The COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the devastating effects of decades of under-investment in public health and care systems and the harmful politics of austerity.
Many countries were ill-prepared to deal with the scale and rapidly evolving nature of the pandemic. Millions of care and health workers, overwhelmingly women, were left without access to essential personal protective equipment (PPE) and other health and safety measures.
Pre-existing national and global structural inequalities across gender, class and racialised lines, have been exposed and exacerbated.
The pandemic has underlined the centrality of health and care to our well-being and existence. The need for adequate investment in equitable, quality public health and care systems is more apparent and urgent than ever.
Workers across the health, care and education sectors, whether working in hospitals, hospices, schools, care homes, private homes or as domestic workers, whether in the public or private sector, deserve decent working conditions and fair pay, that reflect their enormous contributions to our societies.
On 29 October, workers around the world will take action for a caring economy:
- For Investment in public health and care – including mental health, childcare, early childhood education, elderly care and other social care services that serve all our communities
- For the creation of millions of decent, green jobs in health, care and early childhood education
- For respect of the right to freedom of association and to collective bargaining for all health, care and education workers, whether in the formal or informal economy
- For decent pay and working conditions, including equal pay for work of equal value, training opportunities and occupational health and safety
- For equity and non-discrimination in recruitment, retention, access to training and promotion opportunities
- For universal, gender-responsive social protection available to all workers regardless of employment status or migrant status, race, disability, gender identity or sexual orientation, and inclusive of workers in the informal economy
- For availability and accessibility by all to quality public health, care and education services
Joint Statement
Unions and civil society mobilising to demand investments in care for building more inclusive, accessible, resilient, and caring economies.
Join the Global Day of Action for Care
Sign up to get updates about the Global Day of Action.
- Download the #InvestInCare social media pack
- Let us know what action you will be taking – e.g. petitioning your government s, launching a petition, writing to your politicians, holding virtual events, launching an advocacy and awareness-raising campaign, launching an organising campaign to support care workers in joining unions and exercising their collective rights, organising a press conference, organising a twitter storm, etc. – by sending us an email at [email protected]
- Spread the word: Get your friends, colleagues, unions involved in the Global Day of Action
- Share updates on your action(s) on social media platforms using the hashtags #CAREday20 #InvestInCare
- Tell us how it went: Send us an email at [email protected]