Domestic helpers in Hong Kong get P750 pay hike

This file photo taken on Feb. 20, 2022 shows officers (R) from the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department and the Leisure and Cultural Services Department observing foreign domestic helpers on their Sunday rest day in Hong Kong’s Central district, amid the city's worst-ever coronavirus outbreak. Few have suffered more during Hong Kong's pandemic restrictions than the hundreds of thousands of women from the Philippines and Indonesia who work as domestic helpers, and as the city reels under its most severe coronavirus wave to date, many are now at breaking point.
AFP / Bertha Wang

MANILA, Philippines — Filipino domestic helpers in Hong Kong are getting a salary increase equivalent to P750, the Department of Migrant Workers reported yesterday.

Migrant Workers Secretary Susan Ople said the increase, which took effect on Oct. 1, makes Hong Kong one of the most attractive destinations for Filipino household service workers.

“The increase comes after a two-year wage freeze in Hong Kong due to the COVID-19 pandemic. At this time of rising prices due to a stronger US dollar, this new minimum wage hike is a boon to our kasambahays in HK,” Ople said.

With the pay hike, Filipino domestic helpers will now receive a monthly pay of P35,475.

On Friday, the Hong Kong government announced that it was raising the minimum allowable wage and food allowance for foreign domestic workers.

Based on data from the Philippine Overseas Labor Office, there are 188,171 overseas Filipino workers, mostly domestic workers, in Hong Kong as of end-August 2022.

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