4
2. The changing of position and role of women migrant workers in their household and
outside the household
Women migrant workers are working-class women who perform activities outside the house or outside Indonesia for a relatively long time. In a social context, the role of these women
has broad consequences for the family and society related to her gender role as a woman, a mother in the family, and community member. This section will present how to change the
position and role of the profession of TKW. Female Migrant Workers Discourse are identical with Mbabu Batur-low social class
TKW is not merely the term that describes one type of work profession but reflects a discourse with many meanings. As Foucault 1980 describes, discourse is not only meaning but
also includes power and control. In this context, the term TKW not only distinguishes women from the general Indonesian workforce named TKI, which is generally identified with males.
Moreover, TKW usually implies that women are working overseas as domestic helpers PRT in foreign countries for a relatively long time. At the same time, the term reflects feminine
stereotypes and domestic symbols, including that workers do not need education and skill, earn low wages, and are considered to be of low social class in communities both in places of origin
and at destination
3
. In legislation and decisions concerning Indonesian migrant workers,
the word “woman”
does not appear-only Indonesian workforce. The term that appears in this community then
places female migrant workers in disadvantaged positions verbally. Their existence is recognized only through the words in the community and not in the legislation. Although the meaning of
Indonesian labor legislation covers all workers, both men and women, the discourse that appears through the designation of women workers shows a difference treatment at the level of practice in
the community.
The term female migrant workers named BMP, is widely used by the combatants of the
women migrant workers‟ rights movement in an effort to build a new discourse giving a better appreciation to the female migrant workers. Particularly, Human Rights Watch uses the term
migrant domestic workers to specifically refer to the women migrant workers who work as Household Helpers named PRT. This reflects an effort to pay attention to the fact that this
profession is a relatively complex issue and includes many hidden things from the public.
3
It is analyzed from the results of in-depth interviews with a number of TKW and Ex-TKW. Especially, TKW who have a relatively long working hours, for example Suti a TKW who works as domestic worker in Malaysia for 25
years and has been come and back from Malaysia - Waru Doyong 12 times. She was dubbed the specialist expert of Malaysia. There are other maids who earned the nickname title specialist expert of Saudi Arabia.
5 In Indonesia, domestic worker is an inevitable job because its position is considered low
social construction socially and economically. But this changes or is reconstructed when the same work is done in distant locations foreign countries with a relatively high salary. By TKW,
this profession is accepted because there is no other choice. But they look for another meaning of this profession as a form of balancing from the side of a relatively high income and the purpose
of fulfilling the needs of families. They use the term Mbabu
4
term to show that there is no respect for their profession apart from earning money. Money is the only reward that makes them
stick with the job. This was revealed in an interview with Ratna and Zainab not real names:
I never say, do not ever jo ngasi become maids helpers mbabu. But now, my thoughts change because the needs of families. All noticed that there is no fun point
being mbabu, but good salary to meet the needs of families.
Meanwhile, other terms often used by people to refer to migrant workers are to fly mabur and go kesah. The term go kesah shows that they go a distance from home to work
and the term fly mabur shows them out go using the airplane. The second term is the pronoun term for TKW. As revealed in interview with Sutini:
Here the women, if they do not have any money, they kesah or go, if the money runs out, they returned mabur to fly again, and so on
The above shows that the migrant workers discourse attributes them as low social class citizens. Taking a job as a domestic worker is a form of powerlessness in the family system
which puts her as someone who must sacrifice for the family sustainability, especially for children.
