Filipino DH population slumps in January 2021

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Filipino foreign domestic workers in Central. (FILE PHOTO)

The Filipino domestic worker population shrunk in January, more than a month after the government tightened its policy on applications for extensions of stay.

Data obtained from the Immigration Department on Wednesday showed there were 204,781 Filipino domestic workers by the end of last month.

This is 2,621 less than the figure in December 2020, and almost a 15,000 decline from January last year.

Hong Kong’s total foreign domestic worker population also got slashed by over 4,700 in a month.

A hiring agency union head links the population dip to the holiday exodus of Filipinos, and the implemented restriction on workers’ extension of stay. The Hong Kong government said in late December 2020 it would only grant extensions to FDWs under “exceptional circumstances,” and workers who do not get this extension must immediately leave the city.

Thomas Chan, chairperson of Hong Kong Union of Employment Agencies, also said the Philippine Overseas Employment Agency’s processing of documents discouraged employers to hire workers from the Philippines. He cited cases of FDW’s deployment documents still being unavailable even when their Hong Kong visas have already been issued.

“This lengthy processing doesn’t help workers to go overseas, but diminishing employer’s patience, forcing them onto local markets,” Chan said.

The agency union leader added employers now look to the local job market for new helpers since hiring firms in the Philippines have gradually begun charging training fees from employers in Hong Kong. The shift followed an earlier announcement from the Philippine Overseas Labour Office saying that the training fee is not mandatory.

Expenses incurred by incoming domestic workers for their 21-day quarantine also impacted FDW deployment figures, Chan said.

Chan then predicted a steady decline of the migrant domestic worker population in Hong Kong.

“If the above factors do not change, obviously, the fall will keep going while the economy in HK also goes to its worst situation,” said.

The city’s economy shrank by a record-low 6.1% in 2020, with the fallout from the Covid-19 epidemic causing the contraction.