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| Union leaders present their findings in press conference. |
Hundreds of foreign domestic helpers who fall ill with serious illnesses such as cancer while working in Hong Kong faced injustices while fighting their illnesses, according to two migrant groups.
The Federation of Asian Domestic Workers Unions (FADWU) and
Filipino Migrants Cancer Support Society Hong Kong (Filmcass-HK)
presented data documenting 195 cases of MDWs who suffered injustices.
Some were allegedly denied treatment after illegal termination, while
others suffered from employers’ malpractices, such as unpaid wages and sick
leave allowance, refusal to cover medical expenses and forced sacrifice of
statutory rest days for hospital appointments, they said in a press conference.
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Filmcass-HK said its data showed that 30% of these migrant domestic workers
were illegally terminated due to their health conditions.
“The termination of an MDW's employment results in the loss
of their legal status in Hong Kong, subsequently denying them access to public
hospitals at the subsidized ‘eligible person’ rate,” it said. “This drastic
change can cause the cost of crucial treatments, such as chemotherapy, to
skyrocket by up to 64%, rendering them financially unattainable for MDWs.”
While the Employment Ordinance prohibits termination during
paid sick leave, and the Disability Discrimination Ordinance protects against
unequal treatment due to illness, MDWs are often deterred from pursuing legal
claims, the groups said.
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The fear of losing access to vital medical care during the
lengthy legal process forces many to abandon their rights. Consequently, the
majority of terminated MDWs either return to their home countries in search of
treatment or face the end of their lives without proper care, they added.
"It is discriminatory, inhuman, and potentially illegal
to terminate a worker on health grounds," stated a spokesperson for FADWU
and Filmcass-HK. "We demand the government grant MDWs who bring a case
against their employer for discriminatory treatment due to health continued
access to public healthcare at an eligible person’s rate."
The two groups also reported that even MDWs who retain their
employment while seriously ill face severe exploitation.
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Among 67 documented cases, seven workers received no salary,
30 were denied medical expense coverage, 13 had only partial medical expenses
covered, and 14 were forced to use their rest days for hospital appointments.
Only 10 workers received full support from their employers.
The fear of termination and subsequent loss of medical
access silences many MDWs, is preventing them from reporting employer
violations, the groups said.
“Providing continued access to public healthcare after
termination would empower these workers to assert their rights without fearing
for their lives,” they added.
The two groups presented their key demands:
• Grant MDWs who file discrimination claims due to health,
continued access to public healthcare at the "eligible person" rate.
• Enforce existing labor laws to protect MDWs from illegal
termination and exploitation.
• Increase awareness of MDWs’ rights and provide accessible legal support.
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