tearfund Respecting Rights Informal Waste Sector Workers User Manual

tearfund Respecting Rights Informal Waste Sector Workers

Product Information

The “Respecting the rights of informal waste sector workers” toolkit is designed to support brands in implementing the Fair Circularity Principles within their value chains. It focuses on the informal waste sector, particularly waste pickers, who are vulnerable to various human rights impacts.

Specifications

• Toolkit Name: Respecting the rights of the informal waste sector workers: A human rights due diligence toolkit
• Developed by: First Mile in collaboration with Tearfund
• Funded by: Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad)
• Number of Stages: 3
• Online Availability: Expected in early 2024

Key Preparation
Before using the toolkit, users are encouraged to assess their readiness through a self-diagnostic process. Educational resources are provided to help users understand the intersection of the informal sector, poverty, gender, and social impact.

Usage Instructions

1. Who should use this toolkit?
   This toolkit is intended for companies looking to advance and adopt the Fair Circularity Principles within their value chains in collaboration with waste picker organizations.

2. Self-diagnostic for using the toolkit
   Before diving into the toolkit, users are advised to perform a self-diagnostic assessment to gauge their readiness and understanding of the issues at hand.

Educational resources
Users can access educational resources within the toolkit that provide insights into the informal sector, poverty, gender, and social impact, helping them navigate the complexities of implementing the Fair Circularity Principles.

FAQ

• Q: When will the complete toolkit be available online?
  A: The online format of the toolkit is expected to be available in early 2024.

• Q: What is the main focus of this toolkit?
  A: The toolkit primarily focuses on supporting brands in implementing the Fair Circularity Principles within their value chains, with a specific emphasis on the informal waste sector and waste pickers.

Toolkit prepared by First Mile, for and in collaboration with Tearfund, and funded by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad)

About this toolkit

In November 2022, the Coca-Cola Company, PepsiCo, Unilever and Nestlé launched the Fair Circularity Initiative (FCI). Convened by Tearfund, the aim was to bring businesses together to secure the human rights of workers within the informal waste sector, and to recognise their critical role in circular value chains. There are at least 20 million waste pickers globally. While carrying out a vital environmental and public health role, these waste pickers are vulnerable to a broad range of severe human rights impacts. At the heart of the FCI are the Fair Circularity Principles which apply the expectations of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs)1 to the informal waste sector. The founding members of the FCI have committed to advance and adopt the Fair Circularity Principles in their value chains in collaboration with waste picker organisations. As new companies join, they will make the same commitment.

This set of tools was developed by First Mile for and in collaboration with, Tearfund. It offers guidance to support brands in beginning to implement the Fair Circularity Principles through:

• mapping their value chains
• analysing human rights risks2 and their root causes
• meaningfully engaging with informal waste sector workers, in particular waste pickers, either directly or through a third-party
• This allows users to implement an action plan to ensure the prevention, mitigation and remedy of human rights impacts.
• The tools cover the informal waste sector as a whole, but with a focus on waste pickers who are often the most vulnerable rights holders within this broader group.
• The complete toolkit is being developed into an online format which will be available in early 2024.

1UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights
2Fair Circularity Principles – Annex A

The business case for human rights

Global plastic production has risen exponentially over the last few decades, amounting to some 400 million tons per year, a figure that – without urgent action – is set to double by 20403. The process of negotiating a UN treaty on plastic pollution4 has raised global attention on the importance of tackling the plastic pollution crisis through a holistic approach across governments, businesses and civil society. At the same time, global brands are committing to increasing the percentage of recycled plastic used in their packaging, and Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) schemes are growing in number across the world. EPR schemes seek to ensure that companies take responsibility for the collection, sorting, and recycling of the products and packaging they place on the market.

