Hariharan (s10033125h) T1B1

Foreign Domestic workers not knowing where to turn to for help.
Hariharan (s10033125h)
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Imagine this, you go to a foreign country to work. A country that’s said to be well developed. You go there alone, to work as a maid or a construction worker to serve the populace of that country. You leave your family members behind to earn some money to send back. You earn little, You work hard. You take orders from a family that is not your own. Who protects your interest? How do you voice out your objections to working conditions? How do you get the rights you deserve?

For a moment, put yourself in the shoes of a Foreign domestic worker.

How would you ensure that you are treated fairly and given the rights you deserve in a country that foreign to you in every way.

You are hired legally. True legal maid agencies. Hopefully of course. You are a legal worker. With rights and everything else that comes with that title. You offer to serve to earn money.

But what if your employees treat you like crap. Treat you worst than crap. Crap! Not exactly a politically correct word to say. But its how you feel, serving someone else and being treated badly. Treated like a slave. A slave and a servant are two very different things.

Feel that anger, feel that helplessness. That could be how a maid feels somewhere working for someone in your block. Perhaps even one of your closest neighbours. Or maybe even you!

Maid-abuse! Maids being abused! Issues like maids not having mandatory off-days. Issues that maids face when already working here. That is important.

One police report states that the number of maid abuse cases has dropped from 157 to 59,in somewhere like 2004. But is this an actual account of what goes on? What about the maids and other foreign workers who are afraid of speaking out their discontent?

Where do maids turn to for help? Where do maids turn to just to do something simple but essential, like voice out their opinions without fear of repercussion?

Lets here an opinion from a student.
What do you think of FWD’s like maids and construction workers?
“I think they are actually hardworking. They come to Singapore to to work and earn money to send back home. They are actually hardworking.”

Have you ever had a maid?
“yes, last time I had a maid”

How did you treat her?
“I treat her like a normal family member, That was in primary school, I was quite open to this things.”
When your mother scolded her, how did she react?
“Sometimes my mom would scold her, she would just say ok,ok. Sometimes she just doesn’t know our way of doing things, like waskhing the clothes and stuff.”

Did she ever voice out her opinions to any of your family members?
“No. She just kept queit.”


How would you feel if are a maid in a foreign country and you were being mistreated?
“I would secretly go and complain to the police. If I felt I couldn’t I would just keep it a secret and bare with it.”

Of course maids could always turn to the government, government agencies. They could turn to the maid agencies for help. To complain to the police as well but the problem is that many of these maid are afraid and they do not know where to turn to. They are afraid of repercussion. So the main problems are lack of knowledge and fear.