Marissa Begonia, Chairperson of Justice for Domestic Workers, argues that Migrant Domestic Workers should be protected under employment law


caption: Campaigning for a fair wage | Picture J4DW

AT Justice for Domestic Workers (J4DW) we help, support and provide shelter for migrant domestic workers who have escaped abusive situations. We campaign to defend their rights and seek justice for victims, like these five domestic workers below who gave us the following statements:

“I worked for my employers in a beautiful house, but behind closed doors I worked from 6am to 4am.  Are two hours enough sleep for a human being? Are domestic workers not human beings?”

“He would put his private parts into my bottom. If I protested, he wouldn’t pay me my salary.”
“My employers threw me out of their house. For three days and nights I knocked on the door as I had nowhere else to go, but my employer never opened it. I was starving, cold and scared in the dark.”

“The Immigration Officer wouldn’t listen to me and took me to Heathrow for deportation. I was scared; I was the only woman among men. It was winter, I had no coat and had to sleep on the floor, I was so cold. I begged the Officer, asking: I am not a criminal, why must you treat me this way? I thought you had human rights in this country. Where are they?”

“If I made a mistake, my employer would poke me in the eyes. If I cried, she would tell me that the police would come for me.”

Migrant domestic workers are mainly women; a lot of them are mothers with children. While abuse and slavery still continue, the protection given to them through the Domestic Worker Visa literally saves lives, prevents human trafficking and allows a fresh start.

But the impending election is causing a great deal of insecurity, not least because the Domestic Worker Visa is only guaranteed until 2011 and, in the current Point Based System, losing the visa would mean migrant domestic workers ending up in Tier 5 as ‘Non Skilled Workers’.

With the changes in immigration policy and the Citizenship Bill, migrant domestic workers will find it difficult to earn citizenship status according to the Bill’s requirements.

For example, the majority of domestic workers earn £50-£500 per month, and many are given no salary at all. How then will they be able to earn the high salary required by the bill?

Domestic workers would be required to do voluntary work, but as they generally work up to 16 hours a day, seven days a week, how would that be possible?

It would take three-five years before domestic workers become eligible for citizenship, potentially prolonging abusive situations.

They would need to pass a ‘Life in the UK’ test, but their long hours of work are not conducive to studying.

In the probationary period, domestic workers cannot be joined by their families. This is very inhumane, particularly when children are involved.

J4DW is campaigning against the Citizenship Bill. Migrant domestic workers pay tax and make National Insurance contributions. They care for children, the elderly and are in charge of the maintenance and security of many UK households, helping to build families and
enabling others to go out to work.

The International Labour Organisation’s Convention on the rights of Domestic Workers, if ratified, will improve the conditions of all domestic workers around the world. It aims to have domestic workers recognised in law and granted equal rights. Domestic workers deserve respect and recognition both as workers and as human beings - just like any one else in this modern world.