With advent of Ramadan, maids escaping in search for higher salaries, say citizens Recruitment agencies exploiting high demand for maids by increasing charges

NT Bureau

DOHA: The phenomenon of housemaids escaping or demanding more salaries during Ramadan is happening again with the advent of the holy month, several citizens have said.

They said many housemaids are escaping or asking to return to recruitment offices and staying there until the end of this month, or to return to the same offices in search of those who pay higher salaries as the demand for maids increases during the holy month, Al Sharq reports.

Many domestic workers do this every Ramadan out of greed and they search for someone who will pay a bigger salary. Housemaids believe their work increases during the holy month having to prepare iftar as wells as suhoor meals.

“They go back to their offices, refuse to work as the holy month approaches, or flee their homes,” the report says.

Some citizens also said the offices that supply workers on hourly basis are taking advantage of the beginning of the month of Ramadan by raising the charges for one hour. The monthly salary of one worker is approximately 4,000 riyals, and because of the need, some are forced to bring maids on an hourly basis, the report adds.

A number of citizens called on the authorities to impose strict laws to curb this phenomenon, which is widespread and repeated every year.

“I demand the enactment of laws that guarantee the right of the recruiter from the manipulative practices of some workers, as well as the recruitment offices that grant an appropriate period of time for the recruiter and the right to take back the worker whenever he wants, but some domestic workers use this period to escape and return to the offices as the holy month approaches, in search of someone who will pay more,” Khaled Fakhro said.

He says a higher monthly salary leaves some households without a maid and others pay large sums of money to companies that have hourly workers.

“I brought a maid, and after three months had passed, and with the approaching of the holy month, I got a call from the recruitment office that hired the worker that the maid didn’t want to work for me, and I returned her to the office and incurred a huge loss on recruitment charges,”  Ahmed Al-Fadhala said.

He called for laws prohibiting the maid from working in the country after her return to the recruitment office, and imposing a fine on the recruitment office and obliging it to return all fees and the charges paid by the recruiter.