Treatment of Kenyan domestic workers in Hong Kong in spotlight amid reports of trafficking
- Some women have reported verbal abuse, lack of food, gruelling work hours and limited freedom of movement
- As workers and advocates call on officials to investigate cases and take action, an employment agency risks losing its licence
Meryl*, a Kenyan domestic worker in her late 20s, came to Hong Kong with high hopes.
“I needed to sacrifice for my family so they could have a better life,” she said, referring to her three children aged between two and six. “I believed this job was going to pay well and that I would have a good employer.”
She decided to seize the opportunity after a friend told her about an employment agency in the city. Little did she know what was to come.
Soon, Meryl was told she would have to go through a “mandatory probation” of three months without any rest. Instead of time off, she would receive HK$150 (US$19) per day.
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.
This Week in Asia spoke to five Kenyan domestic workers and saw written statements of three other workers who claimed they had paid excessive fees, worked long hours, faced intimidation and verbal abuse, were given insufficient food, and had limited freedom of movement and communication while in Hong Kong.
