In the Shadows: Migrant Domestic Workers in the Context of COVID-19
By Joely Greenbaum
This post is part of a series of opinion pieces in diverse mediums focusing on the theme “What makes you mad about global health?” These submissions are by McGill students who were part of the course PPHS 511 Fundamentals of Global Health in Fall 2021.
Migrant workers have always been pushed to the margins of societies. They are often depicted as “other” which results in their systematic maltreatment, neglect and discrimination. As someone who works in immigration law, I have seen firsthand how migrants are marginalized even within a country that boasts multiculturalism and a pro-immigration narrative. Migrants, specifically those with temporary status, are vulnerable individuals who are often provided with few social supports such as adequate and affordable access to healthcare. Further, the precarity of their immigration status impacts their mental health and their ability to access health services. Migrants are people like you and me. They are people who have families, jobs and friends. They may be your neighbour, your co-worker, your aunt or your brother. It frustrates me to no end that migrants are treated as less than and as result suffer negative health outcomes simply because of their nationality. No person is less deserving of a healthy life because of the country indicated on their passport.
While migrants are being marginalized in nearly every corner of the globe, the Kafala system in Lebanon is a particularly pressing issue. Migrant domestic workers (MDWs) who are sponsored within the Kafala (sponsorship) system in Lebanon are systematically violated of their basic human rights and trapped within a cycle of dependency (3). MDWs are legally and economically dependent on the sponsor until the end of their contract with virtually no pathways to obtain permanent status. MDWs, who are overwhelmingly women, are excluded from National Lebanese Labour Laws which means they are not protected by the government, essentially making them slaves to their sponsors (1). These exploitative work conditions often result in long work hours with no breaks or days off, inadequate accommodations and meals, verbal, physical and sexual abuse, restricted access to health care and negative impacts on mental health (1). The conditions under which MDWs are forced to work are deplorable and unfortunately, many of these women are forced to stay with their employers because there are no other viable alternatives. It is truly pitiful to see the Lebanese government overtly deny domestic workers basic human rights. No one should have to sacrifice their mental and physical health in order to make a living.
Unfortunately, migrant health issues have only been further exacerbated by COVID-19. The pandemic has limited mobility on a global scale which is particularly problematic for migrants, especially those living with precarious status. The pandemic has made it extremely difficult for temporary migrants to meet legal requirements in their destination country due to service center closures and lack of accessible legal information (2). Further, many migrants are at the forefront of the pandemic working in the service sector, in cleaning, agriculture, health and domestic work as described above with the Kafala system. Migrants, like MDWs, are being put in situations that place them at higher risk of contracting COVID-19 and with few resources to adequately protect themselves against the virus such as access to testing, adequate quarantine facilities and time off for sick leave (2). These conditions are unacceptable and have magnified the already existing health inequities that migrants face on a daily basis. The situation is dire, and now more than ever we need to demand justice for migrants.
Migrants are an integral part of our economy and social fabric. More than that, they are human beings deserving of respect. International law explicitly holds health as an inalienable human right. Article 25 of the UN Declaration of Human Rights clearly states that “everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.” (5). There are several international laws, signed by countries like Canada and Lebanon, which specifically aim to protect migrants such as the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Articles 7, 25, 28 and 43 particularly address the right to safe and healthy work conditions as well as equal access to health and social services (4). It is important to remember that systematically excluding migrants from health and social services is not only detrimental to their own physical and mental health but also places a toll on the global health system, ultimately impacting the labour market in the long run. The economic implications are significant and may be what drives global leaders to enforce the international laws and policies that already exist to protect migrants. However, I still firmly believe that humanity should be at the forefront of this issue because the right to health should not be determined by one’s nationality.
References:
Amnesty International. (n.d). End Kafala: Justice for migrant domestic workers in Lebanon. https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/campaigns/2019/04/lebanon-migrant-domesticworkers-their-house-is-our-prison/
ESCWA (2020). The Impact of COVID-19 on Migrants and Refugees in the Arab Region (Policy Brief No. 2). ESCWA. https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---arabstates/---robeirut/documents/briefingnote/wcms_764761.pdf
Pande, A. (2013). “The Paper that you have in your hand is my freedom”: Migrant domestic work and the sponsorship (Kafala) system in Lebanon. International Migration Review, 47(2), 414-441. DOI: 10.1111/imre.12025
United Nations (General Assembly). (1966). International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights. Treaty Series, 999, 171.
United Nations (General Assembly). (1948). Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Acknowledgments:
We would like to thank Professor Madhukar Pai for setting and sharing this assignment results with us and the teaching assistants Alexandra Jaye Zimmer, Lavanya Huria and Angie Sassi for their support in coordinating the results.