The protection of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights for waste pickers

17 December 2024

Economic, social and cultural (ESC) rights are protections to ensure both individuals and communities can live in dignity and participate fully within society. These rights encompass protections for basic and essential resources that humans need, including:

• Health
• Food
• Education
• Water and sanitation
• Housing
• Social Security
• Workers’ Rights

These rights are well defined in international legislation, with some of the main instruments including the Universal Declaration on Human Rights (UDHR), the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), ILO Convention No. 87, No. 182 and No. 100, as well as the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). Governments have obligations to respect, protect and fulfil these rights, both by providing these freedoms and ensuring freedom from State interference.

These ESC rights often intersect and impact each other, for example insufficient quantities or quality of food can lead to poor health outcomes. This can have devastating effects for maintaining a job, which could put adequate housing at risk. ESC rights are essential for: addressing inequalities, such as social and economic disparities, reducing poverty, enabling participation in society, economic development and empowerment of vulnerable groups, as marginalized communities are disproportionately affected by violations of ESC rights.

Waste Pickers and ESC Rights

One of these affected marginalized groups include informal workers. An important component within the aluminium supply chain includes waste pickers, who collect and sort left over materials. The ILO estimates that roughly up to 20 million people across the globe earn their living from recycling waste. Waste pickers contribute considerably to environmental, economic and social benefits, especially in urban areas, by collecting, sorting, and reintegrating valuable materials like aluminium into the supply chain. Their contributions are vital for sustainability efforts and for reducing the aluminium industry’s carbon emissions.

Despite their importance, waste pickers are largely informal workers, and are often subject to systemic violation of their ESC rights, due to their marginalised status, lack of legal recognition and unsafe working conditions. Informal workers are mostly not recognised as workers, excluding them from labour laws, social protection schemes and employment benefits. This means that they are often subject to economic exploitation, by being unable to claim a minimum wage, and are often excluded from health insurance, pensions, housing assistance or education benefits. Often, workers are also subject to insecure livelihoods, which can happen due to privatization of waste management, or government policies that favour formalised systems. Unfortunately, their crucial role in protecting the environment and combatting extreme poverty within their communities is seldom recognised.

Driving Positive Change

Recognising the critical role of waste pickers in advancing a circular economy, within its Circularity sustainability priority work area, ASI is exploring ways to support initiatives that improve their working conditions and social inclusion. Through collaborative efforts, ASI seeks to develop collective action frameworks aimed at enhancing the social and economic well-being of waste pickers. These initiatives will focus on enabling partnerships among recycling value chain actors, promoting responsible sourcing practices, and fostering transparent, equitable systems that acknowledge the role of waste pickers as essential contributors to the aluminium industry.

By taking initial steps in this direction, we aim to promote long-term systemic changes that bridge the gap between informal and formal economies, ensuring that waste pickers are recognised, supported, and integrated into sustainable supply chains. This approach aligns with global efforts to secure human rights, reduce environmental impact, and advance economic equity within recycling industries.

Stay tuned for more updates on this work in 2025. If you would like to learn more, support this initiative, or are involved in a related project, please contact Gabriel or Jessica for further information and collaboration opportunities.

Sources

• https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/clean-aluminum/cans-to-car-parts-inside-the-complex-crucial-world-of-aluminum-recycling
• https://www.wiego.org/project/waste-pickers-and-human-rights/
• https://www.wiego.org/research-library-publications/la-situacion-de-los-derechos-humanos-de-las-personas-recicladoras-en-america-latina/

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