Under the UNGPs, companies have a responsibility to respect human rights throughout their operations and value chains. This means they must prevent and address actual and potential impacts with which they are or may be involved, in line with the nature of that involvement. Companies should carry out human rights due diligence to identify, prevent, mitigate and account for how they address impacts with which they are involved and take specific action5.
Recognising the need for learning that comes with the complex nature of this work may at first seem overwhelming and daunting for businesses. However, addressing the severity of human rights impacts and the vulnerability of the informal waste sector is key to driving positive business outcomes in a growing circular economy for plastics and other recyclable materials. There is a need for corporate leadership buy-in and an urgency to respect the human rights and dignity of waste pickers across the world. Engaging these tools will serve as the first stage in a process for companies to make progress in implementing the Fair Circularity Principles in their circular value chains.

3UN Environment Programme Drowning in Plastics – Marine Litter and Plastic Waste Vital Graphics
4UN Treaty on Plastic Pollution
5(Shift, 2022) Executive Summary: Principles for Corporate Engagement on Human Rights with the Informal Waste Sector – Applying the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights to the Plastic Packaging Recycling Value Chain.

3-stage approach to support informal waste sector worker rights

This toolkit includes three stages:

• Stage 1: Plastic value chain mapping of waste value chains and stakeholders in a specific context.
• Stage 2: Participatory human rights assessment and analysis of human rights risks, root causes, and priority concerns of waste pickers in particular contexts.
• Stage 3: Collaborative action planning, implementation and monitoring to address human rights risks and waste picker priorities. Stage 3 is currently in development. Once developed, additional information will be included in this Introduction and key preparation document.

Each stage contains actionable overviews to guide companies in their journey towards more socially responsible, sustainable and equitable value chains. To preview the three stages, please see the Toolkit logic model in Fig. 1.

Fig. 1: Toolkit logic model

Stage| Inputs – what users invest| Actions – what users can do| Outcomes – short, intermediate and long term
---|---|---|---
Introduction and key preparation| Time for foundational learning to inform and align efforts| – Complete self-diagnostic assessment – read the suggested materials

– Prepare to take concrete actions to map, assess and strengthen value chains

| Short term – companies are introduced to key concepts and terms relating to the informal waste sector, poverty and social impact

__

Intermediate term – companies build foundational insights into the contribution of the informal waste sector within their value chains

__

Long term – companies are committed to continued learning about the informal waste sector and methods of partnership

1A: Internal capacity building and mapping| Knowledge base and capacity of the companies’ internal team along with leadership buy-in| – Select geography – conduct desk-based research on waste and labour laws to develop an understanding of the country’s context and risks

– Conduct a waste flow discovery exercise to identify formal and informal segments of the waste value chain

– Identify knowledge gaps for further research

| Short term – companies develop a focused value chain map of a selected geography with key partners and identified segmentations of formal and informal workers. Establish baseline quantitative and qualitative understanding of the formal value chain

__

Intermediate term – companies identify objectives for external partnerships

__

Term – companies have increased visibility and understanding of the informal elements of their value chains and prioritise investment in partnering with workers in the informal waste sector

1B: External partnership strengthening and mapping| Expanded knowledge base and capacity of the companies’ internal teams

__

The knowledge base of external partners

| – Connect with external partners in the formal sector

– Connect to a local association of waste pickers in the country (or NGOs, CBOs) and interview them to gain an understanding of the informal waste sector, particularly waste pickers in that context

– Complete waste flow discovery exercise to identify and profile external suppliers

– Review completed waste flow discovery exercises and identify traceability gaps

| Short-term – companies begin to understand human rights risks inherent in their recycling value chains and have meaningful discussions about their responsibility to engage. Companies identify necessary key external partners to engage to address gaps. Progress on reaching full traceability of formal actors

__

Intermediate term – companies understand the importance of increasing traceability and visibility

__

Long-term – companies build sustainable partnerships with external key actors

2. Informal sector assessment and analysis| Time to hear and understand the voices and perspectives of workers at each tier of the informal supply chain

