Foreign domestic workers Honk Kong
In a survey of 5,023 helpers last year, 15% of respondents said they had been physically abused during employment. And 2% reported being sexually assaulted or harassed, according to advocacy organization Mission For Migrant Workers (MFMW), which ran the survey.
Issues of poor working and living conditions are common complaints.
Activists say the live-in rule, which is only waived by the government in exceptional circumstances, forces women to reside with potentially abusive employers with few avenues for help.
After Marta left her first employer, she said she faced periods of homelessness and unemployment -- at one point sleeping on a mattress on the floor of her church -- before finding a new job.
Now, back on her feet, she's pushing to change the live-in rule -- by taking it to court.
A quick history
Foreign domestic workers began coming to Hong Kong in the 1970s, a decade of rapid economic development that saw the city transform from a poor manufacturing hub to a financial capital with modern urban infrastructure.
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