New quarantine rules for housemaids leave Hong Kong employers scrambling for cheap hotel rooms

Employers of foreign domestic workers are unhappy with the prices they have to pay for hotel rooms after the government announced a plan requiring helpers to spend 14 nights in quarantine when they arrive in Hong Kong.

With thousands of people expected to arrive in the city this month and next, employers and agents said low-priced rooms were rare among designated hotels, urging the government to include more with “affordable rates.”

Rooms at the 36 hotels designated as quarantine facilities start at around HK $ 400 per night, with average prices between HK $ 500 and HK $ 1,000. Only seven have rooms under HK $ 500 per night.

Of the 12,132 regular rooms and suites available for quarantine, only 1,553 cost less than HK $ 500 a night.

Under the scheme, which was announced last week and officially begins on December 22, employers will pay for their helpers’ 14-day quarantine, during which newcomers undergo two Covid-19 tests.

Those who test negative can move to their employers’ homes, but they must undergo a third test after five days, on the 19th of their arrival in Hong Kong, and wait for the result.

Some employers unwilling to pay current hotel rates have delayed onboarding their workers. Others are uncomfortable that the helpers are living with their families before the result of the third Covid-19 test is known.

Thomas Chan, chairman of the Hong Kong Union of Employment Agencies, said 5,000 to 6,000 foreign helpers were expected to be delayed in their arrivals over the next two months.

They included new helpers, as well as those returning after spending time at home, he said, adding that some would delay their arrival until at least mid-January as employers expected hotel rates to drop.

“According to the agencies and clients I spoke to, 90 percent prefer rates below HK $ 400 per night,” he said.

He added that the combination of the plan of two weeks of quarantine in a hotel followed by a week of home observation has created “unnecessary panic” among some employers.

‘There is no choice, we are desperate for help’

Fung, a finance industry employee in his 40s, said he didn’t mind paying more to bring in his new assistant as quickly as possible.

The father-of-two said his family had been desperate since his last assistant left in April. His new Filipino aide was supposed to arrive last month, but his agent told him his arrangements were delayed due to pandemic restrictions in the Philippines.

Now expected to arrive on December 22, Fung has booked him a room at HK $ 600 a night at a hotel in the central and western district.

“We cannot delay any longer due to stress on family resources,” he said.

Arrangements to work from home during the pandemic helped, allowing Fung and his wife, who also works in finance, to share the burden of caring for their seven- and four-year-old son and daughter.

“But if the situation improves and we have to go back to the office, who will take care of the children?” I ask.

Like Fung, May Chan, 36, an employee, has already reserved a room for her Filipino assistant, which expires on December 19. He said he paid around HK $ 8,400, or HK $ 600 per night, for a reservation at the Wan Chai Dorsett. Hotel.

“Of course it is expensive,” he said. “It is also more expensive because it is high season.”

She is among those concerned about the risk of bringing her helpers home before her third test.

“If the government thinks it is not safe, why do the helpers have to stay at our homes? [before clearing their final test]? ” she asked.

Helpers need protection too

Checks showed that at least four of the hotels with lower-priced rooms are fully booked this month, although the Best Western Hotel in Causeway Bay still has rooms from December 23 onwards for around HK $ 480 a night.

Hong Kong has cheaper hostels and guesthouses, but many have been left out of the scheme because they are in buildings that also have residential houses, according to Kelvin Chan Cho-kit, secretary of the Kowloon Guesthouse Alliance.

He thought it would be better if the government included more independent hotels with rooms in the HK $ 500 to HK $ 800 range.

The Asian Migrant Coordinating Agency, which supports foreign workers in Hong Kong, backed calls for more affordable hotel rooms for domestic workers.

But Eman Villanueva, his spokesman, also called for guidelines to protect the rights and well-being of migrant workers during this time.

“In stressful situations like this, some employers will take their frustration and stress on domestic workers,” he said.

Guidelines are also needed to avoid violations, as some employers could illegally deduct quarantine costs from workers’ wages, he added.

While acknowledging the additional financial burden, Villanueva said he hoped employers would not delay the arrival of his helpers, adding that workers desperately needed to start earning money to send home.

“Delaying their arrival may mean that their children have to stop going to school for a while or that they cannot provide for family members who are sick,” he said.

Apart from the Philippines, a large number of foreign domestic workers in Hong Kong are Indonesians.

Noting that employers were required to bear the costs of quarantine for their workers, the Indonesian consulate said it supported the Hong Kong government’s policy of sending helpers to be quarantined in designated hotels.