Literature Review: Foreign Maid

The fuss of maiden vitiate has been around for a wide time, and is no longer new to us. There give way been several(prenominal) cases of peak maid roast turn upn in the news done the years. The struggle has been further sparked up by the case of Ng Hua Chye, a 47-year-old male tour guide, who was sentenced to much than 18 years jail and 12 strokes of the land over for manslaughter after his Indonesian maid died following nine months of beatings which left more than 200 injuries. However, these ar cases are only a few bring out of the many another(prenominal) that have yet to be uncovered. Are there break up ship smokeal to improve the working models of maids?This surveil aims to look into this enigma through the comparison and analysis of several sources that we have managed to get our hands on. This review aims to identify the businesss brass sectiond by foreign municipal workers in capital of capital of capital of Singapore, whether maid abuse is indeed wides pread, and finally what are the possible measures that push aside be taken to guard these problems effectively. Is maid abuse a widespread problem in Singapore? Cases of maid abuse are hard to track. abandoned their isolation in private homes, it is difficult to ascertain the exact residual of migrator national workers who face abuse. ( human Rights Watch) However, an independent poll by capital of Singapore Press Holdings in Dec 2003, revealed that over 80% of FDWs were happy to work in Singapore. (Getforme) This leaves us with a question Are the statistics given by the political relation accurate in evaluating the problem of maid abuse? It can be further argued that the results of the polls are not representative of the intact foreign domestic help workers population at large. Moreover, most foreign domestic workers who are ab utilize would not be outside answering interviews by the government activity.Thus, the results of the polls are not accurate in showing the proble m of maid abuse in Singapore. Of course, abuse is definitely not hold in to serious animal(prenominal) abuse only. We only know about the extreme cases of abuse, TWC2 member Constance Singam say, citing every sidereal day practices like getting maids to wash the car, work long hours and wake up to feed someone coming home late. Employers also keep passports and withhold wages. This goes to show that daily forms of maid abuse and public ill treatment of maids are left unnoticed.As quoted by TWC2 (The operative Committee 2) member Constance Singam, Physical abuse was only the tip of the iceberg, with the mundane problems of the domestic workers largely ignored. This statement is further supported by reports which show stunning statistics. Out of 147 cases of abuse The Working Committee 2 studied, 68 percentage involved physical injuries. Physical abuse is rampant amongst cases of maid abuse, fleck there is also a large portion of foreign domestics workers in Singapore that suffer other mundane types of abuse.Thus, we can resolve from the evidence given above that maid abuse is indeed a widespread problem in the Singapore society. Problems that foreign domestic workers (FDWs) face Maids in Singapore face many problems, as asserted by the HRW. Women migrant domestic workers in Singapore suffer grave abuses including physical and sexual violence, food deprivation, and confinement in the workplace. , Migrant domestic workers view half the wages of Singaporean workers in similar occupations, such as cleaners or gardeners. Unpaid wages is a growing complaint. And that governing have excluded domestic workers from the countrys main labor laws. (HRW) However, Getforme disagrees by saying, Foreign domestic workers receive full protection under Singapores laws, including the trade of Foreign Workers Act. All employers must provide adequate nap and meals and fasten work safety, proper housing and prompt salary payment. (Getforme) Although it is evident that the Singapore government has tried to protect the public assistance of foreign domestic workers, whether employers and economic consumption agencies will follow suit is a different case.Studies conducted by the Human Rights Watch have shown that foreign domestic workers have more problems that do not meet our eyes. As quoted by the HRW, key labor conditions, such as wages, hours of work, and salary deductions are left to employers and agencies, while domestic workers have little or no bargaining power. Foreign domestic workers in Singapore also suffer from economic problems. Apart from physical abuse by their employers, many of them have to pay huge debts to the exercising agencies.HRW shows this problem in its article, Many domestic workers labor without pay for months to settle debts to avocation agencies, Second, many of these FDWs lost their freedom as they were confined to their workplace, claimed HRW. just about employers prevent domestic workers from having weekly symmetricalness days, forbid them from talking to neighbors, and sometimes lock them in the workplace to prevent them from running away or having boyfriends. All these facts disagree with the Ministry of Manpower, which states that all employers must provide adequate rest and meals and ensure work