this work is to support homeworkers to shape the laws that affect them.

View module on Realizing Homeworkers’ Labour Rights (original page)(this link opens in new window)

Project Activities

The course consisted of four modules:

  • Living with the pandemic in the waste picking sector
  • Improving selective waste collection systems and protecting waste pickers during COVID-19
  • Beyond the pandemic – economic strategies for waste pickers
  • Building connections among waste pickers in Latin America

It also focused on collaborative experiences between organized and autonomous waste pickers and the distribution of personal protective equipment.

View module on CataSaúde Viraliza (original page)(this link opens in new window)

Projects

The Urban Policies Programme at WIEGO coordinates projects that directly enhance the conditions of workers in informal employment in cities throughout the Global South. These initiatives focus on various strategic areas.

  • Increasing Visibility - Home as Workplace

    To support home-based workers in advocacy and interventions, we focus on home-as-workplace issues. In Delhi, we mapped how and where workers use homes as workplaces and what this means for planning and policy. We documented the Mahila Housing Trust’s work through a home-as-workplace lens, and Shalini Sinha co-edited a Special Issue of Built Environment.

    Read More

  • Foregrounding Women’s Empowerment - Gender and Waste Project

    To raise gender awareness among waste pickers, the Gender and Waste Project undertook a participatory, workshop-based initiative in Minas Gerais, Brazil. It sought to provide women waste pickers with practical tools to help critically reflect on and challenge entrenched gender hierarchies at home, at work and in the waste pickers’ movement. The project developed a popular education toolkit and a gender action plan, as well as a toolkit for practitioners and academics, highlighting gender inequalities in the waste sector.

    Read More

  • Tackling Health Risks Faced by Waste Pickers - Cuidar Project

    The Cuidar Project examined the occupational health and safety risks faced by waste pickers and worked alongside worker-based movements to reduce these. CataSaúde Viraliza was online training for waste pickers during the COVID-19 pandemic and included strategies to respond to economic and other risks.

    Read More

  • Securing Inclusion - Public Space for All

    Diverse, inclusive activities in public spaces can help cities and their residents thrive – but competing interests and uses can bring challenges. Through the Public Space for All project, a collaboration with Cities Alliance, we developed resources for workers in informal employment who need access to public space, and for policymakers who want to build inclusive cities.

    Read More
View module on Urban Policies Programme (original page)(this link opens in new window)

Watch: Workers in Informal Employment & Access to Healthcare

View module on Workers’ Health (original page)(this link opens in new window)

Learn More About WIEGO

  • The Bellagio 1997 founding group of 10 specialists in the informal economy, including practitioners, scholars, statisticians, and policymakers, gather outdoors

    Our History Learn More About WIEGO

    Our founders noted that workers in the informal economy, especially women, were not understood, valued or considered by policymakers. WIEGO was established in 1997 – now, we are a thriving network spanning more than 60 countries.

    Our History
  • Institutional Members voting to adopt the strategic plan at WIEGO's 2022 General Assembly, with participants raising their hands in support

    Governance & Accountability Learn More About WIEGO

    WIEGO is uniquely structured to ensure accountability to the workers we serve. Our board has representatives from worker organizations, researchers, statisticians, and development professionals.

    Governance & Accountability
  • The WIEGO Team poses together outdoors during a team retreat in Nairobi, Kenya, smiling and raising their hands in celebration

    Our Team Learn More About WIEGO

    The WIEGO team is made up of researchers and statisticians, policy analysts, activists and technical specialists who support the movement.

    Our Team

  • Our Donors Learn More About WIEGO

    WIEGO is funded by several organizations. We are grateful for their generous financial support, which sustains our work supporting the movement of workers in informal employment, especially women and people living in poverty.

    Our Donors
  • WIEGO team members working together on a laptop during a team retreat in Nairobi, Kenya, collaborating in a supportive environment.

    Careers Learn More About WIEGO

    Thank you for your interest in working with WIEGO. We are committed to a diverse, inclusive workforce built to serve informally employed workers around the world.

    Careers

  • Partnering with us Learn More About WIEGO

    WIEGO forms partnerships to help achieve our strategic priorities and mission.

    Partnering with WIEGO
View module on Who We Are (original page)(this link opens in new window)

OCCUPATIONAL GROUPSA significant proportion of urban informal employment around the globe falls into these four occupations: domestic workers, home-based workers, street vendors and market traders, and waste pickers.

These are also occupational groups where women are often over-represented. Although working conditions and earnings vary, workers in informal employment have this in common: they aren’t recognized or adequately protected under labour laws, nor can they access employment benefits or protections.

