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| Law said the faster processing of work visas will help decongest boarding houses |
The Immigration Department has undertaken to speed up the
visa processing for foreign domestic helpers, amid fears of a mass infection
among migrant workers housed in cramped dormitories while waiting for their
employment visa.
The assurance came as a second Indonesian domestic worker
who had stayed at a boarding house run by an employment agency was confirmed as
a Covid-19 case today, Aug 7.
Labour Secretary Law Chi-kwong said at a joint press
conference with government officials that the waiting time for the approval of
an employment visa will now be considerably shorter.
“In the light of the recent development, the Immigration
Department has undertaken to process contract applications for foreign domestic
helpers as soon as possible. It will then minimize the time that they need to
stay in these boarding facilities,” said Law.
“If we reduce the waiting time, we will also reduce the
overcrowding in these facilities.”
The government’s action was in response to criticism that
the reason thousands of FDHs are forced to stay in cramped boarding houses and
shelters is because it takes Immigration up to three months to approve their
new employment contracts.
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| Law says police will also step up patrols to ensure FDHs follow gathering rules |
FDHs are not allowed to work or move in with their new
employers in the meantime, so they are forced to stay in cheap or free accommodations.
Going back to their home countries is also not a option for
many because of the heightened travel restrictions, which also entail huge
costs for them and their employers.
The problem was highlighted in the case of an Indonesian
domestic worker who tested positive for Covid-19 on Aug 5, after spending 15
days shuttling through four cramped dormitories while looking for a new employer.
An investigation by health officials showed that in the
course of staying in these lodging places, the helper had come into close
contact with no fewer than 60 people, most of them fellow migrant workers.
The second Indonesian helper who tested positive today also
stayed for two days in a cramped dormitory run by an agency, before moving into
her new employer’s house on Aug 1.
The fear that the coronavirus could spread rapidly among
FDHs living in such close proximity prompted the government to announce mass
testing among those staying in agency shelters.
A press release issued last night said that “a free, one-off
Covid-19 testing service provided by a testing agency (Prenetics Limited) will
be arranged for relevant FDHs."
The announcement said the testing agency will deliver
specimen bottles to FDHs staying in the agencies’ shelter, and will collect
them back after one or two days for testing.
“Cases with positive results will be relayed to the Centre
for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health for follow-up,” said
the statement.
Starting tomorrow, the government will also distribute masks
to agencies, which will be tasked with distributing them to FDHs who are
staying in their boarding houses.
At the same time, Law said police will step up patrols in
places frequented by FDHs to remind them about the gathering ban, which allows
no more than two people to get together in public, and for them to wear masks
in all public places.
He said 12 FDHs have so far been fined $2,000 each for
violating the gathering restriction.
