The SUN HK : FDH numbers continue to drop

By Daisy CL Mandap

More migrant workers have left than arrived in Hong Kong since the start of the pandemic

The number of foreign domestic helpers in Hong Kong has continued to drop for the past three months, despite a slight rebound between April and June this year, after a three-month flight ban on most sending countries was lifted.

Latest figures supplied by the Immigration Department showed that the total number of FDHs as of the end of August this year was 333,516 – a drop of 1,068 compared with the previous month, when the total number was at 334,584.

Year-on-year, or from August last year to August this year, the drop has been a whopping 21,260.

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The decline eased slightly in the past eight months of 2022, but continued nevertheless, with 3,765 FDH jobs being lost during this period.

This was the result, not just of the notoriously strict anti-coronavirus measures adopted by Hong Kong, but also of a drop in demand, with tens of thousands of residents moving to other countries amid the pandemic.

It remains to be seen if the numbers will go up again next month, after Hong Kong lifted its mandatory hotel quarantine for inbound travelers, which could entice residents to come back and boost the market for FDHs.

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But one other reason appears to be the stricter enforcement by the Immigration Department of its 14-day policy towards FDHs, which mandates that a migrant worker whose contract is prematurely terminated, should return to his/her place of origin, unless in exceptional circumstances.

This practice, says Immigration, is to prevent FDHs from “job-hopping”, or moving to other employers who give them better benefits and less work.

It is a claim that many migrant support organizations have steadfastly rejected, saying workers would not quit their jobs and risk being sent home, unless pushed to their limit by their employers.

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According to data supplied by Immigration, the number of visa applications they have rejected in the first eight months of the year was 1,325. Between July and August alone, 162 applications were denied for this reason.

For the entire 2021, when calls from pro-government legislators for a stricter implementation of the 14-day rule were most strident, a total of 2,833 such applications were rejected.

Responding to a query, an Immigration spokesperson said in an email to The SUN that the decision to deny the applications was in line with the prevailing policy requiring an FDH to leave Hong Kong upon completion of employment contract or within two weeks from the date of contract termination, whichever is the earlier.

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“Save for the exceptional circumstances deemed reasonable by the ImmD (including the premature termination of contract owing to the transfer, migration, death or financial reasons of the original employer, or where there is evidence that the FDH has been abused or exploited), an application from a FDH for change of employer in Hong Kong within the two-year contract period will normally not be approved,” said the spokesperson.

“If the FDH wishes to take up employment with a new employer, he or she must return to his or her place of origin and apply for the appropriate visa directly to the Director of Immigration either online, by post or through the new employer.”

Unlike in the past months, when the biggest decline was recorded among Filipinos, more Indonesians lost their jobs in the past month.

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Between July and August this year, Indonesia lost 631 of its migrant workers, compared with 537 from the Philippines.

The decline in numbers happened across all ethnic groups, except among the Indians, who saw an additional 100 workers coming to work here during the past month.

The figures supplied by Immigration are below:

Foreign Domestic Helper(FDH) population from Aug 2021 to Aug 2022

As at			Philippines	Indonesia	India	Thailand	Others	Total
2021	8	31	198 625	147 971	4 113	1 930	2 137	354 776
2021	9	30	197 817	146 958	4 095	1 915	2 103	352 888
2021	10	31	197 412	145 957	4 028	1 894	2 117	351 408
2021	11	30	197 071	145 000	3 997	1 864	2 118	350 050
2021	12	31	191 783	140 057	3 836	1 775	2 000	339 451
2022	1	31	189 887	139 855	3 763	1 799	1 977	337 281
2022	2	28	187 002	137 788	3 665	1 787	1 942	332 184
2022	3	31	184 685	136 304	3 615	1 776	1 891	328 271
2022	4	30	186 666	137 268	3 888	1 771	1 936	331 529
2022	5	31	189 414	138 017	3 996	1 775	1 999	335 201
2022	6	30	189 652	138 713	3 974	1 764	2 003	336 106
2022	7	31	188 708	138 125	4 007	1 763	1 981	334 584
2022	8	31	188 171	137 494	4 117	1 757	1 977	333 516