safety, proper housing and prompt salary payment.Ultimately, it does not matter what the government does, as the people who have actual disturb with the FDWs are the employers and the barter agencies, who are often the ones to make lives difficult for FDWs. Therefore, we do not believe it wrong to say that the problems that domestic workers face are indeed very serious. Solutions to hindrance maid abuse So, what are ways that can curb the problem of maid abuse more efficiently and improve the standards of working maids?There are some resolutions stated in our sources, while there are conflicting views at the same time. The HRW proposes that Singapore follow the example of Hong Kong i n terms of their treatment of FDWs, where the law stipulates a minimum wage and at least one rest day a week, the Singapore government does not provide a standard contract for maids. (TWC2) However the Ministry disagrees with this arrangement as it is impractical to lay dash off minimum standards of working conditions receivable to the FDWs unique nature of employment in star signs.Moreover, the introduction of such a standard will inconvenience many households, for example households with the elderly and need constant care from the domestic workers. However, the mom has indeed taken several measures to protect the welfare of domestic workers. These embroil creating mandatory orientation programs for employers and domestic workers, prosecuting cases of unpaid wages and physical abuse, as sound as introducing an accreditation program for employment agencies. The MOM has paid special(prenominal) attention to the rosecution of cases involving unpaid wages and physical abuse. Em ployers who breach work endure conditions can be punished with a fine of up to $5,000 and a jail term of up to 6 months as quoted by the MOM. Also, employment agencies are to ensure that employers are to have at least 8 years of education such that they understand FDWs rights and protection provided under Singapore law. Therefore, it will be very wrong to say that the Singapore government has not provided with measures to curb the problem of maid abuse. However, are these measures enough to curb maid abuse?Although, the cases of maid abuse have been decreasing, the cases have make out more serious. The Ng Hua Chye case happened after the Singapore government enforced stricter penalties. Moreover, there is no way to be sure that the employers and employment agencies do know if households are going by the law. A ministry spokesman said that as domestic workers work in a home environment, which varies from household to household, it would be difficult to enforce any coverage under t he job Act. Thus, it is clear to us that prosecution is not enough to solve the problem. reliable governmental policies which pertain to FDW and their employers, act as double-edged swords. They could be changed or abolished for the better lives of maids in Singapore. A fine example of such a policy would be the S$5,000 security bond imposed on employers who hire migrant workers. Purposed to control illegal immigration as well as to ensure employers have sufficient money to pay their maids their due salaries during their employment period, this policy directly led to employers restricting their migrant workers movements, as they will have to forfeit S$5,000 if their maids run away. around employers even go to the extent to give their maids no weekly rest days and limited freedom of movement (e. g. locking them up at home). Other policies such as the monthly levy of approximately S$200-295 which employers of domestic workers have to pay also directly or indirectly result in the dep rivation of the rights of migrant workers. In this case, not a cent from the money collected by the Singapore government in a stated attempt to regulate unskilled labor migration is used to provide better services for the migrant workers.Thus, modifying governmental policies for the benefit of FDW can also serve as a potential solution. Conclusion In conclusion, the problem of maid abuse is widespread in our society, as domestic workers in Singapore suffer from a variety of abuses and problem, ranging from physical abuse to financial problems. However, governmental policies are not effective enough to curb the problem of maid abuse, as it is difficult to enforce the law in every household.Moreover, laws are to protect the interests of victims, not just to punish those who bust the law. Thus, more actions has to be done to solve the problem as it has been proved that deterrence is not exactly effective enough to protect the welfare of domestic workers. Therefore, we believe that th e problem of maid abuse is serious, that domestic workers do face many problems, and that governmental policies are effective in resoluteness these problems only to a small extent.References1. http//www.thinkcentre.org/article.cfm?ArticleID=2721 2. http//hrw.org/english/docs/2005/12/07/singap12125.htm 3.http//www.getformesingapore.com/previous2005/061205_manpowerministryrespondstohrwsreportonmaidsinsingapore.htm 4. http//www.littlespeck.com/informed/2002/CInformed-020728.htm 5. http//www.singapore-window.org/sw03/030727af.htm 6. http//hrw.org/reports/2005/singapore1205/singapore1205web.pdf