__

Mapped waste flow and waste flow profile from Stage 1 for formal segments of the supply chain

| – Build background knowledge through further reading on engagement with the informal waste sector

– Leverage established connections with partners in the formal sector for introduction to informal partners

– Conduct interviews with informal workers in the value chain

–  Map the selected value chain to the source, where informal workers are engaged

– Identify human rights issues across a broad spectrum, conduct a root cause analysis and prioritise according to informal workers’ needs

| Short-term – companies widen their understanding of ethical principles when collecting data in the field. They also increase their understanding of the needs of each actor in the supply chain and develop a prioritised list of root causes. Connections with workers throughout the entire value chain are established

__

Intermediate term – companies understand how to apply a human rights framework to a selected value chain. Identify indicators and methodologies for collecting and analysing gender-disaggregated data and align human rights issues to the Fair Circularity Principles

__

Long-term – companies build relationships that can be nurtured for potential partnerships and future programming

| | –   Consider intervention actions and efforts needed to fill the gaps

–   Apply gender lens to human rights assessment and analysis

–   Prioritise a set of risks to address

|
---|---|---|---
3. Collaborative action planning, implementation and monitoring| Internal team capacity and resources to develop and implement an action plan

__

__

Identified and prioritised a set of human rights risks and root causes from Stage 2

| – Categories human rights risks by root cause and identify any areas of intersection

– Co-design an action plan that best fits the needs of informal workers

– Ensure the action plan aligns with the Fair Circularity Principles and is tailored to local contexts

– Assess what is needed to implement an action plan

– Assess programmes and existing solutions to identified human rights risk

– Apply gender lens and considerations for women and vulnerable populations

| Short-term – companies establish timelines, key performance indicators (KPIs) and programme objectives for the implementation of action plans. Align KPIs with a continuous feedback loop, making sure informal workers’ voices are represented

__

Intermediate term – companies understand how to address and prevent human rights impacts on the informal waste sector workers in their value chains

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Long-term – companies continuously improve efforts to address and prevent human rights impacts based on feedback from rights holders

Key preparation

Who should use this toolkit?
While the users of this toolkit may vary across organisations depending on the size of the companies and teams, we recommend that it be used by people who are responsible for the following areas of work:

• human rights, responsible sourcing, ESG-related audits, certification and reporting
• supplier engagement and management, including finance and procurement
• key decision-makers or budget holders who should participate in the development of action plans, eg an operations manager

Self-diagnostic for using the toolkit
To successfully employ these tools, it is critical that users first evaluate whether they are equipped to carry out the work internally or whether the support of a third party should be sought. To determine whether or not to proceed with the help of a third party, consideration should be given to the following areas:

• Expertise
  knowledge of waste value chains and human rights is necessary to use all of the tools. Fortunately, you can develop this expertise with the necessary resources and time. If you do not have background knowledge on these topics through working in procurement, human rights, or value chain management, you can develop your knowledge independently.
  The willingness to continue developing a foundational understanding of waste value chains and human rights is also critical to employing each tool and is part of investing in the process. To develop this understanding, review the resources provided in this introduction, and continue researching other educational resources provided through WIEGO6, OECD7, ILO8 and others engaging directly with waste pickers. See the resources referenced in Fig. 2. In addition to these resources, much understanding can be developed through conversations with key actors and external partners. There must be direct engagement with waste pickers if your company is to build a productive partnership and sustainable relationship with the informal waste sector.

• Capacity – having the time, flexibility, and financial resources to use the tools is critical to their success. The tools will require time to complete outreach to workers and suppliers, to engage in direct and indirect data gathering and analysis, and to conduct follow-ups. If you are new to the topics covered in the tools, you will also experience a steeper learning curve that may require some additional legwork to adjust to.

