For Migrant Workers, Health Care Often More Miss Than Hit

Activists on Tuesday called for the government to pay more attention to the health needs of the country’s migrant workers, saying most were not properly taken care of by their employers.

Aryo Yudhoko, the secretary general of the Indonesian Migrants Union (Unimig), said access to health services was a basic right all migrant workers should enjoy.

“They have the right to be healthy enough to be able to do many things, including work,” he said. “If we cut their health access, it means that we are violating their human rights. The right to access health services cannot be hampered by anyone.”

According to Anis Hidayah, the director of Migrant Care, access to health care is largely dependent on the kindness of the workers’ employers.

Anis said, however, that the situation was becoming worse as health care was increasingly being cut to lower costs. She added that the governments rarely monitored workers to ensure their health needs were being met.

Aryo said it was difficult to monitor the situation of domestic workers because governments could not intrude into private houses. “One of the things we can do is to empower the workers before sending them abroad and making sure that they are properly documented,” he said, adding that it was difficult to protect those who worked overseas without proper documents.

Anis said the government’s proposed new agreement with Malaysia on migrant workers neglected health care.

“The government does not include health access in the new agreement, even though it is a very important point because they should be healthy so that they can work,” she said.

The proposed agreement only says that workers are entitled to a minimum monthly wage of 600 Malaysian ringgit ($175), regular days off and the right to hold on to their passports.

In response, Teguh Hendro Cahyono, labor attache at the Indonesian Embassy in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur, said access to health care was already guaranteed for migrant workers.

He said that longstanding workplace regulations in Malaysia required employers to provide insurance and access to health care for their employees.

“They will be punished based on Malaysian law if they do not obey the rules,” he added.

Cahyono, however, did acknowledge that some migrant workers were treated badly. He added that his office reported all cases of abuse to the Malaysian government to address.