In connection with International Domestic Workers Day on 16 June 2025, WISE organized a Women Convention to honor the contributions and struggles of women domestic workers. A large number of women domestic workers and civil society activists attended the event. Among the speakers were: Amjad Ali Javaid, Chairman Standing Committee on Labour, Rubina Jamil, General Secretary All Pakistan Trade Union Federation, Ghulam Fatima, General Secretary, Bonded Labour Liberation Front, Shazia Saeed, General Secretary Punjab Domestic Workers Union, Parveen Ansari, Labour Leader, Asiea Amir, Deputy Director PESSI, Nadeem Ahmad and Sabahat Jabeen from Labour & Human Resource Department  

The speakers said, on this day, we recognize the invaluable role they play in our homes and societies, often working long hours with little recognition. This day is a powerful reminder of the need for dignity, fair wages, safe working conditions and legal protection for these workers. They said women domestic workers face multiple problems including low wages, longer working hours, violence at workplace and lack of compliance of minimum wages notification. The rampant and illegal practice of child domestic work is an ugly form of modern slavery, which needs to abolished.

Despite passage of law in the last six years none of DWs is registered with PESSI or issued social security card so far. The barely minimum wages of domestic workers don’t commensurate with their work output. Rules of business for the effective implementation of the Domestic Workers law needs to be framed at earliest to enable the departments concerned to applicable the law in letter and spirit, she demanded. They urged the Punjab provincial govt. should issue social security cards to domestic workers per requirement of Punjab Domestic Workers Act 2019.