Helpers want pay rise after 'big insult'

The 340,000 foreign domestic helpers in Hong Kong are asking the government to raise their minimum wage to HK$6,228 from the current HK$4,730, following a meeting the Hong Kong Federation of Asian Domestic Workers Unions and migrant groups had with the Labour Department yesterday.

The federation said helpers are experiencing "real wage loss" as their wage increases have consistently come in lower than the inflation rate.

Helpers demanded a 30 percent rise to HK$6,100 last year, but the government only approved a rise in their minimum wage by HK$100 to HK$4,730 after three years of wage freezes.

"A HK$100 wage increase for three years was a big insult to migrant domestic workers. During the pandemic, our working conditions worsened. Many of us had longer working hours, less holidays and unfairly borne the costs of quarantine. Some of us lost our jobs for catching Covid. But our earnings are getting less and less," said Maria Ana, a Filipino leader of FADWU.

The group demanded the minimum wage rise 31 percent to HK$6,228 and the food allowance from HK$1,196 to HK$2,552 so that foreign helpers can have a decent life.

"Many of us are starving for not receiving enough food and employers refuse to give us a food allowance," Suphaporn, a Thai leader of FADWU said.

"Food allowance must be mandatory if employers don't provide enough food. But at the current level, we have only HK$40 per day, which means HK$13 per meal. How can we have a healthy life and perform duty with such little money for food?"

The federation also said if helpers' minimum wage grows at the same rate as the income of Hong Kong families, it should be over HK$6,000 by 2023.

"We want our children to have a better future, but our earnings cannot provide a decent life for them," chairwoman Dang said. "Now what I earn is much less than what I earned 30 years ago. Poverty perpetuates among migrants' families and our children become second-generation migrant domestic workers," she added.

In yesterday's meeting, the group said the department admitted there is no formula for deciding the minimum wage level.

"The department says it will take a 'holistic approach' in deciding the MAW level, taking into account "economic statuses such as household income, inflation and gross domestic product," it said.

Asian Migrants Coordinating Body, which also attended the meeting, suggested the minimum wage and food allowance be raised to HK$6,016 and HK$3,065.

Spokeswoman Sring said nearly 92 percent of helpers have to endure long working hours, with more than 70 percent having to work for 11 to 16 hours per day, while nearly 20 percent have to slog over 16 hours.

Most helpers, she said, have to send over half their pay back to home, leaving them only less than HK$2,000 for daily expenses.

In a response to The Standard, the department said it will review salaries and food allowance based on "established mechanisms," adding it will consider employers' affordability and helpers' benefits when making the decision.