  • Users who feel they have the capacity to complete this process independently with their internal teams can employ the tools to create a timeline with reasonable milestones that account for both their expertise and capacity.
  • Users who decide they do not have the expertise or capacity can consider hiring a third-party experienced in responsible sourcing. Users can then allocate as much or as little of the work to the third party as appropriate.

• Investment – the three stages of the toolkit follow a thorough process to increase supply chain transparency and responsibility. This requires an investment in time and resources. Mapping is the first step in the process for companies to understand their waste value chains (Stage 1). Following that, the value chains must be assessed to determine where the human rights risks exist and where action is needed (Stage 2). Given the results of the assessment, actions can then be developed – in consultation with rights-holders – to mitigate these risks and address the issues at hand (Stage 3). Finally, implementation of those recommendations and monitoring will follow for as long as your company is engaged with the value chain.
  Progress will take time. Waste pickers face challenges that are rooted in a history of discriminatory practices, systematic issues and a lack of standards. Unfortunately, there is no quick fix for this. The process requires commitment, diligence, collaboration, and patience to take the journey step by step. It requires establishing a relationship of trust and mutual respect and begins with a recognition of the work waste pickers do and the value they bring. When conducting interviews, use the time to listen, learn, and build a relationship. Use the time to understand where and why vulnerabilities exist. Not all information will be gathered in a single conversation. Patience and an openness to learn and collaborate in this process will yield greater outcomes.

• Engagement – in Stage 2, users will form connections with informal waste sector workers to complete the value chain mapping and the human rights assessment. Before establishing these connections, users must understand the critical role worker participation plays in gaining a clear picture of the value chain down to the first mile. To note, the first Fair Circularity Principle9 is to
  ‘Recognize the critical role of informal waste sector workers in plastics waste and recycling value chains.’ The text states that ‘Meeting this principle in practice requires public and private sector actors in plastics value chains to include waste pickers as relevant and legitimate stakeholders – and their interests and concerns as essential considerations – in local, national and international dialogue and policy-making arenas and business decision-making.’ Furthermore, Principle 5, which is to ‘Engage meaningfully with informal waste sector workers,’ states: ‘Engagement with affected stakeholders is central to the concept of human rights due diligence. Companies in plastics packaging recycling value chains should engage meaningfully and respectfully with informal waste sector workers, in ways that acknowledge their human dignity, to inform those companies’ understanding of risks and impacts, and in the design of efforts to prevent and address those impacts.’ Informal and formal sectors often have little or no meaningful dialogue between each other. This lack of connection leads to little or no visibility of the informal segment, which enables human rights risks to go unchecked with no support or intervention. Connecting with waste pickers by establishing traceability and beginning data collection is vital to establishing a baseline understanding of their work, including where they source materials, the volumes collected/sold, the income received, the challenges and needs experienced, and ideas for solutions. Users may gather some of this information in Stage 1 from formal actors, but the Stage 2: Participatory human rights assessment and analysis tool will require users to connect directly with waste pickers to validate and contextualise the Stage 1 findings, gather further information on the challenges they face, and identify possible actions for the prevention and mitigation of root causes.

6WIEGO
7OECD
8ILO
9Fair Circularity Initiative Principles for Corporate Engagement with the Informal Waste Sector Aligned with the UNGPs.

Educational resources

Introduction to the intersection of the informal sector, poverty, gender and social impact
Waste pickers are usually independent individuals who collect valuable waste material and sell it to an aggregator to make an income to take care of themselves and their families. They often collect waste material in bags or large sacks. Some also use tools like metal picks wheelbarrows or trolleys. In a more organised setting, waste pickers might be a part of a collaborative or a cooperative and they may be collecting or receiving material from households, businesses or the local municipality. In many contexts, waste pickers play a substantial role in the collection, sorting and recycling of plastics and other materials, collecting as much as 60% of the plastic waste that is recycled globally10. In doing so they are preventing it from reaching oceans and from being openly dumped or burned, mitigating the consequent environmental and public health impacts. Waste pickers’ historical and ongoing contributions to waste management and recycling are significant, and many operators in the sector have considerable expertise and experience. At the same time, they are vulnerable to a broad range of severe human rights impacts. See the Fair Circularity Principles Annex A for a description of common human rights impacts experienced by waste pickers.

