words— Kay Stephens art— Katrina Bautista
Filipino Domestic Workers Association Interview The Filipino Domestic Workers Association (FDWA) is an organisation founded in 2012, composed of Filipino women working as domestic workers in the UK. I spoke with Phoebe – chairperson of the FDWA – about the organisation and her own experience as a migrant domestic worker. Below is an edited version of our conversation.
domestic workers would be unable to leave their employers without becoming undocumented again. Our main aim was to help people who couldn’t leave abusive employers. We also campaigned to reinstate the 1998 Overseas Domestic Workers visa. As of April 2016, domestic workers can change their employers, but only during the term of the 6-month visa they were admitted on.
Kay: How did FDWA get started? Phoebe: There’s an annual event called Barrio Fiesta, a celebration of Filipino culture. An organisation called Migrante International [global organisation supporting overseas Filipino workers] had a tent there, and I approached them and we had a chat. I used to be a trade union organiser in the Philippines, so they asked me to join them in setting up an organisation to support Filipino domestic workers. That’s how I met the others.
Kay: What are the main activities of the group now? Phoebe: We rescue people. We’ll get a call that someone needs help escaping from their employer, and rescue them. But first we educate them about the law, and what might happen to them, so that they understand their situation before they run away. Then, we channel them to the right institutions. We refer them to the migrants right charity Kalayaan - ‘kalayaan’ means freedom in our language - then Kalayaan will interview them and see how they can help. For example, they’ll see if they are victims of human trafficking, and find them a solicitor. We also do workshops: ‘speak up’ workshops, which train people to be confident to share their stories; workshops with the Anti-Raids Network because of the status of most of our members; workshops on why are we forced to go abroad. We do not only focus on the situation here, but the issues back home – our families are still there, so whatever happens there, we’re still affected. We want them to be politically aware of the situation in the Philippines.
Kay: What kind of issues were you tackling at that time? Phoebe: Before 1998, the government granted ‘concessions’ to domestic workers1 – domestic workers gained entry through their employers and were tied to their employers, putting them in danger of abuse. After years of campaigning by trade unions and migrant groups, the Labour Party introduced a system that allowed domestic workers to change employers, and apply for indefinite leave to remain after five years. But in 2012, the Conservative government made it so that 1 The primary rationale for such concessions was to attract wealthy foreign investors and ‘skilled workers’ who would want to bring their domestic staff with them.
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