Maids in Saudi Arabia

Let me begin by saying that my family is probably the ONLY family in Saudi Arabia who has no maid working at our home or a driver.

So what ?

In a country where almost everyone should have a maid or two at their houses then we are truly UNIQUE.

The BBC has an article called ( UN begins Gulf human rights tour in Saudi Arabia ) .In parts of it, it discussed the treatment of works in The gulf and that inspired this post of mine.

The Countries:-

Most maids in Saudi Arabia come from poor countries like South-Easter Asia specially Indonesia. Then Sri Lanka and the Philippines.

Indonesian are preferred because they are Muslims. Filipino is chosen because they are the cleanest !!! .

The Conditions:-

They have to be young. not married ones are better. Speak some Arabic, that would be great.

The Salary:-

You have to pay at least SR5000 for the visa and god knows who first. Her salary will range from SR600-800. The Dollar is 3.75 Riyal , so you figure.

The Work:

She has to work 24 hours a day , 7 days a week. You are here as maid but you can be a baby sitter, a nanny, a cook..... any thing the house wife feel like asking ( ordering sounds right) you.

Not Allowed:-

To have a day off. To leave the house at any condition unless you are asked to go to the store to buy something you are asked to bring.

P.S:-You can be lent to a family or a friend if they have an occasion and they need a help.

The Salary ( again) :-

Most people won't give you your money until the day you leave. Some are human enough to let you transfer that money to your family in your country.

Passport:-

The moment you land in your passport will be confiscated from you and be held so you run away because you are definitely are going to run away.

Clothes:-

You are required to wear a head cover ALL THE TIME in the house with and without the presence of male .

P.S:-Sometimes you won't be able to know who the man of the house is because you are not allowed to see him.

Malls and Stores:-

You can go to a store to buy something you are asked to bring. Mostly you are going to be accompanied by a child . If you are taken to the mall- Saudi Arabia national parks- you are there only to carry the bags your employee purchases has been stuffed in. To push the carts or carry the children. To follow the children while they are running around.

Extra Information:-

You will always looked at as a witch and trying to do something wicked . You will always try to let the man of the house marry you. You will always try to kill the children. You are a slut and try to sleep with any man around.You may be hit occasionally or tortured because you are stupid enough not to understand or did something horrible like burn the clothes or broke a plate.

How will you end up :-

Some dead on the hand of their employee, some by their hands -who couldn't endure such treatment- . LOTS do run away to end up in the hand of horrible men. Some work freelance!!! and go working in another house .Some manage to reach their embassies and the embassy send them home with almost nothing.

Maids in Saudi Arabia is an ongoing problem. Most people believe that they are a MUST. They need them to help. By the way, help means you lend a hand but nobody lend a hand to the maid. They do it all, all the work.

You want to figure out our way living here and why do we need a help ??

Because men CAN NOT help, it's unmanly to work at home-despite the teachings of their prophet, btw we think we are the most religious people in the world and we follow the foot steps of prophet Muhammad and the teachings of Islam- .

we have so many kids that we don't care about the way we raise or feed them , it's just for the idea of having kids-( I wonder how many parents will have their rights taken by courts in Saudi Arabia if we were country that runs by law).

Now let's see about the housewife who needs HELP, she either work or doesn't.

a Huge percent of women work as teachers or in the educational system. Their work beings between 6:30-8 and finishes around 12:30 -1 .That's it 6 hours of work ,

so what do they need help with ?

The rest are either doctors and you can understand them having help

and those who don't work who also must have a help because that neighbors of her is not better than her.

Yes, yes. Having a maid or two or three or a bunch of them is a show off sometimes.

If someone was wise enough to advise people to treat maids better and in good manners it's not because Islam order us so and it's not because you should treat others the way you wanted to be treated and it's not because they are human beings.It's just so they won't hurt your small children , the babies and the ones who are not at school yet.

Shame on you .

BTW: The Gulf countries are not better than us, just a slightly.

P.S: Not all Saudi treat their maids this way but MOST do.

One Last Thing:-

These works are human beings who endure all hardship to have a better life for their loved ones, they are not here to do us harm. And like all works, some are good and some are bad.

The BBC article : -

UN begins Gulf human rights tour in Saudi Arabia

The UN high commissioner for human rights has begun a visit to Saudi Arabia, a country much criticised by human rights organisations. High Commissioner Navi Pillay said countries in the region need to address the issues of abuse against foreign workers and improve women's rights.But the government has improved its co-operation with the UN rights body, the high commissioner said. Saudi Arabian law does not grant equal rights to women or foreign workers.The high commissioner is on a 10-day trip to the Gulf region, in which she will visit six countries. "Some countries are reconsidering the sponsorship system that rigidly binds migrants to their employers, enabling the latter to commit abuses, while preventing workers from changing jobs or leaving the country," Mrs Pillay said in a speech at a university near Jeddah.

There are an estimated 12 million foreign workers in the Gulf region.They are admitted into Gulf countries under a system known as Kafala, where the employee, labourer or servant must surrender their travel documents to a guarantor, which in effect renders them bonded labour human rights groups say.Domestic workers are often subject to abuse, and in 2008 the government began an awareness campaign to combat the abuse of domestic workers.

'Patchy'

Much more needs to be done by Gulf states to improve women's rights, the Ms Pillay said."Discriminatory barriers continue to hamper women's right to shape their own lives and choices and fully participate in public life. These barriers must be removed."It was also time to "lay to rest" the concept of "male guardianship" which bestows control over women to their male relatives.There is an "encouraging level of government activity" around women's rights in recent years, Mrs Pillay said."[But] positive developments for women's civil and political rights are still patchy and uneven in the region," she added.Women continue to face severe discrimination and are inadequately protected against domestic and other violence, according to Amnesty International.