  • A significant proportion of urban informal employment around the globe falls into these four occupations: domestic workers, home-based workers, street vendors and market traders, and waste pickers.

    Domestic workers are employed to provide services for households. There are over 76 million domestic workers in the world, most of them women. They provide a range of services: cleaning, cooking and caring for children, older people and disabled people; they also provide gardening, driving and security services.

    Domestic Workers

  • A significant proportion of urban informal employment around the globe falls into these four occupations: domestic workers, home-based workers, street vendors and market traders, and waste pickers.

    Home-based workers produce goods or services in or near their homes for local, national and global markets. There are over 260 million home-based workers in the world, most of them in Asia. They are present in many industries: stitching garments, weaving textiles, assembling micro-electronics, providing IT services and more.

    Home-Based Workers

  • A significant proportion of urban informal employment around the globe falls into these four occupations: domestic workers, home-based workers, street vendors and market traders, and waste pickers.

    Street vendors sell goods and offer services in public spaces, including open-air spaces, transport junctions and construction sites. Market traders work in stalls or built markets on publicly or privately owned land. They offer everything from fresh vegetables, prepared foods, building materials and crafts, to auto repairs and haircuts.

    Street Vendors & Market Traders

  • A significant proportion of urban informal employment around the globe falls into these four occupations: domestic workers, home-based workers, street vendors and market traders, and waste pickers.

    Waste pickers make a living collecting, sorting, recycling and selling materials that someone else has thrown away. It is estimated that 20 million people worldwide make their living from recycling waste.

    Waste Pickers

  • A significant proportion of urban informal employment around the globe falls into these four occupations: domestic workers, home-based workers, street vendors and market traders, and waste pickers.

    Workers in the garment and textile industry work in various parts of the manufacturing process, often outside of factories. Homeworkers and home-based workers form a significant portion of the garment worker sector.

    Garment Workers
View module on Understanding the Informal Economy (original page)(this link opens in new window)

More WIEGO Programmes

  • More WIEGO Programmes

    The Organization and Representation Programme helps organizations of workers in informal employment build organizational and leadership capacity, and connect to each other and with allies as they fight to improve the working conditions of their members.

    Organization and Representation Programme

  • More WIEGO Programmes

    The Law Programme strives for the recognition, inclusion and protection of all workers’ rights in laws and regulations. We also train workers to use the law in their fight for labour rights and protections.

    Law Programme

  • More WIEGO Programmes

    The Social Protection Programme supports workers in informal employment to access social protections throughout their life cycle, helping them to mitigate risks to their incomes and cope after shocks.

    Social Protection Programme

  • More WIEGO Programmes

    The Statistics Programme works with statisticians and data users (including workers in informal employment) to improve statistical methods that will make visible the size and significance of the informal economy and the situation of those working in it, and shares the data in accessible formats.

    Statistics
View module on Urban Policies Programme (original page)(this link opens in new window)
View module on What We Do (original page)(this link opens in new window)
View module on Research Library (original page)(this link opens in new window)

View module on Network (original page)(this link opens in new window)

Discover Our Themes

The following themes represent areas of strategic focus for WIEGO.

View module on Fiscal Justice (original page)(this link opens in new window)
View module on CataSaúde Viraliza (original page)(this link opens in new window)
View module on Informal Economy Budget Analysis (original page)(this link opens in new window)
Jennifer Thaís Santos Fernandes—Waste Picker

Featured Story ‘The Pretty Ones’

This is the story of Jennifer Thaís Santos Fernandes, the secretary of the ASCITO waste picker cooperative that is supported by WIEGO through the Gender & Waste Project.

Read More

Featured Story Weaving Webs of Knowledge, Action and Affection

This e-book compiles photos, learnings and reflections gathered by WIEGO’s Rhonda Douglas based on her research gathered in 2020 and 2021 from WIEGO team Brazil, waste pickers and partners in Belo Horizonte...

Read More
View module on Belo Horizonte (original page)(this link opens in new window)

Featured Story USP2030 Financing Working Group Issues Joint Statement on Principles for Financing Universal Social Protection

Amidst the ongoing economic effects of COVID-19, the unfolding cost of living crisis, and the ever-growing impacts of climate breakdown, the USP2030 Financing Working Group – a diverse range of...

