A toothless tiger? Advocates of domestic helpers’ rights in Hong Kong say new draft code of practice lacks enforcement mechanisms
Some say document also fails to tackle issues such as local employment agencies’ partnership with overseas counterparts
Cleaning up bad practices needs more than just sweeping statements on paper, advocates of domestic helpers’ rights are finding out.
When the Labour Department recently issued a 100-page draft code of practice to regulate the city’s 1,400 employment agencies for domestic workers, advocates new to the industry could be forgiven if they had hugged each other declaring that all the years of advocacy had not ended in vain.
A closer look would have revealed, however, that much of it contained mere reminders of how existing Hong Kong laws regulate the employment industry. While the draft does set out a list of some new standards the agencies need to comply with, advocates doubt its effectiveness, saying the code lacks enforcement and punishment mechanisms.
Disgruntled advocates also said the code fails to tackle the local agencies’ partnership with their overseas counterparts. They pointed out that the financial abuses the workers suffer begin before they leave their home countries for Hong Kong.
“It doesn’t say anything. There is no enforcement mechanism. There is also no punishment for non-compliance,” said David Bishop, co-founder of the not-for-profit Fair Employment Agency. “I believe the Hong Kong government has missed a great opportunity to help both employers and domestic workers by regulating the employment agency industry more closely.”
Hong Kong is home to about 340,000 foreign domestic workers. About half of them are from the Philippines and the other half, Indonesia.