Harmonious Relationship is Key to Foreign Domestic Workers Completion of their contracts

~ Centre For Domestic Employees Celebrates International Migrants’ Day ~

 

1. In celebration of International Migrants’ Day (IMD) on 18 December 2019, the Centre for Domestic Employees (CDE) have organised a river cruise for over 30 families, together with their Foreign Domestic Workers (FDWs), on Sunday, 15 December 2019. This event is the culmination of CDE’s three-month long campaign (See Annex B) to advocate for harmonious relationships between employers and FDWs by promoting mutual understanding and empathy. CDE’s long-standing belief is that a harmonious employer-employee relationship is key in ensuring FDWs have a home away from home and are happy working while employers receive good help from FDWs.
 

2. The cruise will take them on a 30 minutes tour around the Singapore River, spanning the iconic districts of Clarke Quay, Boat Quay and Marina Bay. Some light refreshments will also be provided before the cruise.
 

3. Graced by Guest-of-Honour Mr Yeo Guat Kwang, Chairman of the Centre for Domestic Employees, the event was also attended by the Ambassador of the Republic of the Philippines to Singapore, H.E. Joseph Del Mar Yap; First Secretary (Employment & Labour Welfare) from Sri Lanka High Commission, Mr Sanjith Chaminda; DBS/POSB, CDE’s strategic partner and event venue sponsor; and representatives from various employment agencies.

 

4. From July 2018 to February 2019, CDE collaborated with NUS Chua Thian Poh Community Leadership Centre to better understand the challenges that FDWs face when working in Singapore. Through interviews with 30 FDWs of different nationalities, the study found that the FDWs’ relationship with their employers is the main reason on whether they complete their contract.

5. 2 out of 3 participants in the study have had multiple employers, with the shortest employment period being 6.3 months. Language barriers leading to breakdowns in communication, lack of welfare and excessive control by employers were stated as main reasons for FDWs to not continue their employment to completion. Other reasons such as cultural differences and skills mismatch were also cited.

6. Thus, it is important for employers and FDWs to start their employment relationship on a good footing. Employers should give FDWs time to adjust to the employers’ families as FDWs will need some time to understand their routines and habits and find their footing in a new environment. Employers also need to be

respectful and understanding towards FDWs so that the latter would feel assured working for their families. This is essential in building a lasting and harmonious employer-employee relationship and for the FDWs to complete their contract.

7. This study was the impetus behind the three-month long campaign which saw CDE recently holding the event, “Fostering Harmonious Relationships Through Art and Empathy”, on 6 October 2019, whereby employers, their family members and FDWs came together to co-create art works. These art works are then displayed at CDE’s IMD celebrations.

 

8. From mid-November till early December 2019, CDE also encouraged employers and FDWs to participate in an online competition by submitting photos via CDE’s Facebook page to exemplify their harmonious employment relationships. The competition reached over 93,000 people with more than 21,000 engagements. Six winners were selected and will be presented with prizes at the event on Sunday, 15

December 2019. Special prizes in categories like the “Most Inspiring”, “Most Harmonious”, “Most Meaningful”, “Most Joyful” and “Most Heartwarming”, were also given out. 
 

9. Mr Shamsul Kamar, Executive Director, CDE said, “Through this campaign, our aim is to encourage employers and FDWs to make mutual efforts to communicate with each other, understand each other better and hence, foster closer harmonious relationships between them. After all, when employers and FDWs enjoy good relationships, it makes for a win-win situation. We believe there are so many more happy employers and FDWs out there. In the spirit of celebrating International Migrants’ Day, we urge every employer to show appreciation to their FDWs as they have worked hard throughout the year.”