Seattle University Collaborative Projects - International Academy of ...

generates important questions about the even greater vulnerability of this invisible community.Their daily interaction with the state, the host society, and their employers can be marked bydiscrimination on the intersecting basis of their ethnicity, nationality, class and gender. How dodevelopments concerning global migrant flows influence the health and well-being of thesedomestic workers? To answer the above mentioned question, a triangulation of methods wasemployed in conducting the study in four sites: La Union and National Capital Region (NCR) inLuzon, Davao City in Mindanao and Cebu City in the Visayas.). A total of 500 respondents wereinterviewed and 6 provided their life stories. FGDs were also conducted in the validation of thefindings. One of the sources of stress of migrant workers is the difficulty in balancingthedemands of work abroad and family life back home. Significantly, the number of physical andpsycho-emotional symptoms reported by the participants decreased while in the Philippinescompared to when they were abroad. Some respondents also narrated experiences of abuse invarious forms. The challenge of adjusting to the norms and mores of a different culture, coupledwith the identity of being a minority further exacerbates their problems. Recommendations aredrawn along three areas-policy, research and program development and intervention.Toward Safe Migration: Mental Health and Stress of Female Migrant DomesticWorkersA.J. van der Ham, VU University Amsterdam (a.j.vander.ham@vu.nl)In recent years, various international as well as regional development and human rightsorganizations have voiced their concern about the increase in documented cases of work-relatedmental health problems. Human rights of migrant workers have often been compromised due tothe inability of state parties and service providers to provide acceptable, affordable andappropriate measures to protect them from abuse and harm. Female migrant domestic workersform a particularly vulnerable population. In this study we aim to enrich our knowledge of thepsycho-social and mental health dimensions of overseas domestic work from a human rightsperspective. The study population included female migrant domestic workers from thePhilippines. Study methods combined quantitative (500 questionnaires) and qualitative researchtechniques (1 workshop, 2 focus groups, and 5 case studies). Results provide insight in thestressors of women migrant domestic workers, the manifestations of stress, ways of dealing withstressors and the impact of stressors on women’s personal, interpersonal, family and economiclife. We addressed these issues in different phases of migration: pre-departure, during migrationand upon return. Findings from this study indicate a need for measures to strengthen currentpolicy and program initiatives to address employment and related sources of stress of migrantworkers, both in sending and receiving countries. Simultaneously there is a need for an enablingenvironment for women to develop life skills and culturally sensitive self-empowermentstrategies to promote personal health and well-being.273