THE PLIGHT OF TANZANIAN HOUSEMAIDS IN OMAN

A housemaid at work. Hundreds of Tanzanian housemaids in Oman have complained about abuses by their employers. PHOTO | FILE 

By Saumu Mwalimu

Dar es Salaam. Tanzania’s embassy in Oman has taken steps to address long-standing complaints from domestic workers hailing from Tanzania.

Speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to media, an official with the embassy told The Citizen on Saturday, that the embassy had decided to take the measure following numerous complaints from Tanzanian domestic workers there.

“We have prepared a standard contract in order to safeguard rights for workers coming to work in Oman, this was due to the fact that majority of those who were brought here were treated contrary to promises they were given before coming here,” he said.

The official also noted that one of the main things in the standard contract was the salary which has been increased from 27 Oman Rial (Sh118,341) to 70 Oman Rial (Sh306,810).

The embassy official said they had to intervene following persistent complaints from the workers over ill treatment from their employers.

But a recent report by an Omani newspaper shows that it is not only domestic workers who have been complaining, but other employees as well.

Quoting multiple sources, Times of Omanreported that manpower agencies in the country had stopped recruiting housemaids from Tanzania following long-standing complaints both from domestic workers and their employers that range from violence to child abuse.

According to official statistics, Tanzania provides the largest number of housemaids in Oman from Africa with over 1,600 of them employed across the country. However, recruiting agencies say that Tanzanian domestic workers last the least amount of time, among housemaids who hail from other countries.

“I have been recruiting Tanzanian housemaids for my clients for more than five years and they only stay in the country for an average  of 13 months of the two-year contract that they sign. We have complaints from both sides. Employers return housemaids claiming they are rude or lazy while housemaids say that they are treated badly at work. It is not worth the trouble and this is the reason we don’t bring Tanzanian housemaids anymore,” said Salah Al Hajri, director of AlShizawi Recruitment Company to Times of Oman.

Four other recruiting agencies confirmed that they had stopped bringing housemaids from Tanzania. They blame both sides for not making an effort to reconcile the differences.

To address the situation, the embassy official told this paper that the standard contract is sent to Tanzania for the worker to read, understand and sign it before it is sent to Tanzania Employment Services Agency (TaESA) for approval.

“With this contract, we have managed to raise the salary scale from 27 Rial to 70 Rial, which is an equivalent of Sh306,810 together with the medical insurance and other benefits. But the problem is majority of who come here are not coming through registered recruitment agencies; we only see them when things get worse,” said the source.

He noted that many people who come through formal recruitment agencies have little or no complaints because their terms of employment are analysed in the contracts.

The historical link between East Africa and Oman has made Tanzanian housemaids popular since the African country allowed citizens to work as maids outside the country 15 years ago.

East African-born Omanis prefer Tanzanian housemaids to Asian domestic workers because of the common background and the Swahili language which is widely spoken in Oman.

However, the commonality between employers and housemaids often causes friction and even envy amongst them, according to the embassy official.

To prove that there were some domestic workers who have been on good terms with their employers for a long time, The Citizen on Saturday talked to Halima Mwinjuma (not her real name), who has been working as a housemaid in Oman for the past one year and four months now.

Because of her good relations with her employer, Ms Halima hopes that her employer would agree to renew their two-year contract upon its expiry.

She told this paper that her journey to Oman was through a family friend whose family lives in Oman who wanted a house maid from Tanzania.

In June last year Ms Halima made a trip to the country where complaints have emerged that majority of those who went there faced harsh working conditions.

Ms Halima said her employer had not been rude to her though she admitted to have talked to some Tanzanian young ladies and middle aged women who complain of being mistreated by being overworked, sexually abused and even beaten by their employers.

“You know our madams (women employers) want us to do things as they are pleased, but majority of us fail because sometimes it is too much.

“But if you manage to please them as I do, you will live peacefully. I am about to finish my two-year contract, but I am not sure, if they will renew it. If they don’t, I will be back home and start my business with the savings I have been making,” said 22 year-old Halima.

CREDIT: THE CITIZEN