The UnionAID-funded Workers’ Advice Centre (WAC) project has now come to an end and the final report has been submitted. Samoa First Union (SFU) reports that the WAC has been instrumental in their achievements over 2024-25.
Through community workshops and one-on-one clinics, the WAC has empowered workers by raising awareness of their rights and collecting vital information on issues like child labour and poor working conditions. This direct engagement provided crucial evidence for SFU’s advocacy, leading to a landmark 30% increase in Samoa’s private sector minimum wage, which came into effect on 1 July 2024.
SFU credits UnionAID’s “support and assistance throughout the whole year, particularly “the financial support, for enabling the WAC to assist hundreds of Samoan workers and their families”, ensuring they are “treated with dignity and respect, and not as commodities.”
We’re delighted that the ILO has now picked up this project and will be funding it going forward.
