Operation Santa Claus helps Hong Kong domestic workers rise as community leaders
Uplifters and EmpowerU join forces to train domestic workers as community leaders who can support their peers
Two non-governmental organisations serving Hong Kong’s community of about 400,000 domestic helpers, mostly women from the Philippines and Indonesia, have joined forces to train some of them as community leaders to support their peers.
Many NGOs can lack the resources and capacity to help individual workers, who work long hours far from home and face a variety of challenges. But Uplifters and EmpowerU have collaborated to create a programme that supports domestic workers in helping each other better cope with their financial and emotional stresses.
“They have a lot of pressure such as financial stress, family separation and symptoms of anxiety, and debt caused by high upfront recruitment fees and urgent family needs. Many turn to each other for support,” said Zoe Mau Hiu-tung, head of development and communications at Uplifters.
“They are facing challenges themselves while also absorbing sad stories of their peers. It’s important to help them become better leaders to support others.”
The NGOs’ initiative, called “Dare to Lead”, is one of 13 selected to receive funding from the annual Operation Santa Claus (OSC) fundraising campaign this year.
The funding will support the development and roll-out of an online course next year for 180 female migrant domestic workers, aged 20 to 50.