From next Monday, applications seeking workers under the Filipino Domestic Helpers Entry Pilot Scheme will be open to all, the Health Bureau (SSM) has announced.
Currently, only households with children aged 3 to 12 years, with ill members or people with disability, or with people aged over 65 are eligible to file applications.
This time, anyone with a need for domestic help will be eligible to file applications, subject to additional criteria, from May 23.
The additional criteria include full vaccination, including third-dose boosters where necessary, for Filipino domestic helpers who plan to work in Macau. The same vaccination requirement will apply to children and the elderly in the Macau household.
However, the Philippine Consulate General in Macau SAR has issued a statement last night, noting that the Filipino Domestic Helpers Entry Pilot Scheme’s development “has not addressed the vital requirements under the long-established Philippine regulations covering the deployment of Filipino workers for overseas employment.”
As cited in the statement, the standard employment contract verified by the Philippine Overseas Labor Office in Macau should have a minimum salary of equivalent to USD1,200 for a “professionally-trained and government-certified caregiver suited to the job requirements stated in the pilot scheme.”
Insurance coverage is also compulsory, as well as the provision of a two-way airfare.
The contract should also state that attendant travel costs such as cost of the SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid test (NAT) and quarantine in Macau will be arranged and paid for by the employer.
Based on current Philippine regulations, failure to comply with the above minimum requirements shall prohibit a prospective Filipino overseas worker from leaving the country.
Under the city’s pilot scheme, employers will have to agree to pay any quarantine or hospitalization costs in Macau for domestic helpers.
Furthermore, prospective domestic helpers must possess a valid Philippine passport, intend to enter Macau to work, possess a valid working visa for Macau, depart from a place outside mainland China or Hong Kong and be on the prioritized list compiled by the Labour Affairs Bureau (DSAL).
In line with this, the Consulate said that it “remains ready to pursue further discussions with the concerned authorities of Macau.”
As previously reported by the Times, the number of domestic workers have opted to go back home for good with many deciding that not seeing their families for over two years is a big price to pay for a minimum wage.
Data from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) shows that the number of domestic workers in the region has declined to 27,100 in 2021, a 13% decrease from 2020 figures that stood at 31,100.
Lynzy Valles & Anthony Lam
