Reena's* Story: Common Issues Faced By Migrant Domestic Workers
29 September 2022
Reena* was employed for about a year. Soon after she started working, however, she ran into a myriad of problems that caused her to seek help at HOME. This is her story, as told to us.
Food
The food that Reena received was inadequate - most of the time, she only had rice and beans. She felt that her food wasn't enough for the amount of work she was doing. She started to buy her own food; however, her employer imposed restrictions on her cooking the food that she had bought. She was also scolded for eating bread that the employer had bought, even though it was stale.
Once, when the employers went on holiday, they did not leave her any food, nor did they give her any allowance for food. Reena ended up buying her own food to sustain herself.
As she had insufficient food, Reena started to buy her own snacks so sustain herself.
Dangerous work
Reena also had to undertake dangerous work. She had to clean the house’s exterior while using a ladder, which she felt was very unsafe. She had almost fallen down a few times. Her employer said that she had to carry out this work because it was in her contract - the contract stipulates that the cleaning should be supervised and that specific safety measures be taken, but the employers did not do this.
Rest day issues
Reena worked for 2 to 3 hours on each of her rest days, which went uncompensated. She also had a curfew on her rest days. When the employer went on holiday, they tried to make her take her rest days during their holiday rather than on the agreed Sundays. Reena tried to refuse, and they said they would only let her take 1 rest day outside of their vacation time, when she is supposed to have 2 Sundays off in a month.
Emotional abuse
Reena also faced much emotional abuse. She was scolded constantly. As she could no longer tolerate her working conditions, Reena asked for a transfer. In response, the employers threatened to hire a lawyer to compel her to finish her contract.
Belongings
Soon after Reena came to HOME’s shelter, she was informed that her employers had thrown her belongings away. She was advised to make a police report regarding her discarded belongings. However, she was unable to retrieve her discarded belongings, and her employers were unwilling to compensate her for them.
How did HOME help?
HOME assisted Reena in lodging a complaint on her living and working conditions. As the dangerous work she was made to do potentially contravened Work Pass regulations, Reena was given the chance to seek new employment.
HOME also introduced Reena to a lawyer who talked through potential civil actions as regards her discarded belongings. However, due to the complexities involved in starting legal action against her employer, Reena decided to focus on finding another job so that she could provide for her family.
Recommendations
Reena’s issues are common to many other migrant domestic workers (MDWs). Systemic changes are needed to address and tackle these problems, including:
defining rest days as 24 hours;
mandating weekly rest days;
providing live-out options;
including definitions of emotional abuse in Employment of Foreign Manpower Act; and
including MDWs in the Employment Act.
*Name has been changed to protect identity.
Cover photo: TODAY