Retchel was 11 when a woman came to her village in the Philippines and offered to bring her to Manila to study. But when she arrived in the city she found that she was expected to work all day without pay in the woman’s home. Retchel’s story is not unusual in the Philippines, where domestic work is an important source of paid employment for women. After years of lobbying by campaigners, the government has taken action to protect domestic workers, passing a law that lays out workers’ and employers' rights and responsibilities. This film tells Retchel’s story and the story of the 20-year fight to get the law passed.

Courtesy of Thomson Reuters Foundation