10Systemiq Breaking the Plastic Wave

Fig.2: Resources about the informal waste sector

Sector from WIEGO_](https://www.wiego.org/informal-economy/history-debates) Statistical Picture on the Informal Sector from WIEGO Introduction to Waste Pickers from WIEGO
Links between the informal sector and poverty| Links with Poverty from WIEGO
Socially responsible plastic value chains| The NextWave Plastics Framework for Socially Responsible Ocean-Bound Plastic Supply Chains

Mapping Local Plastic Recycling Supply Chains from The Circulate Initiative

Assessment of pathways towards stopping ocean plastic pollution and understanding of the global role of the informal waste sector| Breaking the Plastic Wave Report from Pew/Systemi q __

Building Inclusive Markets for Plastic Waste Management & Recycling in South and Southeast Asia

Vulnerability of informal partners| Tackling Vulnerability in the Informal Economy from OECD
Corporate human rights responsibilities towards waste pickers| Shift (2022) Executive Summary: Principles for Corporate Engagement on Human Rights with the Informal Waste Sector

– Applying the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights to the Plastic Packaging Recycling Value Chain

Applying a gender lens
A key cross-cutting principle in the Fair Circularity Principles, Principle 6: ‘Apply a gender lens in efforts to address human rights impacts in the informal waste sector’, will be applied throughout this toolkit with an intentional lens on gender equality and addressing the specific vulnerabilities women working in the informal waste sector disproportionately face. Women working in the informal waste sector experience gender-based disparities that often impact their safety, and ultimately their ability to access equal economic opportunities and resources. In light of this, the following educational resources emphasise the importance of incorporating gender perspectives to address the human rights impacts on women. Since limited resources exist specifically on female waste pickers, some of these readings focus on women workers in supply chains within agriculture, or the garment industry, but can be adapted for the informal waste sector.

Note that general guidance on applying a gender lens to this process will be provided in each tool. However, it’s important to build this foundational understanding before you begin.

Fig.3: Resources on gender and the informal sector

A framework for conducting gender-responsive due diligence in supply chains| BSR Gender Data Impact Framework report
Addressing the gender dimension of informality| Tackling Vulnerability in the Informal Economy from OECD
Theoretical considerations on gender, empowerment and waste| __From Theory to Action: Gender and Waste Recycling

__A Toolkit for Teachers, Researchers and Practitioners from WIEGO

Women’s role in accelerating circular value chains – informal waste sector perspectives| Informal Sector Perspectives, a Tearfund webinar Gender and waste nexus from UNEP & GRID- Arendal

While across all sectors women face gender gaps and bias in the workplace, women working in the informal sector are especially vulnerable to experiencing ingrained social and economic structural barriers to their work that further disadvantage and marginalise them. Women also experience intersecting inequalities due to age, class, social status, religion, race and ethnicity. It is crucial to recognise that intersecting identities and systems of power are deeply intertwined and cannot be understood separately. They uniquely shape a woman’s experience of oppression and inequality. Therefore, a gender- responsive analysis should consider the various forms of discrimination that women face based on their situations. Fig. 4 lists some of the specific challenges and inequities women working in the informal sector may face, and their associated human rights issues.

Fig. 4: Gender-specific challenges and inequities within the informal sector

danger and violence in the competitive environments of landfills as well as on streets, especially when collection takes place at night.

●      Women lack the appropriate clothing, shoes, and protective equipment like gloves and sun protection to work safely in an exposed environment.

●      Women face specific health risks from breathing in fumes while working in landfills.

●      Women are disproportionately impacted by the lack of privacy and basic sanitation and potential exposure to sexual and physical violence.

