Hong Kong third wave: doubts raised about the efficacy of government’s coronavirus testing plan for domestic helpers living in boarding facilities
- Workers’ rights group Caritas Asian Migrants Project urges the government to improve the living conditions of helpers in employment agency dormitories
- Social worker Man Si-i says the government should limit the number of people allowed in a room in a boarding house
A workers’ rights group has raised doubts about the efficacy of the government’s coronavirus testing plan for all domestic helpers living in boarding facilities, as the Labour Department announced it would start handing out test kits on Sunday.
The Caritas Asian Migrants Project on Sunday urged the government to improve the living conditions of domestic helpers in employment agency dormitories as many of them were between jobs and had nowhere else to stay.
“We appreciate the government providing free coronavirus testing to foreign domestic workers who are staying in boarding houses,” said Man Si-i, a social worker with Caritas Hong Kong.
We think the workers will soon be exposed to the virus again if they continue to live in crowded places with poor hygiene
“However, we think the workers will soon be exposed to the virus again if they continue to live in crowded places with poor hygiene.”
Fears of a widespread Covid-19 outbreak among domestic workers surfaced last week after two people living in boarding houses tested positive for the coronavirus.
On Sunday, a third domestic worker living in a dormitory in Tsuen Wan was confirmed ill after her employer brought her and four others to get tested. She had shared living spaces with 50 others across four locations, although as of Friday night, all of them had tested negative.
Despite testing negative, the four other domestic helpers will be sent to quarantine as close contacts.
Previously, a second Indonesian domestic worker staying at another dormitory has also tested positive.