MIGRANT domestic workers in Thailand need to be formally recognised as employees with legislation to protect their rights, the president of a foreign workers group has said.

Champadolma Lama, president of the Network of Migrant Domestic Workers in Thailand, said some foreign workers might get comfort from being seen as “part of the family”, but that type of relationship can severely undermine their labour rights and social protection as workers.

A recent survey found that foreign domestic workers worked excessive hours, averaging 11.89 hours a day.

Those caring for children or for the elderly reported an average of 13.5 hours per day. The survey also found that most workers did not receive days off, even though Thai law requires employers to provide at least one day off per week.

“When they [employers] say we’re a part of the family it makes us feel very special – but they have to know that we are still workers,” Champadolma said. “When you say I’m a part of the family, you can’t knock on my door at two in the morning just to open the door because the boss is coming home from a party”.

Champadolma migrated to Thailand from Myanmar in 1992 when she was just 17 years old. Over 24 years she has worked for seven different families under a variety of working conditions.

Giving one example, she said she loved the children she had been hired to raise. “Being a nanny, both my employers used to work. I used to work from 5am until 8 o’clock at night. The recognition for what I did was not there,” she said.

Emotional ties usually have a significant impact on the working life of domestic workers, making them reluctant to negotiate terms of employment or even unable to leave abusive situations.

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) recently conducted a study linking public attitudes to working conditions experienced by migrant domestic workers in Thailand and Malaysia.

The study emphasised the need to change public attitudes towards migrant domestic workers and for their work to have the same protections as other sectors.

A key finding of the study was that a “fictive kin” relationship – a social tie based on neither blood nor marriage – between domestic migrant workers and their employers was prevalent in Thai households.

‘Master-servant relationship’

This type of relationship usually did not entail the same long-term commitment to emotional and social well-being as kin relationships, the study said. Furthermore, the employer maintained the power to apply the fictive kin relationship selectively or even to withdraw it entirely.

The survey estimated that 300,000 domestic workers, both migrants and Thai nationals, work in Thailand. More than 50 per cent are migrants from Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and, more recently, Vietnam. Thailand has no formal migration channels open to domestic workers, which often leads to irregular migration and informal working arrangements, putting workers further at risk.

“Many scholars say that employment relationships originate from the history Thailand has,” said Chayanich Thamparipattra, one of the study’s main researchers. She described the relationship as a “master-servant relationship” and how isolated living situations have “blocked some of their rights such as education and freedom”.

She added: “Ministerial regulations still don’t provide any protection for important rights such as minimum wage or maternity protection.”

The study noted that a formal contract could solve some of these issues, but it was found that migrant workers associated contracts with restrictions of their freedom to leave an employer. Only 7 per cent of migrant domestic workers involved in the survey had a written contract. Employers also expressed the opinion that contracts were not appropriate for domestic workers.

Despite being a crucial part of many households, domestic work is often not viewed as being “proper work”, leaving workers vulnerable. In Thailand, domestic workers are often overworked, and often undervalued both economically and socially in their household roles.

Abu Sayyaf leader, Abraham Hamid, had led the kidnapping of several foreigners from a tourist resort in the volatile southern Philippines last year, two of whom were later beheaded.

“The death of Hamid is a big blow to the (Abu Sayyaf) as it neutralised one of the notorious bandits and will degrade their capability for spotting and kidnapping victims in the future,” said regional military spokesman Major Filemon Tan.

Two other militants were killed alongside Hamid in the shootout with Malaysian police in Lahad Datu in eastern Sabah, he said.

The Abu Sayyaf beheaded two Canadian hostages after demands for millions of dollars were not met, but released two others, a Norwegian and Filipina, after ransoms were believed to be paid.

Tan said Hamid had also been involved in the kidnapping of four Indonesian crewmen in April.

There have been a spate of kidnappings of Malaysian and Indonesian sailors at sea in recent months that have been blamed on the Abu Sayyaf.

While Hamid and two militants were killed, Sabah security forces have arrested two others, Tan added.

Sabah police chief Abdul Rashid Harun told AFP the incident was the Malaysian authorities’ first direct confrontation with suspected kidnappers in the waters off eastern Sabah.

