The Senate is expediting the process of properly documenting and protecting the human rights of domestic workers and their employers in the country.
Lawmakers contend that proper documentation and protection of domestic workers will fulfill multiple objectives, including maintaining comprehensive records of domestic workers’ identities, upholding their fundamental human rights, and ensuring employers’ safety.
Leading the debate, the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Hussaini Babangida-Uba from Jigawa North-West, pointed out that most domestic workers in the country are unregistered and not engaged in accordance with labor laws.
He also stated that the bill would protect the interests of both domestic workers and their employers by addressing frequent abuses and tragedies, such as instances of home helps murdering their employers and absconding with valuables.
Contributing to the debate, Sen. Sani Musa remarked that, for instance, in the United Kingdom, the law prohibits hiring a domestic worker without adhering to a specific procedure.
Sen. Adams Oshiomhole added that domestic workers often endure abuses such as rape, harassment, and murder, with many of these cases going unreported.
Additionally, the Senate passed the second reading of the 59-year-old ICAN Act to amend key provisions, including increasing the nominal 100 naira fine for any offense and the conviction on indictment, which currently carries only a 1,000 naira fine.
Sponsored by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, Senator Olamilekan Adeola from Ogun West, the bill includes a total of 26 amendments and insertions.
Concluding the debate on the bill’s general principles, the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, emphasized the urgency of the amendment, which aims to address the backlog of over 50,000 applicants aspiring to become members of ICAN.
