About Us

Domestic Helpers Organization (DHO) is now Informal Workers Organisation (IWO) a women-led organization founded in 2015 by Madam Chelcy Alma Aminata Heroe but formerly launched in July 2017.

Domestic Helpers Organization (DHO) is now Informal Workers Organisation (IWO) a women-led organization founded in 2015 by Madam Chelcy Alma Aminata Heroe but formerly launched in July 2017.

The founder was raised by her mother through informal work as domestic worker and as a result experienced abuses but was unable to seek redress. She was deeply concerned about the poor quality of services rendered by informal workers (Domestic workers) on one hand and equally poor working conditions of the workers on the other. In order to address the situation Madam Heroe decided to set up and registered an Organization aimed at strengthening the capacity of persons to be able to deliver efficient and quality services and at the same time possess the ability to negotiate for improved wages and working conditions.

Domestic Helpers Organization is a registered Local Non-Governmental Organization working to promote the rights dignity and welfare of informal workers especially national and migrant domestic workers through advocacy and capacity building to enhance their livelihood and employability.

DHO interventions focus on addressing labour injustice issues relating to Employment within informal sector for vulnerable youth and women in Sierra Leone. Our trainings are also to provide a cadre of informal workers (domestic workers) in order to create a pool of professionals available to work for individuals and institutions that desire quality and efficient services.

Over the years the apparent marginalization and exclusion of informal workers in policy and decision-making process that affects their lives has attracted DHO’s attention. As a result DHO has been engaged in mainstream advocacy for these deprived groups to increase demand for recognition and inclusion from duty bearers.

Due to pile of complaints received by DHO from informal workers in general the Board Management and staff decided to rebrand DHO to Informal Workers Organisation (IWO) in January 2021.

+23278483573 | +23234592801 OR info@informalworkers.org

IWO First Stakeholders Meeting

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IWO First Stakeholders Meeting

The Informal Workers Organisation (IWO) held its first stakeholders meeting funded by Open Society Foundations (OSF) at the Family Kingdom Conference Room to discuss an Overview of the Provision of Labor Laws and Policies and Challenges of Informal Workers in Sierra Leone to Enhance Decent Work for Informal Workers. The objectives are to know the services and opportunities provided/available to informal workers by MDA’s to identify the laws and policies available for the promotion and protection of informal workers in the MDA’s to have a clear understanding on whether the workers in the informal economy are aware or benefiting from the services opportunities laws and policies and to identify the key challenges faced by informal workers in Sierra Leone especially in the work spaces

 The meeting was in attendance by a representative from the Ministry of Labour and Social Security Sierra Leone Labour Congress Action Aid Ministry of Social Welfare Ministry of Gender and Children Affairs Sierra Leone Committee on Labour in Parliament Ministry of Technical and Higher Education Ministry of Youth Affairs Advcoaid National Council for Civic Education and Development Ministry of Transport and Aviation and Directorates for the Traffic Department.

The CEO and Founder of the Informal Workers Organization Madam Chlecy Alma Heroe made a PowerPoint presentation and participants were formed into three groups for discussion and presentation. The engagement was participatory and participants specified the laws and policies and provisions available for the informal workers. Among many were the Employment Act 2023 Overseas Employment and Migrant Workers Act 2023 National Minimum Wage Sierra Leone Local Content Agency Act 2016 Anti-Human Trafficking Act 2005 National Social Security and Insurance Trust Act 2001 National Employment Policy National Labour Migration Policy National Social Protection Policy amongst many were identified and some of the challenges faced by the informal workers were presented and among many were long working hours low pay that does not meet the minimum wage lack of capacity building negative work ethics sexual gender-based violence lack of Social security lack of contractual agreement and many other more and third group presented on the ways to improve the conditions of services for the informal workers in Sierra Leone. They highlighted the provision of conducive market environment and WASH facilities wherever public market exists stipulating clear working hours for all informal workers reviewing and specifying minimum wage enforcing payment of wages and end-of-service benefits to informal workers enforcement of policy and social security development of a single document that encompasses all these provisions extending insurance scheme and continues civic education.