Labor Ministry rejects proposed maid union

BEIRUT: The Labor Ministry flatly rejected Monday a proposal calling for the creation of a union for migrant domestic workers.

The ministry dismissed the proposal submitted by the National Federation of Labor Unions earlier this month, saying that it would not consider the formation of an “illegal” syndicate.

“Advanced laws would solve the problems that the [migrant worker] sector is suffering from, not the formation of groups under the guise of a syndicate,” it said in a statement.

Currently, the employment of migrant domestic workers in Lebanon is governed by a sponsorship or “kafala” system, which has been widely criticized by human rights groups that liken it to slavery.

Under the system, migrant workers must be sponsored by a Lebanese employer in order for them to work in the country. But since such workers are not protected under the labor law, the kafala system gives sponsors leeway to impose harsh working conditions with little fear of reprisal.

In its statement, the Labor Ministry said it was attempting to improve work conditions for migrant domestic workers through a draft law submitted to the Cabinet.

The bill, which is in accordance with International Labor Organization’s Domestic Worker Convention, requires a written contract between the employer and the employee.

The bill also prevents employers who have previously mistreated migrant domestic workers from hiring a new worker.

Other articles stipulate providing insurance, annual vacation, suitable living conditions, fair compensation, and the right to employee privacy.

The bill has not yet been ratified by Parliament.

According to the ILO, Lebanon is home to more than 250,000 female migrant domestic workers, the majority of whom come from Sri Lanka, Ethiopia, the Philippines and Bangladesh to work as housemaids.

Rights groups have complained that employers often withhold pay, lock workers in their homes and confiscate their passports, among other abuses.

The harsh living conditions have pushed some migrant workers to commit suicide. Others have died or been seriously injured while trying to escape their employers’ homes.

In 2008, Human Rights Watch recorded one migrant domestic worker death per week from unnatural causes, including suicide.