JEDDAH: The Shoura Council recently discussed a report on domestic workers presented by a special committee, which suggested new regulations such as granting maids paid leave and preventing employers from deducting official fees from their wages.

Housewives and working mothers, however, believe most domestic workers enjoy full rights, and that they sometimes even misuse them. Some of them believe their own rights should instead be protected from runaway workers.

One of the articles in the report suggested maids should not work between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m., and that this could be changed if the maid and employer agree. “I agree domestic workers should not be overburdened, but if the family has a wedding or a mother is out and has left a child at home, then they should come to an agreement,” said Joury Al-Turki, a 49-year-old mother of four.

Hawazen Essam does not agree. She believes it is difficult to determine working hours. “Most maids have a lot of free time during the day,” she said, adding that working hours depend on how much housework there is.

What most housewives and working mothers agree is that there should be a law preventing maids from running away. “Who will protect our rights when it comes to runaway maids or drivers?” said Al-Turki.

She said most maids run away because they want higher wages. Essam only hires maids who are either runaways or overstayers. “If I got a maid through a visa she would probably run away and it would be difficult to get another visa,” she said.

The report suggested that domestic workers should receive a paid vacation every two years.

“We give our workers their full rights. I have two maids because I don’t want them to be overloaded with work,” said Al-Turki.

Housewives also called for the formation of a body that they could refer to when dealing with maid-related problems.

Others said they felt new regulations regarding domestic workers would have no effect.

“There are already some laws but no one is enforcing them,” said Arwa Abdullah, a working mother of four. She added that new laws would only increase the occurrence of maids running away. “If you give a maid a day off, she might use it in a negative way,” Abdullah said.

Al-Turki added that the authorities should visit the Batha area of Riyadh on Thursdays and Fridays to see how many maids run away from their employers.