Most housemaids who run away from their employers are often the losers, whether their cases are brought to the police for mediation or to the Saudi labor court for adjudication. Foreign labor officials of countries deploying these household workers have found that employers have a litany of accusations, mostly fabricated, to discredit the runaway housemaids or obstruct the filing of a lawsuit. The case of Cristina, a middle-aged Filipina, who abandoned her job because she could no longer endure the load of work and the verbal abuse of her employer, is a classic example. After she sought the help of the police and the Philippine Embassy, her employers accused her of stealing SR12,000. Through the request and intercession of the Philippine embassy, the recruiting agency that brought Cristina to work in Saudi Arabia paid the SR12,000 just to settle the case. She is now trying to raise the money to buy her airline ticket to return to her family in Manila. Another example showcasing the woes of runaway maids is that of Yolly who is now being ordered by the labor court to pay SR10,000 to her employer as a refund for all the expenses incurred by him in hiring her. She ran away due to alleged abuse and maltreatment, conditions that aggravated her high blood pressure. Loida, another Filipina, also ran away from her employer claiming to have worked for ten months without salary and often without food. She is now under the care of her embassy. The employer, however, denies all accusations. “Every trick in the book is concocted by the employers of these poor runaway housemaids just to get even after the maids abandoned them because of abuse, maltreatment and even rape,” a labor attaché of an Asian country said. He said the false accusations range from stealing jewelry and money to unsatisfactory job performance. Sheikh Shammary Al-Daham, a representative of the National Society for Human Rights in the Eastern Province, said it is no longer uncommon for him to receive complaints of the abuse of foreign workers, particularly housemaids and drivers, by their employers. “Housemaids are often the target of employers' ire and anger when they run away, so they (employers) want to get even with these poor workers by filing charges against them in the court and with the police,” Sheikh Al-Daham said. Housing and feeding runaway maids has also become a problem for the Philippine embassy. A safe-house for runaway maids in the Eastern Province, for example, is often short of food, water, toiletries and other personal needs as the allotted funds dry up. Although expatriate organizations, like those from India and the Philippines, extend material support to runaway workers, it is the fabricated accusations leveled against the workers that have become more problematic. “Community groups can always come up with help to alleviate the suffering of those who have abandoned their jobs because of abuse and maltreatment. It is the wrongful charges brought by employers that make it difficult to find a solution to the problems faced by runaway workers,” said Rasheed, a Bangladeshi worker who often extends material help to distressed workers. Workers, particularly housemaids, are not encouraged to run away and abandon their jobs unless the situation is unbearable and life-threatening, according to foreign labor officials. “This is our advice to our workers, including housemaids, because it is always true that once they abandon their work and run away, they will be the ones who lose,” a senior Filipino labor attaché said. Human rights activists have often highlighted the inhuman treatment and abuses that are committed against foreign workers, particularly household workers. Navanethem Pillay, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights who recently visited the Kingdom, has also called for an end to all kinds of abuse against foreign workers.
