The Labor Code of the Philippines defines “domestic or household service” as “service in the employer’s home which is usually necessary or desirable for the maintenance and enjoyment thereof and includes ministering to the personal comfort and convenience of the members of the employer’s household, including services of family drivers.” Maids, cooks, yayas (nannies) drivers and all-around helpers are the primary categories of domestic helpers.
Most domestic helpers perform more than one role within a household, with duties that may include cleaning, laundry, ironing, grocery shopping, cooking, taking care of the children, and driving the members of the household.
In the Philippines, domestic workers receive an average daily pay of P89. Private households in the Zamboanga Peninsula pay the highest with P122.80 followed by the National Capital Region (NCR) with P111.84.
Estimates of the number of domestic workers in the Philippines range from roughly 600,000 to 2.5 million. Based on the 2008 Labor Force Survey, there are almost 1.6 million private households with employed persons. According to the Philippine Child Labor Survey, there are nearly 600,000 child laborers aged 5 to 14 years old in the service industry.
In 2008, nearly 54,000 Filipinos were deployed overseas as domestic workers (new hires). It was reported that one out of three OFWS during the period of April to September 2007 were laborers and unskilled workers which include domestic helpers, cleaners and manufacturing laborers.
Overseas domestic workers are among the top remitters in the past years. Female laborers and unskilled workers sent home P13 billion in 2007, double the numbers logged in 2001 with nearly P6.5 billion.
Common problems faced by local and overseas domestic workers include long working hours with no rest periods, non-payment of wages, verbal, physical and sexual abuse and a lack of adequate accommodation. Child and adult domestic workers lack access to education and opportunities to further and complete their studies. Domestic workers are also vulnerable to illegal recruitment, force labor including debt bondage and human trafficking.
