Voices | Wednesday, June 8, 2005 Print Article Email To Friend(s) Feedback
Reaffirm our humanity: Legislate with a heart
Govt can be driving force in showing the respect our maids are due
I thank this paper for constantly raising the topic of the dignity of our Foreign Domestic Workers (FDWs). As a Singaporean, it pains and shames me deeply that many of our FDWs toil for long hours without even a single day off.
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I am glad that this time, it is the Association of Employment Agencies (Singapore) that has called for the Government to legislate a minimum of four days of a month.
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Over the years, I have repeatedly written both to the newspapers and our national leaders, appealing to the Government to come up with such legislation.
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In a country reputed for heavy fines for littering and even for being naked at home, the Government's preference for benign neglect of what it terms as free market forces continues to disappoint me.
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Instead of merely giving half-answers, I hope that the Government considers the following.
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The Ministry of Manpower claims that it is unable to enforce any proposed regulations on compulsory off-days for what it continues to see as an informal economy. Yet, it is able to ensure that levies for work permits are collected and that FDWs go for their required periodic check-ups for pregnancy and sexually-transmitted diseases.
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It should not escape their minds that an FDW trapped at home without days off is more vulnerable to exploitation and abuse.
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It should be well aware that, without any state intervention, countless FDWs would remain imprisoned in houses for months, working long hours and without any days off.
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It is not ignorant of the fact that the $5,000 deposit required of employers has contributed to the greater reluctance to give FDWs days off — for fear of losing their deposits should their maids get into "trouble".
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Nonetheless, the ball should be in the court of employers, or society at large. Interestingly, those who have consistently urged for a 5-day work week to promote family planning have remained silent in insisting upon the same prerogatives for the FDWs.
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The day-off issue may not be a magic pill to resolve the problems faced by the FDWs, but it would be a small step towards realising my dream: That mothers will no longer have to leave their kids behind out of economic necessity to look after more privileged children in a strange land.
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That, even if they have to, Singapore would be their best choice as they will be protected by the same labour laws that our local workers have taken for granted.
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That household chores will not simply be pushed to the maid, but shared equally among members of the family.
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That, instead of dehumanising others and ourselves, we show the same respect for our FDWs as we would want bestowed on us.
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Letter from
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Liew Kai Khiun