HomeNet International, a global network of home-based workers, held its launching congress on February 23-24. The international network builds on organizing initiatives among home-based workers across five regions including HomeNet South Asia, and HomeNet South East Asia. The launching congress of the global network comes 25 years after the adoption of ILO's Home Work Convention, 1996 (No. 177).

The ILO estimates that there were 147 million women and 113 million men who worked from home in 2019. According to a recent report released by the ILO on Working from home: From invisibility to decent work a great deal of heterogeneity exists among homeworkers according to region, and type of work from industrial outsourcing and telework to home-based digital platform work.

HomeNet International’s goals are similar to other global informal economy worker networks/federations such as the International Domestic Workers Federation (IDWF), International Alliance of Street Vendors (StreetNet International), and Global Alliance of Waste Pickers (GAWP). HomeNet International aims to:

• Build and provide solidarity among members around common and pressing issues
• Raise visibility and gain recognition of home-based workers as workers
• Influence governments and employers globally

ILO COOP provided a solidarity message on the occasion of the launching congress of HomeNet International. Cooperatives and wider social and solidarity economy organizations are prominent among informal workers and enterprises around the world. They help support the transition from the informal to the formal economy, including through creating economies of scale, providing social protection, and collective voice and negotiation with other public and private stakeholders in the local economy and across the value chain.

The constitution of HomeNet International was adopted by affiliates at its virtual congress on the 24th of February 2021. A recording of the launching congress of HomeNet International can be viewed here. An ILO COOP interview with Janhavi Dave, the International Coordinator of HomeNet South Asia can be found here.

The documents related to the Virtual Congress of HomeNet International are available through here.