The issues revolving around the Kingdom's housemaids are all fairly well known. There have been wide ranging discussions in the media about their wages, alleged abuse, recruitment, insurance, as well as their influence on the families they work for, especially the children. However, what is not well known is that there are many women, especially from Bihar, one of the poorest states in India, who come to the Kingdom on Umrah visas only to stay on to find work as illegal housemaids because their real reason for coming here is to work and earn some money. These housemaids are known as “mafia maids” by expatriates from the subcontinent who usually employ them. Almost all have the same hard luck story to tell: Someone is seriously sick back home, a good-for-nothing husband is always making demands, daughters need to be married, and debts must be paid. One of the main reasons for hiring such maids is the employer's inability, perhaps because of illness or disability, to do the housework. A husband and wife may also both work and have small children who must be taken care of. And it is just such employers that the “mafia maids” take advantage of. Many of these housemaids manage to ingratiate themselves and in less that a year to have their salaries increased by 50 percent from SR800 to SR1,200 a month primarily by taking advantage of their employers' needs. The maids know that they may be deported at any moment, so they have little time for kindness or the rules of fair play, but instead try to make as much money as possible by using every trick in the book. Some unlucky ones do get deported before they are able to earn enough to pay off their debts. But most of them usually manage to accomplish their mission here and return to India by giving themselves up to the authorities for deportation. These maids have little gratitude for the good treatment that they have received which, if not better, is usually on a par with those legal housemaids who have Iqamas. By their own account, the Bihari housemaids pay large amounts to agents back in India to arrange for an Umrah visa and the flight here, all of which comes to more than SR10,000. As they clearly cannot afford this, they sell what little property they may have or borrow from local lenders at exorbitant interest rates. Very few are helped by other family members, because family and relatives are most likely in the same financial position as the housemaids. After paying for their visa and air tickets, the “mafia maids” are ready to come to the Kingdom to begin making money in earnest. After landing in Jeddah, the Bihari maids go straight to a broker who arranges jobs for them. There is a complex of rooms where they rent sleeping space and get together every Thursday and Friday with other “mafia maids” to exchange information and stories about their employers. They also use this time to send money home to pay their debts and household expenses. More expense The salary paid to the Bihari housemaid is only part of the expense borne by the employer. Bihari maids have very particular likes and dislikes which must be catered to in order to keep them happy. They will, for example, not eat certain vegetables, have allergies to certain kinds of oils, and eschew beef, fish and white flour. The result of all of this is that special food has to be purchased for them which naturally means more expense. Relating her experience, Noor Jehan, a housewife with four children, told Saudi Gazette that she hired a Bihari housemaid, Parveen, at a salary of SR800 per month, which turned out to be “much, much more.” “Every Thursday we had to drop her at the Bihari housemaids' gathering place and pick her up the next day. That was not easy because it was difficult to find time for that from our own responsibilities, especially the obligations which have to be taken care of during the weekend, such as, shopping for necessities, visiting friends and relatives, especially those who are sick at home or in the hospital, having guests at home, or being invited to someone's home, taking the children out, and so forth,” she said. “Moreover, the housemaid had a habit of chewing ‘pan' which is available at a particular place only. She had to be provided with this green leaf and all that goes with it, such as, beetle nuts, etc. every week. All that cost extra money. Not to mention paying for her clinic visits and medicines,” Jehan explained. “Parveen kept talking about her daughter's forthcoming marriage, which would not take place if so much cash and certain items were not presented to the groom as dowry. The story always ended with tears,” she recalled. Jehan did much herself to meet Parveen's demands in cash and kind and also asked friends to help. “They all sympathized and pitched in. Not only was a handsome amount given to her in cash, but also such things as clothes, TV, and refrigerator,” she added. Having collected all her booty, Parveen left one day, presumably to return to India. However, as Jehan learnt later, the “mafia maid” had actually moved on to greener pastures having taken a job with another family on whom she could make further demands. “We were hurt not in the pocket, but in the heart. She played on my emotions and those of my friends, and took undue advantage of us,” Jehan said. New employer The new employer, Shameem Akhtar, said she had to hire a housemaid because she had had an accident and had been bedridden because of the injury, and even after recovering was not in a position to do housework as usual. Jehan managed to get in touch with Akhtar, and apprised her of Parveen's modus operandi, saying that others had also had a similar experience with her. “At first I thought it was an exaggeration, and that people were trying to get even with her,” said Akhtar. However, as the maid gradually began to unfold her ‘sob story' I realized that Jehan was right. But my husband said maybe she really was facing difficulties in getting her daughter married. So we did help her a little,” she added. The family did not have a car, so every Thursday when the housemaid went to her weekly gathering, they had to pay her SR30 to cover her taxi fare. Even though the same trip never cost the family more than SR10 one way, the “mafia maid” would never accept less than SR30 for a round trip. Moreover, Akhtar had to make a call on the housemaid's behalf to a Bihari taxi driver whom all the “mafia maids” used to transport them, which was a way to support their countrymen. The salary that Akhtar paid was the same as that paid by Jehan. Besides being provided with ‘pan', Parveen also expected to be given SR10 every now and then to recharge her mobile. After a month, Parveen left even though Akhtar needed her. Another maid Akhtar hired another Bihari maid, named Shahnaz, for SR 800 per month, the same amount she paid Parveen. “ She was okay, prayed five times a day, cooked, cleaned, and did other chores such as pressing clothes,” Akhtar said, and added, “We also took good care of her. Unlike some other employers, who make the maids sleep in the kitchen, and give them food only after they themselves have eaten, we gave her a separate room, and the freedom to serve herself, and eat whenever she wanted.” After some time, Shahnaz left unceremoniously. One weekend she went to her ‘housemaids club' as usual but did not return at the appointed time. When called, she gave the phone to her ‘mentor' who spoke very rudely. Akhtar realized that it was all a ruse as the housemaid might have found another job with a higher salary. And soon enough, she learnt that Shahnaz was working for a doctor and his wife at SR1,000 a month, which job she also left for a position which paid SR1,200. However, the maid then became jobless again and returned to Akhtar who flatly refused to take her back, saying that if she wanted to work she would have to meet certain conditions and not expect all those ‘extras'. “I think, if people were a bit strict, without being unfair, the undue demands of the “mafia maids” would be stopped. They should be made to realize that employers, whatever their needs, are prepared to do without them. That way the Bihari maids will stop, or at least think twice, before making unjustified demands and taking undue advantage,” said Akhtar.
