Tuesday, July 07, 2009

Domestic Workers - time to end discrimination based on nationality...

When we talk about the domestic worker and the one rest day per week - some wrongly believe that this is a response to the 'maid abuse cases' - it is not...

It is all about worker rights .... for these 'maids' are also workers, and it is really odd that they do not have this right to a rest day per week, which every other worker has. [In fact, in Malaysia, most workers have 2 days off per week - maybe domestic workers should also be getting 2 days off per week - same as all other workers in Malaysia..]

DISCRIMINATION based on nationalities should also end.

Migrant workers doing the same work are many a times paid different wages - and this is unjust - it is discrimination.

Why does this happen? Because wages many a time depend on agreements or Memorandum of Understandings(MOU) signed between the sending country and Malaysia (the receiving country)

For the same work - workers should be paid the same...

Wages could differ by reason of:-
a) Number of years of experience (i.e. a domestic worker with 5 years experience should be paid more than a worker of 1 year experience)
b) Skill & Capabilities - A domestic worker who can cook is paid more than one that cannot cook, etc..[Or a worker with the ability to speak/read 2 languages is paid more than one who can only speak 1 language]
c) Paper/Education qualification - a worker who has a diploma is paid more than one with primary school education only..

BUT, workers should not be paid less than another worker just because of the worker's nationality..

End this discrimination

1 comment:

nckeat88 said...

This is market force. If they are willing to get paid peanut, it is their problem. Otherwise they can always go to US or Australia to earn US dollar or Australian dollar, I am sure they can much more. Nobody force them to come here to earn low wages.