1. The implementation of this Act should be decentralized and involve all the institutions of this country which are working with or directly reaching the unorganised workers. It has to be decentralized to reach crores of scattered workers. The institutions involved not be part of the Government bureaucracies but would be handed over to any local agencies including panchayats, post offices, existing welfare boards, trade unions or employers organizations, NGOs, Micro finance agencies, co-operatives, and self help group federations. These agencies must be registered bodies with a good track record and proven financial management. They should be empowered to undertake the functions of the Worker Facilitation Centres and would register the workers, provide identity cards  and act as the delivery point for providing welfare measures.
2. This Act will provide real security to the workers only if they actually get the benefits. This will require that funds be made available for implementation of this Act. SEWA therefore demands that the Government of India make available enough fund to cover all the 40 crores workers of the country and provide them complete social security.
3. The schemes under the Act should not be only for BPL or any one category of worker but must be accessible to all.
4. SEWA has had 35 years of experience as an organisation of poor women workers of the unorganised sector, and in helping to provide them social security . Looking to the depth of experience and the large reach, SEWA should be deeply involved in the implementation of this Act.

Recognition for SEWA Kerala
After a long struggle, SEWA Kerala has been recognized and registered  as a trade union by the Government of Kerala. Established in 1983, SEWA Kerala has worked to organize poor women in interior areas of the state and link them to new livelihoods opportunities.

Unnat Bazaar’s 5th Annual Meeting
Unnat Bazaar (SEWA Trade Facilitation Centre) held its 5th annual meeting, in which it reviewed its expanding work, as far as Afghanistan.  This year, Unnat Bazaar celebrated a 53% increase in sales, the launch of the Hansiba brand and a new retail outlet in Mumbai.  It will soon expand into South Asia.

Prime Minister’s National Council on Skill Development SEWA'S Views
As a member of the Prime Minister’s National Council for Skill Development Renanaben Jhabvala shared SEWA’s perspective with the Prime Minister and the Council. In India the “higher” level skills have been given a great deal of attention with the result that we have highly qualified professionals in every field. However, there are practically no formal training courses for workers who have not passed the 10th standard. They learn their skills on-the- job or are taught informally by relatives and neighbours. It is this huge mass of workers that the Government needs to reach through the new Skills initiative.

With the fast changing economy linking in with Globalization, the value of manual work has been declining with a negative effect on women, who tend to manual work and are being replaced as technology takes over. Any skills policies will have to target women workers in particular to upgrade their skill, so that they do not become casualties of globalization. For skill training with a focus on women, it is necessary to identify the sectors where women are employed (or employable) in large numbers which include the construction industry, home based work, financial services, health and personal services and most important growing feminization of agriculture. Skilling India would be much faster if skills programs are built on people’s already existing traditional skills and knowledge including traditional mid wives, traditional crafts and organic agriculture.

SEWA MP and the President of India
The President of India, Pratibha Patil recently visited Madhya Pradesh, during which she met Manoramaben Joshi, founder of SEWA MP. Manoramaben detailed the state of the informal sector to the President, and stressed the importance of the Social Security bill and the need for a national bill for home based workers.

Bidi Workers win ID cards - SEWA Murshidabad
SEWA has been working in Murshidabad, West Bengal since 2004 with a membership of over 1100 home based bidi workers. Members have especially faced difficulty in attaining the benefits they deserve, due to lack of identity cards.  With the support of experienced union organisers from Ahmedabad, Murshidabad’s bidi workers recently were granted identity cards from the government.

Papad workers come together - SEWA Bikaner
The papad workers of Bikaner came together for a large meeting in which 250 workers shared their problems and struggles.   In front of the labour commissioner, members put forth their situation: they earn only Rs. 10 for rolling 100 papad, and cannot access social security benefits.   SEWA Bikaner compiled members’ concerns and submitted a petition to the Labour Commissioner.

VimoSEWA on the way to a Cooperative
VimoSEWA has been providing insurance coverage to SEWA members since 1992.   This year, it is working towards registering a cooperative, in which women workers are shareholders and managers of their insurance services. After a series of meetings with SEWA members across the country, VimoSEWA has recruited 8,000 shareholders, and Rs. 1 crore, 10 lakhs in share capital.  Potentially the world’s first women’s insurance cooperative, VimoSEWA has submitted its registration application in December, after which a decision will be rendered in three months.

SEWA Uttrakhand – the beginnings of a movement
SEWA Uttrakhand, which began working in 2007, held its first large women’s meet, in which over 300 women workers came together in Almora.  Women shared their stories and learned about SEWA  -- and created the beginnings of a SEWA movement in the Himalayas.

New Work for a New Generation
In today’s changing economy, SEWA has worked to provide new opportunities for adolescent girls and our members’ daughters.   Through management courses, SEWA’s next generation now work in petrol pumps, as nurses in a local eye hospital, and in the hospitality industry.  The Rai SEWA school has been training a new batch of teachers and women prepared to work in hotel management, fashion design, and retail merchandising.  And 5 graduates of SEWA’s mini-MBA course have started their own business. 

Celebrations
- Sneh Milan - SEWA Academy celebrated education and literacy through a “milan” or event with over 300 women involved in SEWA’s education and training efforts. SEWA childcare workers, literacy teachers, and trainers across SEWA’s work came together to share their successes and promote literacy.

-  Diwali  - In an increasingly globalised world, SEWA celebrated Diwali this year through promoting local and internal markets.  SEWA members worked to make traditional candles, food, and sweets, and earned over 15 lakhs in business – all without a marketing manager.  This year’s Diwali was thus a celebration of local employment, and proof of the skills of SEWA members as entrepreneurs and managers.