Women Disposition to Sign in the shackles of TKW
Traditional roles within the family are female wife taking care of the household and male husband working outside the home as a breadwinner. However, worsening economic
conditions have encouraged a shift in traditional roles in society, including people in the Waru Doyong village. This role distribution cannot be maintained anymore because the men are not
able to obtain sufficient incomes. Arable lands in this village are very limited. Average land ownership is 0.25 ha. Job opportunities are limited for women in the village. Farming is a job that
has masculine stereotypes male dominated. In the chain of agricultural work, female farm workers are considered to have a side job only to help her husband that does not require skills, so
it is considered reasonable if it is low paid. Unemployed husbands became a common sight in the last 10 years in Waru Doyong
village. This is a problem in the family, especially for the wife because she was the one who has to provide food and drinks daily for family members. This issue has sparked an argument or even
domestic violence from husband to wife. Zainab 20 years became a migrant worker when her
4
In Javanese and identical with “batur” or servant who has lowest social status
6 child was only 2.5 years old. While her husbands was unemployed since his son was a baby , he
did not make a serious effort to find a job. The same case was experienced by a large number of migrant worker. They are forced to sacrifice and decide to change the familys economic status.
Being a TKW means a woman must leave her family, especially if her children were small, and leave the role of gender in her household. Frequently, women become migrant workers because
of the consumptive demands from her family members, such as to have a motorcycle, have a nice house, and other consumer goods for family status. Unconsciously, TKW become the object
commodity from her family to escape from poverty. TKW in the family is treated as a money search engine without appreciation from her husband and other family members.
For people in Waru Doyong, TKW will be considered successful if they can go many times to be migrant workers, can buy land, renovate her house , and buy motorcycles and
expensive electronic goods. Material success indicators indirectly encourage housewives to change the familys economic condition. They are motivated to become migrant workers as well.
This is seen from the case of Zenab, a housewife with children 2.5 years old. She is ready to take risks leaving the child and her husband for the sake of dreams to change her life, as revealed from
interviews with her the day before her departure to the training agencies named PJTKI in Jakarta:
I also want to be like other mothers. Once my aunt also had a couple of times being migrant workers in Arab. From her job she can get money to repair home and buy daily needs. Well, I
think TKW was the only chance for me. For women who have not high education, already married and have kids like me its hard to find work here. While my son was little, I want to
work as TKW first, collect money for school fees later. Moreover I also want to have my own house like everyone else. I know the risks, many migrant workers here whose husband
cheating and eventually divorce. I do not mind my husband married another woman. If I had money, I could find another husband.
Most of the TKW from Waru Doyong who have only primary school education and junior high school education are directed to become a housemaid with the destination country of Saudi
Arabia, because of the easy requirements- one need only a elementary - junior high graduation and placement is free of charge . Information from Mr. Sutejo not real name, a former worker in
Suadi Arabia who is a TKW broker or PJKTI freelance, said that the cost of departure to Suadi Arabia is free, because it was borne by Arab governments as revealed in this interview:
TKI to Arabia the cost is now free; it is borne by Arab government. This is a trick of PJKTI to attract prospective workers because of many workers demand from Arab but now it
is not interesting for them because its small salary, not increasing from time to time. They prefer going to Asian countries like Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Korea for better
working conditions.
Sutejo, an ex-migrant worker who worked as a driver for 20 years, said that in TKI market, women can only access informal sector types of job, with low wages, and are treated
poorly by the employer. Even maids from Indonesia often suffer sexual harassment from their
7 employers and employers son. Frequently, maids come home with a child as result of forbidden
sexual relations with employers. Unlike women, men get wider opportunities to access strategic types of jobs in the formal sector, whose wages are higher and hold better conditions than those
in the informal sector, although they must provide the cost of 40-50 million rupiah, if they want to be a TKI.
For TKW, there is no improvement in their employment status, and even decline in status. Before becoming TKW, they were a housewife who served domestic work such as caring
household job cooking, washing, cleaning, child care, etc.. in their own homes. When they become maids, they can only access informal sector job, become a housemaid as they did in their
own house. After departure, they will be back in charge of domestic chores in their household but with its income, they considered that it is worth with their job as a migrant worker.
From this picture, woman cannot gain access and even tend to be eliminated in the villages within and outside. The type of work has been already segmented by gender. The kind of
work done by women is considered their domain and is valued lower. According to Scott 1986, women experienced marginalization in the work environment because they are marginalized,
conditioned as unable to reach productive resources , and conditioned to receive lower treatment and appreciation than men. The root of this difference is the value or gender ideological used in
regulating and controlling the work segmentation and legitimizes a low appreciation of women Hartman, 1976.
