Thạc Sĩ Chính sách phúc lợi cho lao động nội trợ tại Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh

LUẬN VĂN THẠC SỸ - MASTER OF PUBLIC POLICY THESIS
NĂM 2011
WELFARE POLICY FOR DOMESTIC WORKERS IN HO CHI MINH CITY, A CASE STUDY IN TAN BINH DISTRICT

CONTENTS
CERTIFICATION . i
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ii
ABSTRACT iii
ABBREVIATIONS iv
LIST OF FIGURES v
LIST OF TABLES . vi
CHAPTER 1 - INTRODUCTION . 1
1.1. Problem statement 1
1.2. Research questions of the study . 2
1.3. The object, scope and purpose of the study . 3
1.4. Research Methods 4
1.5. The structure of the study . 4
CHAPTER 2 - LITERATURE REVIEW 5
2.1. Relevant Concepts 5
2.2. Theoretical background 6
2.2.1. Demand for domestic workers in Vietnam 6
2.2.2. Supply of domestic workers in Vietnam . 7
2.2.3. Theoretical background . 8
2.3. Empirical studies 8
2.3.1. The number of domestic workers all over the world . 8
2.3.2. The situation of domestic workers . 10
2.3.3. Policies to protect the rights of domestic workers . 11
2.4. Conclusion 12
CHAPTER 3 - RESEARCH METHODS . 13
3.1. The purpose of the survey 13
3.2. Subjects of the survey 13
3.3. Survey sample size and sampling methods 14
3.3.1. Sample size 14
3.3.2. Methodology 14
3.4. Data collection instruments 14
3.5. Limitations of the survey method 15
CHAPTER 4 - SURVEY RESULTS . 17
4.1. Characteristics of domestic workers 18
4.1.1. Gender of DWs 18
4.1.2. Age of DWs . 18
4.1.3. Education . 19
4.1.4. Family status 20
4.1.5. How DWs find jobs . 21
4.1.6. Years working as domestic worker . 22
4.2. DWs’ current job 23
4.2.1. Domestic chores 23
4.2.2. Working hours . 24
4.2.3. Length of doing the current job . 26
4.2.4. Working conditions . 26
4.2.5. Income and expenditure 28
4.2.6. Health and Medical Care . 30
4.2.7. Days off, leisure time and entertainment activities . 32
4.2.8. Relationship with employers . 33
4.2.9. Social contact . 35
4.3. Legal awareness of DWs 36
4.4. Dishonesty of DWs 36
4.5. Conclusion 37
CHAPTER 5 - DISCUSSION . . 38
5.1. Irregular working hours 38
5.2. Problems adopting labor contracts . 39
5.3. It is difficult to control issues relevant to DWs 40
5.3.1. Exploitation of domestic workers 40
5.3.2. Employers’ risks 41
5.3.3. The existence of child labor 41
5.4. “This is not a big problem” 42
5.5. Asymmetric information 42
5.6. Lack of the participation of labor unions in protecting DWs . 43
5.7. Legal protections for domestic workers . 44
5.8. Conclusion 44
CHAPTER 6 - POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS . 46
6.1. Recommendations for employers . 46
6.2. Recommendations for the Government . 46
6.2.1. Support for establishing companies that provide domestic service . 46
6.2.2. Issue the Decree guiding domestic services 47
6.2.3. Strengthen propaganda and education to improve legal awareness of laborers and employers 47
6.2.4. Establish Unions to protect DWs 47
CHAPTER 7 - CONCLUSION . 49
7.1. Conclusion 49
7.2. Limitations and distributions of the study 50
REFERENCES 51
APPENDIX 55
CERTIFICATION
I certify that I wrote this thesis myself.
I certify that the study has not been submitted for any other degrees.
I certify that any help received and all sources used have been
CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION
1.1. Problem statement
The role of women in Vietnamese society is changing quickly. As women have entered the labor force and set up businesses, demand for domestic workers (DWs) has become very large. DWs have a big role in doing housework to ensure that the activities of the family can take place smoothly. The domestic worker is also indispensable in household business. Unfortunately, the growth of domestic service is accompanied by the widespread abuse of labor, exploitation of maids, especially children. In many countries around the world, including Vietnam, domestic work has not been regarded as a professional occupation and there is no official legal framework to protect this workforce.
In Vietnam, especially in big cities, the shortage of DWs is a frequent topic of discussion. Housemaids are a hot topic in the daily newspapers. Two prominent examples are the stories of Nguyen Hao Anh in Ca Mau province and Nguyen Thi Binh in Hanoi. They were victims of the inhumane torture over more than ten years at the hands of their employers (Huynh Hai, Ngo Nguyen, 2010), (Huong Vu, Duy Hien, 2010). These cases shocked the public for a long time and were a warning signal about the exploitation of domestic workers.
Currently, domestic service is not considered a formal job, and there is no specific agency assigned to monitor and manage this group (Than Hoang, 2010). There are still no official data on DWs, only case material about abuse and exploitation of DWs reported in the media. As reported by the ILO in 2010 at the International Labor Conference, Manuela Tomei, Chief of the ILO’s Conditions of Work and Employment program, Social Protection Sector said that domestic work absorbs a significant proportion of the workforce, ranging between four to ten percent of total employment in developing countries and up to 2.5 percent of total employment in industrialized countries (ILO, 2010).
In Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) in 2006, there were an estimated 2,162 children in domestic work (ILO, 2006). In fact, children are a small part in this workforce, and the total is much greater.
DWs have common characteristics including their origins in poor families, low educational attainment, and a lack of occupational skills. Their job is often doing housework or assisting household businesses. They often do not have labor contracts, but only a verbal agreement with employers. Between the employees and the employers, there are no legal obligations. The consequence of this is that conflicts often occur. Because there is no basis for settlement, workers are subject to unfair treatment or abuse. On the other hand, employers also have to deal with the risks of dishonesty among DWs or other risks to their families. The Vietnamese Labor Code recognizes domestic service as a profession and DWs have the same rights and benefits as employees in other industries.1 However, the legislation can only be applied to those who have labor contracts. In fact, most DWs work under informal arrangements. Both domestic workers and employers are not aware of this. Therefore, interest in contracts and benefits of contracting are still limited. It is difficult for DWs to protect their rights under the law. Faced with this urgent situation, the government is preparing to issue a decree guiding what should be done to protect DWs. The contents of the decree will focus on such issues as the work of assistants, wages, working hours, working conditions, welfare policies and other relevant issues. Welfare issues for helpers are a topic of intense public interest and require timely intervention to ensure the rights of workers. Motivated by this situation, the present research contributes to providing a more practical basis for drafting the planned government decree on DWs, and investigates ways to make the decree more feasible in its implementation.
1.2. Research questions of the study
This study attempts to answer two research questions as follows:
1. Why do DWs not have the same working conditions and benefits as employees in the formal sector?
1 Labor Code of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, June 23, 1994 as amended April 2, 2002, National Assembly. 2 “Snowball sampling” referred at http://www.experiment-resources.com/snowball-sampling.html
In order to answer this central question, some following sub –questions should be asked:
- What are the characteristics of DWs and their working conditions?
- What welfare policies are available to them?
- Are they receiving the benefits that they are entitled to?
- What are the major reasons that they do not receive equal treatment?
2. What should be done to improve the welfare of domestic workers?
1.3. The object, scope and purpose of the study
The subjects studied are listed in the table below:

The study concentrates on the empirical facts of domestic work in Tan Binh District, Ho Chi Minh City, and the perceptions of these DWs. Although we cannot assume that this group is statistically representative of all DWs in the city, the intention is not to sample systematically. We take Tan Binh District as a case that will help us to understand some of the issues confronting DWs. Conclusions concerning the population parameters will have to await a larger, city or nation-wide study, which is clearly beyond the scope of the present paper. There are still no official data on DWs in Vietnam, only case material about abuse and exploitation of DWs in the media. No specific agency has responsibility for monitoring the situation of DWs. That is the reason why many contradictory opinions about this problem exist. Therefore, the researcher will conduct a survey to collect data. The interviews and data from the survey will be used to explore the real situation of DWs in HCMC.
1.4. Research Methods
The study is based on a survey to examine the situation of DWs in Tan Binh District, HCMC. The thesis first will analyze practical issues about DWs in HCMC. As noted above, this is a small survey that cannot make generalizations about all of Vietnam, but is a form of case study.
1.5. The structure of the study
The study consists of six chapters. This section belongs to the introductory chapter. Chapter 2 consists of a literature review providing relevant concepts and the theoretical and analytical framework about the welfare of the DWs. Research methods are described in Chapter 3. Chapter 4 consists of the results of the survey and the qualitative analysis of the realities of DWs in Tan Binh District, HCMC. Based on this analysis, Chapter 5 discusses the implications of the findings. Chapter 6 focuses on discussing policy recommendations. Chapter 7 concludes and suggests topics for future research.