KWDI Korean Women’s Development Institute

This study had three objectives as follows: (1) examine the disparities in working conditions and health status of domestic workers compared with women workers and women caregivers, (2) parse out the specific working conditions and the health issues among domestic workers and the differences in health and safety perceptions according to job mediators, and (4) find out the associations of working conditions with health and safety statuses.

Firstly, compared to women workers and even women caregivers, domestic workers were likely to work in poor working conditions. In particular, they were all at high risk of suffering repetitive motion injuries. For example, domestic workers were more likely to have a higher incidence of musculoskeletal disorders than their women workers and caregivers counterparts. Their prevalence of musculoskeletal disorder was similar to women farmers.

Secondly, there were no differences in both intensities and quantities of work among domestic workers in different mediations. Its intensities and quantities, however, can become heavily whether clients want domestic workers to do additionally. Furthermore, most domestic workers had to do work even if they were feeling ill, because they were primary breadwinners in a household. These characteristics of domestic working were significantly associated with poor health and work accident. Interestingly, information and education programmes on occupational health and safety were also differently provided by employment mediation and, as the result, domestic workers’experiences of poor health and work accident were affected by mediation they involved.

Lastly, most domestic workers felt that their job was a burden on their health and safety. Client Involvement with domestic working and lack/ absent of break time and health/safety information and education were highly related to their health status and work accident.

Based on these findings above, this study suggested several ways for policy support for domestic workers’health and safety rights.