Justifying abuse of women migrant domestic workers in Lebanon: the opinion of recruitment agencies.

Gac Sanit

Observatory of Public Policies and Health, Beirut, Lebanon; Faculté de Santé Publique, Université Catholique de Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium.

Published: October 2021

AI Article Synopsis

  • The study investigates gender-based violence against women migrant domestic workers in the Middle East, focusing on perceptions from recruitment agency managers in Lebanon.
  • Interviews with 42 agency managers reveal that they acknowledge various abusive practices faced by WMDW, which violate International Labor Organization standards, but often justify these practices for business and worker protection.
  • Findings highlight the need for policy changes to enhance protections for WMDW against such abuses.

Article Abstract

Objective: Gender-based violence against women migrant domestic workers (WMDW) is a serious public health concern in the Middle East region. The current study is the first to explore abuse of WMDW as perceived by recruitment agency managers.

Method: A qualitative study was conducted using 42 personal semi-structural interviews with agency managers in Lebanon. The interview guidelines were designed based on the standards set by the International Labor Organization (ILO) Convention No. 189. The information was transcribed in Arabic, and data was analyzed using thematic analysis.

Results: The interviewees believe that WMDW are subject to abusive practices that represent various violations of the ILO Convention No. 189, including harassment and violence, compulsory labour, misinformation about conditions of employment, denial of periods of rest and restriction of movement and travel documents. In many situations, the interviewees justified some of these practices as being necessary to protect their business and to protect the workers.

Conclusion: The results of this study have several policy implications for the protection of WMDW against abuse.

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Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.gaceta.2018.11.001DOI Listing

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