Human trafficking in private – Behind closed doors: Forced labor as a nanny – News


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There are hardly any rules in your work. Domestic workers are largely at the mercy of their employers.

They take care of the household, support older people and look after small children: Over 22,000 domestic workers work in private households in Switzerland and the number is constantly increasing. Some of them work under the most precarious conditions.

Last year, the FIZ Women’s Trafficking and Women’s Migration Department cared for twelve new victims of human trafficking in private households. Domestic workers from third countries are particularly at risk. Because they do not come from the EU/EFTA area, they have practically no chance of receiving a residence permit. They are usually in Switzerland illegally and it would be difficult for them to find another job. This allows employers to put pressure on them.

There are exceptions for specialized domestic workers


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There is also an opportunity for domestic workers from third countries to legally travel to Switzerland as workers: if they are certified to have special professional knowledge. These apply if you have either worked in the family for at least two years or have at least five years of professional experience in an EU/EFTA country. It is also checked whether employers can even afford a domestic worker.

In the last five years, the State Secretariat for Migration SEM has issued the following permits to domestic workers from third countries:

  • 2018: 34 approvals. 21 are in ZH. 4 on the TI, the others on BE, BS, LU, VD, VS and ZG.
  • 2019: 34 approvals. 16 ZH, 4 VD, 3 ZG. The rest falls on AG, BE, BL, BS, GE, GR and NE.
  • 2020: 29 approvals. 15 ZH. Rest: AG, BE, BS, LU, NE, SG, TI, VD, VS and ZG.
  • 2021: 27 permits: 9 ZH, 5 TI. Rest: AG, BE, BS, GR, LU, NE, OW, SZ, VS, VD and ZG.
  • 2022: 39 permits: 25 ZH, 4 TI, 3 AG. Rest: BL, NE, SZ, TG and ZG.

Regarding the review, the SEM writes: “After receiving a permit to work, i.e. after the short-term residence permit has been converted, there is no systematic check or on-site check to ensure that the wage and working conditions are actually being adhered to, unless they are relevant evidence. The authorities are therefore dependent on reports from those affected or those around them. If there are any grievances, those affected can contact the police at any time, who in turn are required to report this to the migration authorities.”

For example Hana. For your protection, we call them something different here. After divorcing her violent husband, she urgently looked for work. Because without work she has no custody of the children. She found work in Switzerland without a residence permit. She worked as a nanny and housekeeper for a family and was available around the clock. This is how she got from one violent situation to the next.

She has experienced massive exploitation: violence, degradation, humiliation.

Doro Winkler from the FIZ knows Hanna’s story well because she was in the care of the FIZ: “She experienced massive exploitation: violence, degradation, humiliation.” The couple didn’t even give her decent food and took advantage of her precarious situation – until Hana fled. A passerby helped her and the police recognized her situation. Hana was in the custody of the FIZ and reported the couple; the case has not yet been decided.

Sectors with little regulation are particularly vulnerable to exploitative employment relationships.

More and more victims of human trafficking who are forced to work are finding their way to the FIZ. These are people who worked in construction, in a hotel or restaurant or in a nail salon. Prosecutor Runa Meier specializes in human trafficking and explains: “Lowly regulated industries are particularly vulnerable to exploitative employment relationships.” Other risk factors include low wages and work that primarily requires presence and involves the use of muscle power. Dirty, physical, laborious work.

However, it is particularly difficult for domestic workers to escape their precarious situation because they often live in complete isolation. There are probably many more people affected than previously known.

Those affected are on their own

There is hardly an industry that has fewer rules than housekeeping: the only national rule that applies to domestic workers is a Minimum wage. The labor law does not even apply to domestic workers who are employed directly by a private individual.

The hurdles to control are high, explains Markus Moser from the Office for Economic Affairs and Labor in the Canton of Zug. It is the authority to which the labor market inspectors also belong: “But if there are indications that something is wrong, then we will investigate it.” But that happens very rarely.

The problem is complex: work in private households is poorly regulated, so the authorities can hardly control it. Domestic workers are therefore completely on their own. The nanny Hana managed to escape, but many others are probably completely at the mercy of their employers.

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