In response to the news about the new regulation regarding the elimination of the placement fee for migrant domestic workers (PRT) by the Indonesian government, the Hong Kong Ministry of Manpower held a meeting with the Consulate General of the Republic of Indonesia (KJRI) to inquire about the increase in fees and what fees are charged to employers who will take domestic workers from Indonesia, Tuesday (29/9/2020).
SCMP reported that the Hong Kong labor authority has expressed concern to the Consulate General of the Republic of Indonesia about the additional costs that may have to be borne by employers who take migrant domestic workers from Indonesia following Indonesia’s steps to strengthen protection for its migrant workers.
Law, who said he was very concerned, had sent representatives from the Ministry of Manpower to meet with consular officials last Friday. Because the Hong Kong government also wants to know whether the costs of training will also ultimately be borne by the employer or employer, if the new arrangements are not carried out properly.
Through active communication with the Indonesian Consulate General, Law said his party wanted to ensure that the fees paid by employers to hire Indonesian domestic workers would not rise dramatically, nor would there be a “bad effect” on Indonesian domestic workers coming to Hong Kong.
The Minister of Manpower and City Welfare, Dr Law Chi-kwong, wrote on his official website on Sunday (27/9) that the Indonesian government has recently decided to cancel the placement fee that previously had to be paid by Indonesian Migrant Domestic Workers to work in overseas. The regulation will be effective from January next year.
Law also quoted a statement from the Indonesian Ministry of Manpower, that the aim of the new policy was to ensure that PMIs who went abroad were not in debt and had to pay very high interest. But of course it also raises concerns among employers and employment agencies in the country of placement. Because according to the new regulation, the fees that PMI no longer have to pay include the cost of obtaining a passport and a certificate showing that they do not have a criminal record in Indonesia.
According to Law, starting in January, fees that the Indonesian government abolished must be paid by the employer or employer. However, the training costs currently charged to Migrant Domestic Workers will be borne by the Indonesian government.
Law also quoted a response from a meeting with representatives of the Indonesian Consulate General who said that the Indonesian Consulate General was requesting and waiting for the details of the new regulation from Jakarta.
Meanwhile to SCMP, Cheung Kit-man, chairman of the Hong Kong Employment Agencies Association said that each current employer has to pay a total of between HK$11,000 and HK$14,000 to hire an Indonesian domestic worker. Meanwhile, the domestic workers themselves have to pay around HK$ 11,000 each. Under the new rules, however, the domestic workers do not have to pay anything, so according to preliminary estimates each employer will have to pay an additional fee of around HK$ 4,000 more for each pick-up of a domestic worker from Indonesia.
According to Cheung, the amount of HK$ 11,000 is actually the same as what employers pay for domestic workers from the Philippines who may in the future also require an additional fee of HK$4,000. Since the Philippine government has also considered asking employers to pay for training fees, workers from their home country do not have to bear these costs.
Asking about the cost of accommodation, Cheung said the fee is the cost that employers have to pay to arrange for Indonesians living in remote areas to stay one or two nights at the inn before they arrive in Jakarta for a flight to Hong Kong.
“Indonesia is a big country. It may take more than a day for these workers to arrive at the airport from their homes,” Cheung said as quoted by SCMP, Sunday (27/9/2020).
As of mid-2019, Hong Kong had around 400,000 migrant domestic workers, mostly from the Philippines and Indonesia with a monthly minimum wage of HK$ 4,520. But the Ministry of Social Welfare said the number had fallen to around 370,000 recently, partly due to a slump in the economy and fewer people employing domestic workers.