__

Gender division of labour

| ●      Women are more involved in collection and sorting, while tasks that are often considered ‘masculine’, involving machinery and processing, are usually carried out by men. These jobs also tend to involve higher pay, resulting in pay inequality.

●      Women often lack authority and do not occupy positions of power and decision-making within their communities. This presents a further barrier to achieving economic independence and equal recognition for their work.

●      This division of labour is often based on cultural norms and beliefs about what women cannot or should not do. This ultimately leads to female waste pickers having lower incomes, more hazardous working conditions, and less control over their work in comparison to their male counterparts11.

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Discrimination and harassment

| ●      Women are often relegated to collecting plastics, while men collect more valuable materials, resulting in women being subjected to violence if they attempt to collect more valuable materials.

●      Women often face harassment and severe stigma associated with their work.

__

Further impacts on livelihoods

| ●      Women are often excluded from (or face further barriers in accessing) economic inclusion and social and financial services such as formal banking systems, identity cards, and healthcare.

●      Outside of work, women also often fulfil additional roles at home as mothers and primary caregivers, further limiting their time for economic and leadership opportunities.

Cultural gender norms can contribute to a lack of recognition and difficulties in uncovering and addressing these issues. Global gender indices, such as the OECD Development Centre’s Social Institution and Gender Index (SIGI)12 suggest the underlying drivers of gender inequality and allow users to check the state of overall gender equality at the country level. This can reveal whether an identified human rights risk is a gendered issue specific to women, is ‘surprising’ or ‘expected’ within a country’s cultural context, and provides insight into root causes in line with the country’s context. Of course, even if an issue is ‘expected’, this does not mean it should not be addressed as a human rights impact. Rather, understanding the country context acts as a baseline and highlights areas to pay special attention to when addressing the issue. Users should also consult a local gender expert to better understand where to begin, what to look for, and how to address gender-based issues when they surface while engaging in this process.

It is important to note that given the above context and gender lens considerations, the goal of gender equality does not mean that women and men will become the same, but that women’s and men’s rights, responsibilities and opportunities will not depend on whether they are born male or female. Gender equality implies that the interests, practical and strategic needs and priorities of both women and men are taken into consideration, recognising the diversity of different groups of women and men. It also implies that the differentiated risks, constraints and vulnerabilities experienced by women and men are identified, prevented and mitigated in all actions. Gender equality is not solely a women’s issue, but should concern and fully engage men as well as women. Equality between women and men is seen both as a human rights issue and as a precondition for, and indicator of, sustainable people-centred development. For additional information, refer to the UN Entity for Gender Equality & the Empowerment of Women13.

11Waste Picker Integration Guideline for South Africa
12OECD Development Centre’s Social Institution and Gender Index
13UN Entity for Gender Equality & the Empowerment of Women.

Glossary

The following glossary of terms will support users to develop the necessary vocabulary to fully engage these tools:

