FADWUNewsletter Issue 2013 Dec

Text/ Fish, Dang and Shiella

This day, 28th Oct 2013, was the day we felt all domestic workers of the world united. At the time when a

constitution of International Domestic Workers Federation was adopted at its congress, the delegates, with almost 200 there, broke out in joy. We were chanting slogans “Solidarity Forever!”. We were waiving our voting cards. We could not help shouting, jumping, hugging with friends for the excitement and happiness. Yes, we could do it. We got domestic workers of the world organized. We formed the International Domestic Workers Federation (IDWF).

There were 47 founding member affiliates from 42 countries. The Hong Kong Federation of Asian Domestic Workers Unions (FADWU) was one of them. Our vice-chairperson, Phobsuk Gasing (Dang), and the secretary Grace Aquino Estrada (Shiella) attended the congress. Delegates discussed and adopted the Federation’s constitution, future plan and elected its new leadership. Dang was elected as one of the six executive committee members. Myrtle Witbooi, from South Africa, was elected as the president and Ernestina Ochoa, from Peru, as the vice-president. Elizabeth Tang, well-known by HKCTU members, was elected as the General

Secretary to assist the 6-member executive committee of IDWF.

To date, the first international domestic workers conference was organized in 2006 in the Netherlands. Later on, with the help of the International Union of Food and Allied Workers Federation (IUF) and Women in Informal Economy Globalizing and Organizing (WIEGO), representatives of domestic workers organizations formed the International Domestic Workers Network (IDWN) in 2009. We were then mobilizing domestic workers to represent, participate and campaign for the adoption of International Labour Convention on decent work for domestic workers. The convention was adopted on 16 June 2011 and known as C189. IDWN members and partners continued to fight for ratification of C189 by as many countries as possible. Meanwhile, we moved forward to organize ourselves to form a Federation of domestic workers.

Uruguay was chosen to organize the congress as it was the first country to ratify C189 in the world. The government provides comprehensive legal and social protection for domestic workers, including the rights to collective bargaining. Jose Mujica, the president of Uruguay, gave its solidarity

speech at the congress closing ceremony. He gave hugs to every domestic worker who welcomed and thanked him for his support.

Dang, being elected as IDWF’s executive committee member, is now bearing more responsibility. She frankly said she is not smart but she will do the work from her heart. Try her best. Do her best. With Dang’s being so true and warm to everybody, the congress delegates were chanting the Thai slogan “Su Su Su!” (meaning “Fight Fight Fight!”) with her. “We know different languages but we know each other, as long as we are expressing something from our true heart. We do our work from our true heart. We can be together and fight together.”, Dang said.

Domestic workers in the Latin America have more legal protection. Workers know also clearer about their rights. We in Asia have very little or none. We hope our Asian governments can recognize domestic workers’ rights. The most important thing is, domestic workers can know their rights. They are able to talk and negotiate with governments and employers.

The International Domestic Workers Federation "IDWF" was born！

Under the Typhoon “Usagi”, FADWU’s 4th Annual Genaral Meeting held on 22.9.2013, at

the Polytechic University. In this meeting, we passed an amendment of rules. Tat, the Executive and Alex, the Vice-chairperson of HKCTU came the meeting, and gave a speech about their opinion toward the future of FADWU.The Asian Co-ordinator Fish Ip of IDWN (Now IDWF) introduced IDWN in the meeting, as well as the Founding Congress. We also decided to nominate Elizabeth Tang as the General Secretary of IDWF. As a part of Domestic Worker’s movement, we will work with IDWF, to improve the protection of domestic workers.

On A u g u s t 3 0 , 2 0 1 3 , t h e I m m i g r a t i o n Department of Hong Kong announced to the public that it had adopted a new measure to

assess migrant domestic worker visa applications, in which it would scrutinize the number and reasons for premature contract termination within 12 months. The department would refuse visa applications of migrant domestic workers who frequently switch employers and fail to justify why. On the other hand, if the premature contract termination is due to the employer's non-compliance with contractual terms, or abuse or exploitation of helpers, future applications for the helper’s employment from these employers would be refused. The department said it was responding to concerns on abuse of arrangements for premature termination of contracts by foreign domestic workers, or so-called job-hopping. In practice, the immigration department has refused 90 employment visa applications from workers due to the above reasons within the three months before mid-October this year.

This new measure of the Immigration Department is unfair and discriminatory. First of all, the so-called job-hopping is a subjective judgment of domestic workers.

There is no concrete or objective measurement to judge whether a contract termination from the employee is legitimate or not. Moreover, like workers in any other kind of occupation, migrant domestic workers have the right to look for better employment conditions and to terminate their employment contracts without being penalized. Secondly, it is unlikely for them to gain any monetary benefits due to the current restrictions from immigration regulations and agencies, such as the two-week rule and the agency fees. The Filipinos and Indonesian domestic workers are bound by a ban on direct hiring from their home countries, and thus have to go through agencies and pay fees to work for new employers again if they terminate the employment contracts. Furthermore, the working conditions of migrant domestic are low-paid, with long working hours and high risk of facing physical and mental abuses from the employers.

A new measure of Immigration reinforcing injustice and discrimination

日期　Date: 15.12.2013時間　Time: 10:00am

地點　Venue: Wan Chai Immigration Department灣仔入境大樓

Against the New condition of StayAction at the Immigration Department

反對入境署任意剝奪工作權縮窄外籍家務工入境權利

12．18．2013

International Migrants' Day國際移工日

“Su!

