Meryl, a Kenyan domestic worker in her late 20s, came to Hong Kong with high hopes.
But the worst thing, Meryl said, was being shouted at by her employer and being unable to speak to her family or leave the house by herself. "The only time I was allowed to go out was to pick up the newspaper and drop off the garbage," she said. For several days after arriving in the city, Meryl was unable to speak to her family and, even after being given her employer's Wi-fi password, it was difficult to call her children.
"I could not rest and had no privacy," she said, noting she would often be woken up by the noise of people coming in and out of their bedrooms. "It was really uncomfortable."But things got even worse when she contracted Covid-19 after members of the family fell sick - at that point, she feared for her life.
A spokesman told This Week in Asia that 74 Kenyan domestic workers' applications were approved for entry to Hong Kong from 2018 to July this year - 26 of those were processed between last year and the end of July. Jayne is frustrated at repeatedly seeing similar cases allegedly involving excessive fees and abusive employers who expect helpers "to work around the clock like slaves".
Hong Kong's employment agency sector has long been plagued by claims of illegal practices, including charging excessive fees, which has led to thousands of workers falling into debt traps. Some women said they had to use their savings, take loans, or borrow money from friends and relatives in their home country, where the current minimum wage is 13,500 Kenyan shillings per month.
Two cases were prosecuted - with "evidence substantiating that the [agency] staff had overcharged the commission of HK$4,779.49 and HK$11,580.61 from two foreign domestic workers", the spokeswoman said. "After they arrive in Hong Kong and work in the employer's house, my job is finished … Even [if] she wants to leave her job, this is her right," she said."They don't need complaints, accusations against employers or agents. They just need a job to support their family" and time to adapt to the local culture, Lau said, claiming that she had "worked very hard to protect them".
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