• Aggregator: An intermediary organisation that purchases and consolidates recyclable materials from waste pickers and/or cooperatives, and often sells the sorted material to formal partners in the value chain, including balers and/or recyclers.
• Assessment: Analysis and study of a value chain to understand the waste flow, material volume processed, and the key partners involved as well as their needs to support decision-making.
• Baler: Intermediary partners in the value chain that sort, process and compact recyclable materials before selling the bales to recyclers.
• Child labour: Not all work done by children under the age of 18 is child labour. According to the ILO, child labour is any type of employment or work which by its nature, or the circumstances in which it is carried out, is likely to jeopardise the health, safety or morals of young persons.14
• Community-based organisation (CBO): A public or private non-profit organisation of demonstrated effectiveness that— (A) is representative of a community or significant segments of a community; and (B) provides educational or related services to individuals in the community.
• Cooperative: Enterprise operated by a team of waste pickers who aggregate and sell recyclable material collectively. The operations of these facilities are overseen by the cooperative members.
• Dignity: Recognition of one’s inherent value that provides a foundation for respect, honour, and ethical treatment.
• Formal waste sector: Individuals who are employed by public service providers and private waste companies that are officially recognised by state authorities.
• Gender: Refers to socially constructed roles of power relations among men, women, and gender nonbinary persons who may be affected differently by business activities. Gender equality refers to equal rights, responsibilities and opportunities that all persons should enjoy, regardless of their gender.
• Human rights: Rights inherent to all human beings that extend to all areas of life, including the economic, social, cultural, civil and political facets. These rights include the right to life and liberty, freedom from slavery and torture, freedom of opinion and expression, the right to work and education and more.15
• Informal dumpsite: Non-official dumps started in communities or neighbourhoods, usually by the residents, not officially managed, planned, or controlled by authorities.
• Informal sector: WIEGO (2012) states: ‘There are three related official statistical terms and definitions which are often used imprecisely and interchangeably: the informal sector refers to the production and employment that takes place in unincorporated small or unregistered enterprises (1993 ICLS)16, informal employment refers to employment without legal and social protection –both inside and outside the informal sector (2003 ICLS)17, and the informal economy refers to all units, activities and workers so defined and the output from them. Together, they form the board base of the workforce and economy, both nationally and globally.’18 While the Fair Circularity Principles refer both to informal waste sector workers and waste pickers (and includes the above explanation) the Fair Circularity Initiative now refers to ‘waste pickers’ in documentation.
• Post-consumer resin (PCR) supplier: Formal actor, usually at tier 1 or 2 of the value chain, that purchases flakes from recyclers and pelletises this flake into PCR for use by brands/manufacturers.
• Recycler: Formal organisations, usually at tier 3 or 4 of the plastic value chain, that receive baled recyclable materials ready to be processed and flaked. Recyclers sell the flaked materials to PCR suppliers.
• Tier system: System of key partners who make up a value chain. The tiers begin with the actor in closest proximity to the value chain’s final product, tier 1, and extend from there to the earlier partners in the chain.
• Waste flow: Chain of locations and partners that oversee the circulation of waste from origin, such as landfills, canals, streets or households, to processing for reuse, recycling or disposal. Throughout the tool, this may be referred to as the waste value chain.
• Waste picker(informal waste sector worker): The terms ‘informal waste sector worker’ and ‘waste picker’ refer to a group of workers in the informal sector who collect, sort, aggregate and valorise recyclables from post-consumer waste streams. Historically, various names have been used interchangeably for this group, including those used here, as well as ‘workers under informal and cooperative settings.’19

14ILO, Minimum Age Convention
15 UN – Human Rights
16Resolution concerning statistics of employment in the informal waste sector, Adopted by the Fifteenth International Conference of Labour Statisticians (January 1993) –
https://www.ilo.org/global/statistics-and-databases/standards-and-guidelines /resolutions-adopted-by-international-conferences-of-labour- statisticians/WCMS_087484/lang–en/index.htm
17Guidelines concerning a statistical definition of informal employment, Adopted by the Seventeenth International Conference of Labour Statisticians (November 2003) –
https://www.ilo.org/global/statistics-and-databases/standards-and-guidelines /guidelines-adopted-by-international-conferences-of-labour- statisticians/WCMS_087622/lang–en/index.htm.

18Chen, M.A. (2012) The Informal Economy: Definitions, Theories and Policies, WIEGO Working Paper No.1 2012.
https://www.wiego.org/sites/default/files/publications/files/Chen_WIEGO_WP1.pdf.
19UN Environmental Assembly plastics treaty mandate – UN Doc UNEP EA.5/Res.14.

References

• Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty
• Women's role in accelerating circular value chains - informal sector perspectives
• ILO Homepage | International Labour Organization
• Social Responsibility Framework — NextWave
• Home page | WIEGO
• Links with Poverty | WIEGO

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