Long Road for a WomanInterview with Dang

Su! Su!" stands for “struggle” in Thai. In the founding congress of IDWF, many participants were very impressed by Dang

with this strong and lively slogan. Delegates of domestic workers’ unions or organisations from all over the world felt her passion when they followed her slogan chantting. Dang was elected as one of the exco member of IDWF during the founding congress. It has been a long long road for Dang to grow from an ordinary migrant domestic worker in Hong Kong to become an exco member of IDWF.

Dang first came to Hong Kong in 1991 to work as a domestic worker. Before coming to Hong Kong, she has been working with a duty of quality control in a Cans factory for 10 years in Thailand. Although she had a job in a middle management position, her income was still not enough to afford to support her family members as her has three daugthers. When her husband passed away , she was the sole breadwinner of the family. Thus, her sister helped her to get a job in Hong Kong working as a live-in domestic worker. Being determinded to earn a living for her family, she decided to take that job even though she knew nothing about Hong Kong and Cantonese. The first job for her was to take care of children.

“At that time, I slept at 3am every day, but I had to wake up at 6am the next day morning.” She had to take care of a 9 year old son and a 2 year old daughter of her employers. After 9 months, she could not tolerate such long working hours anymore so she returned to Tailland with tears. However, she still needed income to support her family, so she took another job referral to work as migrant domestic workers again in Taiwan later. Taiwan where is a paradise in the eyes of many Hong Kong peoples but is not a nice place for migrant domestic workers. "I worked in a big family. I had good relationships with the family members but I had not enjoyed a single

restday for 2 years since my first day of work there.” It’s common for migrant domestic workers in Taiwan to have no day off in their whole employment period.

In 1998, Dang came back to work in Hong Kong again. Her employer was also strange. People were allowed to raise live stocks at home during that time. Therefore, her job duties was poultry farming. “I slept with the chickens at night. On my holidays, I was requried to leave after 10am and returned to the workplace before 6pm.” Currently, her employer is a nice old lady whom she has been working for 10 years. Her current employer treats her so well although Dang is just paid with minimum legal requirement. When Dang told her that she was elected as an exco member of IDWF, she even encouraged Dang to join more activities. Nowadays, all of her three daughter have grown up. Some of her daugthers graduated from university and some formed their own family. She has more capacity and space for social participation that started her social life in movement of domestic workers.

In Thai Women’s Association (TWA), she met the founder of Thai Migrant Workers Union(TMWU), and joined the May Day rally. Dang was so active in the union so that she soon became the chairperson of TMWU. Apart from helping others workers as a union member, Dang realized that “we can change the world by organizing”. The current situation is not the best, but we can change it gradually when workers unite. For example, you may not get help from the Consulate when you go on your own, but you will get become responses when you with a union.”

This is exactly the reason why Dang is devoted to the trade union during her spare time. At last, I asked what’s in her mind at the moment; she replied: “It’s the time for me to learn more about the domestic worker’s movement in Asia-Pacific.”

“Su!

Contact UsContact Number: 2770 8668/ 3157 5147 (Leo Tang, Organizing Secretary)E-mail: fadwu.hk@gmail.com Website: www.fadwu.org.hk19/F Wing Wong Commercial Building, 557-559 Nathan Road, Yaumatei, KowloonOverseas Domestic Workers UnionThai Migrant Workers UnionUnion of Nepeal Domestic Workers in Hong Kong Hong Kong Domestic Workers General Union

Our wage is lower than minimum wageAction for wage increase

On the 1st of September, FADWU action for wage increase. From Charter Garden to

CGO, sisters from domestic workers union action for wage increase. Our action also got support from local civil society. Representive form Hong Kong Federation of Students joined the march and gave soildarity speech.On the 31st of September, the government announced a $90 increase of migrant domesitc worker’s salary. We launched a statement, stated that this is an unacceptable decision, that the increase cannot fullfill the basic needs for migrant domestic workers. FADWU will keep going to fight for the includion of minimum wages ordinence and the wage increase.

Po s t - n a t a l c a r e r i s a t rad i t iona l and upcoming industry of local domestic work.

In 2011 to 2012, over 5,000 women were trained as post-natal carers through Employees Retraining Board (ERB). Hong Kong Domestic Workers General Union has interviewed 140 post-natal carers. In our research, we discovered that their occupational safety has been ignored. Over half of them are suffered from muscle fatigue caused by work. 25% of them claimed that their employers failed to buy employees’ compensation insurance for them. 34% of them did not sign written contract with employers. These evidences shows post-natal carers are not fully protected in term of occupational health and condition of employments.

Taking care of post-natal mother and newborn child, providing house c leaning serv ices are the main duties of post-natal carers. Most of them carry food from wet market

and hold babies for long period of time. Keeping the particular postures makes g rea t p ressure to the i r shoulders and arms. When take care babies, carers sometimes bend their waist and back. Because of those long term fatigue, over 50% of them have symptoms of muscle fatigue, which are occupational illness. Although the workers are suffered from occupational illness, they cannot apply for Employees’ compensation for work injuries. As most illness of domestic workers, such as back pain, “frozen shoulder”, “tr igger finger”, are not included in "List of occupational diseases” of Employees’ Compensation Ordinance. Some of our members claimed, in order to keep their professional image, even they feel pain in work, they won’t tell employers nor request to take rest. Almost 80% of them feel stressful about working.

Under Employees’ Compensation

Ordinance, employer must be in possession of a val id insurance policy to cover her/ his liabilities. We demand the Government should inspect and educate employers of domestic workers, to make sure they fulfill their responsibility. And amend Employees’ Compensation Ordinance to make sure domestic workers are covered and have protection as other workers.

Survey of Post-natal Carer: Lack of occupational safety protection