Alarming Report Reveals UK Domestic Workers Vulnerable to Labor Exploitation
Recent research from the University of Nottingham shows that migrants employed as domestic workers in the UK may be at risk of labour exploitation due to questionable employment practices.
The study into domestic workers, from the University of Nottingham Rights Lab, highlighted the nature of the working conditions experienced by migrant workers which included verbal abuse, excessive working hours and payment rates below the minimum wage.
Survey respondents also explained that they did not know where to go to get help, and that many had received threats from their employers, with a quarter of respondents stating that they received a lasting injury as a result of physical violence.
Dr Caroline Emberson, who led the study, said: “To our knowledge, this is the first post-Brexit study to shed light on the nature of labour exploitation among migrant domestic workers coming to the UK. Our survey findings present a worrying picture of abuse ranging from widespread reports of verbal intimidation to practices that indicate more serious forms of exploitation including modern slavery.”
This research is set to help create a more detailed understanding of the extent of the exploitation of migrant workers, particularly in a post-Brexit world where migrant workers arrive in the UK from a wide variety of source countries.
A survey of 97 domestic workers, two thirds of whom were Filipina nationals, highlighted a number of concerns within the industry.
Key findings included:
- 82 per cent reported that they had suffered verbal abuse from their employer
- 55 per cent reported that they ‘always’ or ‘sometimes’ felt that they would like to leave their current job
- 44 per cent did not know where to find help in relation to their employment rights
- 44 per cent ‘often’ suffered from privacy issues during their work
- 42 per cent reported threatening behaviour from their employer – over a third reported physical violence
- 41 per cent reported that their employer had at times withheld their income
Dr Emberson and doctoral researcher Selim Yilmaz highlighted the need for greater regulation of employers, the ratification of the International Domestic Workers Convention (c189) and to help vulnerable workers to identify and report abuse.