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| Pregnant MDWs often face unemployment despite protection from the law (PathFinders photo) |
Hong Kong charity PathFinders, has called on the government to provide mandatory training for employers on the maternity rights of migrant domestic workers (MDWs), while enhancing policies so both employer and employee get help while the worker is on maternity leave.
At the same time, PathFinders said it is exploring the feasibility of adding a rider to MDW insurance policies to help employers cope with household management while the worker is on maternity leave.
These are the three major changes proposed by the non-government organization in a report it published yesterday, saying it found a number of systemic gaps that prevent employers from providing adequate protection for pregnant domestic workers.
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In the report, PathFinders said that while pregnant MDWs are legally protected from dismissal and are provided with maternity leave, they face many challenges at the workplace because for one, “employers lack resources to respond humanely or lawfully” to them.
Many employers are also not aware of the legal protection given MDWs who get pregnant while under their employ.
In its Employer Survey Report published in 2022, PathFinders said 51% of the respondents were unaware of the legal protection accorded pregnant MDWs, while a whopping 84% mistakenly believed they could terminate contracts if the MDW is pregnant.
The new report, “Policy in the Home: Hong Kong Employers Confront Migrant Domestic Worker Pregnancy,” shows not much has changed since in terms of how employers respond to a pregnancy notification from their MDWs.
After in-depth interviews with four employers in the middle to upper middle class social brackets, PathFinders found gaps in their understanding of the law on maternity protection “that leave MDWs vulnerable to discrimination, unlawful termination and separation from their newborns.”
When asked what they would do if their domestic worker gets pregnant - given the legal limitations to contract termination, a live-out arrangement or getting temporary replacement- the employers’ responses did not bode well for MDWs.
One said she hoped for a “mutual agreement” to end the contract, another said Hong Kong is not the right place and time for MDWs to get pregnant, the third came up with an unfair financial settlement, while a fourth said she could imagine herself indirectly intimidating her helper into quitting.
Apart from requiring employers to undergo training on maternity protection for MDWs, PathFinders is also pushing for enhancing the law so MDWs remain protected even if they decide to give birth outside Hong Kong, while employers are guided on how they can seek temporary workers during the MDW's absence.
A maternity rider on MDW insurance should help the employer pay for the cost of having an extra hand while the worker is on maternity leave.
“Without practical solutions and policy reform, vulnerable MDW mothers and their children will continue to face unemployment, homelessness, and separation,” said PathFinders.
It urged the government, insurers, employment agencies and other stakeholders to consider its recommendations and work together to ensure a just and equitable work environment for MDWs.
