Filipina still looking for an elusive dream in the UAE

Abu Dhabi: Since she came to the UAE in 2006, Rose has been picking up the pieces of her shattered hopes. Now, eight bosses later, she keeps hoping her day will arrive.

Rose arrived in the UAE with a visit visa after years of working in the Philippines and Saudi Arabia. She could have signed on with an agency in the Philippines to guarantee a job, but she had already been through a series of unfortunate events and preferred to take no risks. She wanted to meet her sponsor before signing.

She refers to most of her employers as bosses, not sponsors, because only one of them sponsored an employment visa for her.

The others sent her to Kish Island, Iran, every couple of months to return as a visitor, or the employment didn't last long enough to worry about it.

Hardships

Rose's never-ending job search has been laced with physical and emotional hardships, too. She was weary and in tears as she recounted her experiences.

She was sexually harassed more than once. She got an ulcer when she worked long hours and her sponsors did not provide enough food. Some sponsors provided no food at all, and two of her bosses never paid her a single dirham for her work.

Finally, in October 2007, she thought she landed a good job. Although her salary would be Dh200 less than the minimum, her new sponsor offered all benefits, and promised to pay her extra for looking after the two children.

But when it came time to sign the contract, she did not even get a chance to read it. "'Make it fast, we have to go'," she recalls her sponsor saying. She could only hope for the best.

Seven months later, she points to a scar on her face as she describes the children scratching her and pulling her hair. She worked more than her fair share of hours to satisfy her sponsor's demands.

She looked after the children until late into the night and woke up early to cook breakfast each day. She even used her experience as a nursing assistant to care for the family's medical needs, but never received the promised compensation.

Then, her sponsor gave her two weeks notice of an unexpected transfer and she was left jobless again. Rose values dignity more than money, which is why she is careful to choose her sponsor even if it means compromising her salary. "Dignity is important to me," she said.

On the job hunt again, Rose hopes that luck is on her side. When she regains control of her own affairs, she hopes to find a way to help other housemaids in similar situations.

"I really want to have an organisation to help the housemaids," she said. "I can help other housemaids and share my experience."

Marie Magleby is a journalist based in Abu Dhabi