Read More
View module on Fiscal Justice (original page)(this link opens in new window)

ActivitiesAligning national legislation with Convention No. 177

The International Labour Organization adopted Convention No. 177 on Homeworkers (C177) in 1996. But so far only a few countries have ratified it and translated it into their labour laws. HNI and its affiliates are working to change this by campaigning for the ratification of C177, and for the inclusion of homeworkers in existing labour laws or the adoption of new laws specifically for homeworkers.

WIEGO supports these efforts with research on different legislative models to protect homeworkers at the national level. We document how homeworker organizations have advocated for legislative change in their countries, the legislative model adopted, how it has been implemented, and the implications it has on homeworkers’ rights. We are also contributing a chapter on different legislative frameworks available for homeworkers to a toolkit HNI is developing on advocacy for C177.

View module on Realizing Homeworkers’ Labour Rights (original page)(this link opens in new window)

Resources

View module on Global Economic Crisis Study (original page)(this link opens in new window)
View module on Advocacy and Worker Education Hub (original page)(this link opens in new window)
View module on Informal Economy Budget Analysis (original page)(this link opens in new window)
View module on Belo Horizonte (original page)(this link opens in new window)
View module on Impact (original page)(this link opens in new window)
View module on Team (original page)(this link opens in new window)

The Latest Statistics on Work in the Informal Economy in Bangkok

WIEGO does groundbreaking statistical work to help policymakers and workers understand the size and characteristics of the informal economy in cities across the world.

Access the latest statistics
  • 28.4%

    of Bangkok’s total employment is informal employment

  • 42.1%

    of total employment in urban Thailand is informal employment

View module on Bangkok (original page)(this link opens in new window)

The Wiego Timeline

  • 2022

    Mexico City, Mexico

    12-14 November

    WIEGO’s 8th General Assembly was held in Mexico City in November 2022. Its theme was “The Next 25 Years” and the event provided an opportunity for WIEGO’s institutional and individual members to review progress on our work, share knowledge and experiences and provide input on WIEGO’s 5-year strategic plan. WIEGO co-hosted a public event with the Commission for Human Rights of Mexico City where workers in informal employment from Mexico City presented a platform of demands for post-pandemic economic recovery.

    2022
  • Working at the 2018 General Assembly

    Image from the 2018 General Assembly

    2018
  • 2014

    Yogyakarta, Indonesia

    11-13 November

    WIEGO’s 6th General Assembly was held in Yogyakarta  in November 2014. It celebrated women’s leadership in the growing global movement of workers in informal employment. WIEGO Members heard reports on progress and outcomes over the previous four years and looked ahead at plans and priorities. Events included a panel discussion on women’s economic empowerment and a public event focused on Formalizing in the Informal Economy: Informal Workers’ Perspectives.

    2014
  • 2010

    Belo Horizonte, Brazil

    19-22 April

    WIEGO’s 5th General Assembly was held in Belo Horizonte in April 2020. It brought together women leaders from membership-based organizations of workers in informal employment, activists and union leaders, academics and researchers, and government officials. “Inclusive Cities for the Working Poor,” co-sponsored by the Federal University of Minas Gerais, featured presentations on innovative approaches to inclusive planning from Brazil and other countries. Read the WIEGO 5th General Assembly Report.

    2010
  • 2006

    Durban, South Africa

    April

    WIEGO’s 4th General Assembly in Durban saw the launch of its new governance structure, as mandated in the WIEGO Constitution that was ratified in October 2005. It was a landmark event for the WIEGO Network and marked the first General Assembly of WIEGO Members, both institutional and individual.We co-organized an urban policy colloquium called “World Class Cities and the Urban Informal Economy: Inclusive Planning for the Working Poor” with StreetNet International and the School of Development Studies at the University of KwaZulu-Natal.

    2006
  • 2002

    Ahmedabad, India

    January

    We participated in the first day of the annual general meeting of the Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA).

    2002
  • 2000

    Cambridge, USA

    22-24 May

    Nearly 100 people from 26 countries representing grass-roots, academic and international development organizations participated in WIEGO’s Second General Assembly and were joined by 30 faculty, students and activists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and other institutions in a workshop on Organizing in the Informal Sector. Several members of WIEGO took part in a seminar co-hosted by the Radcliffe Public Policy Center and WIEGO.

    2000
  • 1999

    Ottawa, Canada

    12-14 April

    Attended by 70 people from 25 countries representing grass-roots, academic and international development organizations, our first General Assembly was designed to expand and strengthen the network, to share progress and experiences to date, and to plan for the future. A public seminar was hosted by the Aga Khan Foundation Canada and we co-organized a policy dialogue on the informal economy with the International Centre for Development Research (IDRC).

