Turning a Blind Eye: The British state and migrant domestic workers' employment rights
Migrant Domestic Workers Employment Rights
Researchers:
Nick Clark and Dr Leena Kumarappan
Funding:
Nuffield Foundation
Project Summary
Funded by the Nuffield Foundation, this research investigated Migrant Domestic Workers’ (MDWs) employment conditions and the enforcement of their employment rights. We used Subject Access Requests to the UK Border Agency (UKBA) to gather written terms and conditions of employment lodged by employers applying for or renewing workers' visas, interviews with domestic workers and a survey of migrant domestic workers’ pay and conditions (conducted by Unite the Union).
Key findings:
- In over 50% of cases the UKBA did not have enough information to assess whether the National Minimum Wage (NMW) was paid.
- UKBA possess details of abuse (sometimes very serious) reported by workers changing employers. We found no evidence of UKBA taking action to rectify the problems, or notify enforcement bodies.
- Of 92 contracts and letters held by the UKBA and examined by us, in only 20 cases was it possible to establish that at least the NMW was being paid. In a minority of cases it was clear that it was not.
- 60% of MDWs surveyed by Unite appeared to be paid less than the National Minimum Wage.
- 27% of the Unite survey reported weekly hours in excess of 78.
- Domestic workers worried that tax and NI were not being properly deducted by their employers, or being paid to the government. Sixteen out of 22 interviewees referred to this, and half of those surveyed said they did not receive payslips. We estimate that employer tax evasion costs the Exchequer at least £37 million per year.
- The exclusion of “family workers” from entitlement to the NMW results in some domestic workers being unable to enforce the NMW.
- Enforcement against employers failing to make or pay deductions is very low (only 14 complaints about employer compliance were investigated in 2006/7).
- While most workers were aware of the NMW, they were less well informed about working time rights, or means of enforcing employment rights. Reluctance to take up claims was most marked around the time of visa renewal.
Key conclusions:
- The right to change employers is vital in enabling MDWs to escape from employers who contravene their rights, but few resources are available for them to obtain redress from their abusers.
- Domestic worker exclusions from certain employment rights (NMW, maximum working hours, for example) should be reversed and the UKBA visa regime should require more detailed contracts and payslips from employers.
Download the final report as a pdf:
TaBE final report.pdf
See the TaBE event page here for more details on the project.