On his blog, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak praised his security forces and said Kuala Lumpur and Manila would cooperate to fight the recurring kidnappings.

The Abu Sayyaf, a loose network of militants based on remote islands in the southern Philippines, has defied more than a decade of military offensives.

The group was formed in the 1990s with seed money from Osama bin Laden’s Al-Qaeda network, but has been on a lucrative kidnapping spree in recent years.

More than 11,600 houses were damaged as a result of Wednesday’s quake, which also killed at least 101 people and injured more than800, national disaster management agency spokesman Sutopo Nugroho said.

Authorities had earlier put the number of displaced people in the three worst-hit districts at 22,000.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo visited the quake-torn area onFriday and promised to rebuild homes and places of worships.

The quake struck just before dawn, with the epicentre 18 kilometres north-east of Pidie Jaya at a depth of 10 kilometres.

Indonesia sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire, an area noted for frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

A magnitude-9.1 earthquake off Sumatra island on December 26, 2004,spawned the Indian Ocean tsunami that killed 230,000 people in 11countries, including about 180,000 in Aceh alone.

“The Philippines wishes to convey our warmest congratulations to his Majesty, King Maha Vajiralongkorn, on his accession and proclamation as the King of Thailand,” said Assistant Communications Secretary Ana Marie Banaag.

The Palace said Thailand could look forward to a bright future under its new monarch.

“We are confident that his reign will continue to bring happiness, peace and prosperity to the Thai people. We wish for him success as he leads the Kingdom of Thailand,” she said.

Vajiralongkorn ascended to the throne on Dec. 1, more than a month after the passing of his father King Bhumibol Adulyadej.

King Bhumibol was much loved in Thailand where he had served as monarch for seven decades.

The new Thai King is the 10th monarch of the Chakri Dynasty and will also be known as Rama X.

Malaysia Airlines Bhd (MAS) has benefited from a combination of aggressive marketing strategy and the adjustment in passenger service charges (PSC) for flights within the Asean region.
Forward bookings at MAS for the next six months are 50% more than a year ago, said its group chief executive officer Peter Bellew.
“The airline has had tremendous group booking enquiries from the Asean region, spiking by almost 400%,” he said.
Apart from an aggressive sales campaign by the airline over the past months, Bellew said the “equalisation” of the PSC has had an even better impact than expected on the airline”.
The new PSC charges come into effect on Jan 1, with uniform charges for all Asean destinations at RM35 in both the KL International Airport (KLIA) and KLIA2.
It replaces the old structure where it is RM65 for all international travels, which includes Asean, at KLIA and RM32 in KLIA2, which is positioned as an airport for low-cost carriers.
“We are seeing great forward bookings and our loads are good … this would be a great boost for us and Malaysian tourism,” he said in response to queries from StarBiz.
Although the forward bookings are encouraging, yields are depressed, a worldwide conundrum given the intense competition. The weaker ringgit will have an impact on the airline, as will the stronger US dollar, as most of its costs are in dollars.
“Yields dipped slightly in the third quarter, but this is something affecting most airlines. We expect this to improve in the fourth quarter,” Bellew said. “We do expect heightened competition with over-capacity in the market, with both players (AirAsia Bhd and Malindo Air) bringing in extra aircraft into Malaysia. This would be good for the customers, but would put pressure on the airlines,” he added.
MAS’ yields for the third quarter ended September 30 was 21.75 sen, down from 22.5 sen in the second quarter, despite passenger revenues for the third quarter rising 12% over the second quarter, led by aggressive sales campaigns. The yield has a direct impact on the bottom line of the airline operations.
Traditionally, the fourth quarter is the best quarter for airlines, but the ringgit’s weakness has been intense after Nov 8.
Bellew said the weaker ringgit would have an impact on airline operations and would be made worse by the keen competition in the Malaysian market. “The volatility of the dollar is a major concern, given that most of our costs are in US dollars. However, the lower cost of fuel, which we have hedged as much as possible, will balance out the rise of the US dollar,” he said.
“We will have to be extra diligent and focused on costs in 2017, but we remain cautiously optimistic.”