    1999
View module on WIEGO General Assemblies (original page)(this link opens in new window)

National Organizations by Region

  • Africa

  • Asia & the Pacific

  • Europe & Central Asia

  • The Americas

Ligue pour le Droit de la Femme Congolaise (LDFC)

Tshatshi I, Kimbanseke, Kinshasa, République démocratique du Congo

Informal Hawkers and Vendors Association of Ghana (IHVAG)

Ghana

Confédération Nationale des Travailleurs de Guinée (CNTG)

Kaloum, Conakry, Guinea

Kenya National Alliance of Street Vendors and Informal Traders (KENASVIT)

Kenya

Kenya National Alliance of Street Vendors and Informal Traders (KENASVIT)

Visit Site

Malawi Union for the Informal Sector (MUFIS)

Haile Selassie Road, Blantyre, Malawi

Associação da Economia Informal de Moçambique (AEIMO)

Cidade, 245 Avenida Olof Palme, Maputo, Mozambique

Confédération Nationale des Travailleurs du Sénégal (CNTS)

Senegal

Confédération Nationale des Travailleurs du Sénégal (CNTS)

Visit Site

Le Syndicat des Vendeurs de Matériaux de Construction du Togo (SYVEMACOT)

Togo

Alliance for Zambian Informal Economy Associations (AZIEA)

David Mwila House, Kitwe, Zambia

Zimbabwe Chamber of Informal Economy Associations (ZCIEA)

7 Beal Road, Harare, Zimbabwe

Labour at Informal Economy (LIE)

Block - A, Dhaka, Bangladesh

All India Federation of Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA Bharat)

India

All India Federation of Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA Bharat)

Visit Site

Kagad Kach Patra Kashtakari Panchayat (KKPKP)

India

Kagad Kach Patra Kashtakari Panchayat (KKPKP)

Visit Site

Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA)

India

Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA)

Visit Site

General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT)

Nepal

General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT)

Visit Site

Pambansang Kalipunan ng mga Manggagawang Impormal sa Pilipinas (PATAMABA)

Philippines

Pambansang Kalipunan ng mga Manggagawang Impormal sa Pilipinas (PATAMABA)

Visit Site

HomeNet Thailand

686/5 Soi Wuttaram 11/3, Nahmuang Rd., Khonkaen 40000 THAILAND

HomeNet Thailand was founded in 1999 as an NGO to support home-based workers across Thailand.

Visit Site

Association of Home-Based Workers, Bulgaria (AHBW)

Bulgaria

Unión de Trabajadores y Trabajadoras de la Economía Popular (UTEP)

Argentina

Unión de Trabajadores y Trabajadoras de la Economía Popular (UTEP)

Visit Site

Movimento Nacional dos Catadores de Materiais Recicláveis (MNCR)

Brazil

Movimento Nacional dos Catadores de Materiais Recicláveis (MNCR)

Visit Site

Sindicato de Trabajadores Independientes Ambulantes del Transporte y Anexos (SINTRALOC)

Av. Libertador Bernardo O'Higgins 1346, Lo Prado, Estación Central, Región Metropolitana, Chile

Asociación Nacional de Recicladores (ANR)

Colombia

Asociación Nacional de Recicladores (ANR)

Visit Site

Red Nacional de Trabajadores y Trabajadoras Autoempleadas (RENATTA)

Peru

Red Nacional de Trabajadores y Trabajadoras Autoempleadas (RENATTA)

Visit Site

Federación Única de Trabajadores No Dependientes de Venezuela (FUTRAND)

Los Cabos, Parroquia La Candelaria Municipio Libertador, Dtto. Capital  Código Postal 1010 Caracas Venezuela

View module on Network (original page)(this link opens in new window)
View module on Realizing Homeworkers’ Labour Rights (original page)(this link opens in new window)

Work With Us

Thank you for your interest in working with WIEGO. We are committed to a diverse, inclusive workforce built to serve informally employed workers around the world.

Explore Our Current Job Openings

Governance and Accountability

WIEGO is uniquely structured to ensure accountability to the workers we serve. Our board has representatives from worker organizations, researchers, statisticians and development professionals.

Governance & Accountability
View module on Team (original page)(this link opens in new window)

Monthly Digest

Our Monthly Digest delivers directly to your inbox stories, articles, research, blogs and event highlights on the informal economy, including news from the global networks of workers in informal employment.

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View module on Newsletters (original page)(this link opens in new window)

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View module on Law Programme (original page)(this link opens in new window)