Lebanon: migrant domestic workers demand labour rights

Dozens of migrant domestic workers in Lebanon have joined a protest in Beirut to demand their rights and improve their working conditions, amidst a crisis causing poor living conditions across the country, Anadolu has reported. The protest was organised by the Women Migrant Workers’ Centre and the Anti-Racism Movement.

“There is a serious decline in the situation of domestic workers instead of improvement, and this trend has escalated to the worst, especially since the start of the economic crisis in Lebanon,” said Salma Saron, a spokeswoman for the Anti-Racism Movement. “The demonstration on the International Day of Domestic Workers is to remind the Lebanese state about them.”

Kariya Tottori from Guinea has been a domestic worker in Lebanon for seven years. She told Anadolu that Lebanon does not classify domestic work as a “valuable profession”, nor is it appreciated or respected.

Ethiopia, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, the Philippines and Kenya are the leading countries of origin for migrant workers in Lebanon. They are among those most affected by the deteriorating economic situation in the country.

Since 2019, Lebanon has been suffering an unprecedented economic crisis that has led to a record collapse in the local currency value against the US dollar, as well as a shortage of consumer goods, most notably fuel and medicine, in addition to a sharp decline in purchasing power.

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