TKW are blamed” for the Failure Education Family
The absence of TKW affects the gender-based family dynamics. As wives, community members, and maids, women as well as men are influenced and constrained by the gender roles
constructed by society. Gender as a social category encompasses the characteristics, functions and responsibilities expected by society. Gender as an ideology that is all the rules, values,
beliefs, stereotypes imposed, regulate and control the relationship between men and women in society. The role and value ideology given to the female gender is as a mother who has
domestic responsibilities cooking, washing, protecting and educate her child, is a partner of her husband, second breadwinner, has feminine traits patient , sensitive, passive. Meanwhile, men
have roles as husband, the head of family, the main breadwinner and having masculine characteristics tough, rational, assertive, leader, etc.. Gender roles are accepted, learned, and
performed by women and men since childhood and occur throughout their lifetime Schelegel, 1997. The question arises:
“Why should women take the role as breadwinner and work far away from their families and what are the results of their absence in the family
?” In a patriarchal culture male-dominated, women are the second sex who often become
the object of various aspects of community life, including in the family. S ome cases
8 encountered, including those described above, indicate that TKW are not only commodities for
the country but also the family. In the family, women have been treated as a money search engine without appreciation from her husband. Changes in household roles gender due to migration are
not shifted towards equality but toward exploitation. Husbands who have been left did not fully perform their functions in maintaining the child and family. Every thing related with their
children take care are given to their mother or mother in-laws. There are many cases of infidelity, such as having children with other women, and divorce. These issues become part of
the TKW problem. In many cases, money from the wife TKI is spent by her husband to meet his desire for fun including sexual needs because they are left by their wife Hunga and Levi, 2008;
Hunga, 2009. The absence of TKW from her house results in broad consequences in the family and
outside the family. All the activities and roles given to her community gender roles must be replaced charged to others, especially husbands. TKW take the role as main breadwinner, but
husbands did not replace the role as domestic chores and supervise children and social activities in the community. Domestic work is done by women family members, such as, mother-in-law,
female parents, siblings brother sister, and the older daughters. The husbands did not want to do domestic work because they felt it was not mens work. At the same time, the husband did not
earn a living and remain unemployed. The husbands of TKW use remittances to private needs, such as drinking, sexual needs in prostitution or adultery. TKW husbands who give support to
their wives can be seen still trying to fulfill their gender role as breadwinner while wives manage the money sent to build houses, childrens education expenses, and savings.
Many children of TKW drop out of school. Even if they study, they may make it only to the junior or senior high school level. Many boys who were left by their mothers became migrant
workers themselves. After dropping out of school, because they did not have positive activities, instead they would hang out on the roadside, disrupting the passing girls, and racing
with motorcycles purchased from their TKW mothers . Many of the girls who were left by their mothers became pregnant before marriage at a young age and eventually dropped out of school.
TKW , in their work as domestic servants, are also vulnerable to sexual harassment by
their employer, employers son or male migrant workers. TKW who return to Indonesia pregnant by their employers can be scorned by their communities, as evidenced by the case of a TKW who
returned pregnant to Waru Doyong from Suadi Arabia. The views and treatment of rural migrant workers and their families against children
described above that caused their children can not receive their rights as children childrens rights which must be provided by parents. Children left behind by TKW are often nurtured by
grandmothers and grandfathers or aunts. As a result, migrant workers do not have time with their
9 children when they are toddlers, have no time to build close relationships with children, and even
face the possibility of becoming unknown to or forgotten by her children. Unfortunately, all the family failures that occur after a TKW leaves, including kids who
drop out of school, cheating husbands, free sex and pregnancy, are all blamed on migrant workers for leaving the family to go work somewhere far away. All the hard work and income
contributed by migrant workers remittances to families remains unappreciated by the family and society.
3. The impact of changes on the quality of life of women migrant workers and their
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