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R.I.P - Fired Filipina cancer patient exposes plight of HK’s foreign maids

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  1. #31

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    Quote Originally Posted by Elegiaque:
    If you have cervical cancer, when is your medical leave likely to end?

    From a legal and practical point of view, I don't understand what is supposed to happen in these cases of serious illness with domestic helpers.
    - Are helpers supposed to live with you, even until death, unable to work, indefinitely? This problem harks back to the issues with live-in helpers. It's one thing with a regular job if you're sick and can stay at home indefinitely, but when you have to live with your employer, that's going to cause a strain.
    - In the real world, when an employee is sick for a lengthy period of time, the employer must shoulder the costs of hiring temporary help or dividing the work to other employees (I guess?). Again, this is awkward with a domestic helper, as usually he/she is the only employee. Are most people who hire a domestic helper living beyond their means and taking a risk, given many would say they cannot manage their own livelihood without a helper, but at the same time couldn't afford to take on a second helper when needed to cover for their ill helper? Again, space would be an issue, too, even if finances weren't.
    She can be terminated after her paid sick leave finishes but that termination has to be for failure to complete work duties. You cannot fire someone for having cancer. The letter posted on the CNN article before it was removed said "reason for termination: cervical cancer" which is just ridiculous.

    They should have given her a chance and also sat down and had a proper chat. Maybe she'd have said she wants to resign and go home, who knows?

    I have a few relatives who got cancer young (30s) and between treatments they went back to work. There were periods they were signed off but it wasn't like they were bedridden for 6 months straight.
    z754103 likes this.

  2. #32

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    Quote Originally Posted by gataloca:
    So once your 80-something sick days have been used up, the employer is legally allowed to fire you? Meaning if you're a helper and you have a serious illness, you can expect you should be taken care of (home provided for and medical expenses covered) for around 2.5 months, after which you can expect to have to return to your home country or return to work?

    Quote Originally Posted by hullexile:
    I don't think am employer should face indefinite sick leave from their helper, just a bit of humanity. In this case the sick helper was living with her sister so space was not an issue.
    Well it seems from that letter published on CNN the space wasn't the issue, but it was indeed an issue that she was with the sister and according to the employer, not staying in touch when the sick leave should have ended (according to the employer).

    Seems like the employer was simply flat out dumb for explicitly saying it was due to cancer. They will certainly get a lot of grief for this. But it sounds like the employee mis-communicated the sick leave time to them? Or didn't keep them up to date with her latest sick leave notes?

  3. #33

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    Quote Originally Posted by Elegiaque:
    So once your 80-something sick days have been used up, the employer is legally allowed to fire you? Meaning if you're a helper and you have a serious illness, you can expect you should be taken care of (home provided for and medical expenses covered) for around 2.5 months, after which you can expect to have to return to your home country or return to work?
    It's not just for helpers, but for anyone. I'm sure many people on GEP visas would be in the same situation if they became ill to the point of being unable to work.

    2.5 months is a fair bit of time for cancer treatment, she could have surgery and first few rounds of chemo or radiation within that period.

  4. #34
    Quote Originally Posted by Elegiaque:
    So once your 80-something sick days have been used up, the employer is legally allowed to fire you? Meaning if you're a helper and you have a serious illness, you can expect you should be taken care of (home provided for and medical expenses covered) for around 2.5 months, after which you can expect to have to return to your home country or return to work?
    Don't know about helper, but if you are working for a Company, and have used all your sick leave, you can take non paid leave. But if you are that sick, most probably the HR would talk to you and ask you to resign. Since you are holding a place in the Company but unable to come to work. That put the Company in a hard situation.. .hire replacement or not? for how long?

    We had a similar situation with a coworker who went back home to give birth and took non paid leave to extend her maternity leave, but still wasn't ready to come back to work after almost a year.

  5. #35

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    Quote Originally Posted by merchantms:
    2.5 months is a fair bit of time for cancer treatment, she could have surgery and first few rounds of chemo or radiation within that period.
    It's not. Haven't you had someone in your family go through cancer?

    Of course in her situation, it's what's deserved and should be honored.

    From the employers point of view, though, they may just want to get on with life and have as little hassle as possible. Would it not be possible -- albeit I don't think legal? -- to just say "here's your 2.5 months of pay and xx-amount for medical treatment, please go stay with your sister, bye bye"?

    Or would they need to pay the 2.5 months of sick leave PLUS one month's pay for the notice period?
    @hullexile I am scratching my head over why a grown woman would go by the name of Baby Jane. Is this common practice in the Philippines?

  6. #36

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    Quote Originally Posted by Elegiaque:
    It's not. Haven't you had someone in your family go through cancer?
    Yes but I admit this was private healthcare in the US. They were getting treated within a week or two of diagnosis.

  7. #37

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    Quote Originally Posted by Elegiaque:
    From the employers point of view, though, they may just want to get on with life and have as little hassle as possible. Would it not be possible -- albeit I don't think legal? -- to just say "here's your 2.5 months of pay and xx-amount for medical treatment, please go stay with your sister, bye bye"?
    As employer you are legally responsible for the cost of her medical treatment and as long as she is employed with you she can't stay with her sister since she has to live at your home. If you are on a GEP visa you can stay in HK and have treatment until your visa expires, even if your company ends up forcing you to resign. That's not possible for FDH, they have to leave within 14 days even if the termination was illegal.
    Elegiaque and MABinPengChau like this.

  8. #38

    We had a very similar situation.

    FDH got sick, didn't tell us her diagnosis, wanted to go home to the Philippines as she didn't trust the treatment here, got her to sign a note that she's leaving on her own will and paid her flight home, then we heard nothing for 2+ months. Her family contacted us one evening saying that she's very sick and needs money for treatment. The following day she died.


  9. #39

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    Quote Originally Posted by merchantms:
    Yes but I admit this was private healthcare in the US. They were getting treated within a week or two of diagnosis.
    Even still. Cancer drags on. Sometimes you get hopeful reports that it's going away, sometimes you get negative reports that it's coming back with a vengeance. I think most people I know who have had to deal with cancer has gone through a period of 1-2 years, and even then their life may not be fully healthy again. So yes, 2.5 months of treatment is worth something and better than nothing... Anyway, I think regardless of what situation you're in, it sucks like hell to have cancer -- for the obvious reasons, but more so, too, for having to figure out how to manage your income, support your family, and deal with employers through a long period of illness and treatment and possible recovery (or death). Sucks for the employers, too, and they were idiots for being so forthright about that.

    I do think the news reports are playing up the story, though. How often do we even see here someone saying "I haven't heard from my helper, she's not communicating well enough, should I terminate her?" -- regardless of her reason for her inability to work, many employers would send a helper packing for the "behavior" listed in that employers letter. I wonder how often helpers are indeed sick, thus "hiding" in one form or another, but not speaking up and not getting their legally due benefits, and ultimately getting fired.
    chuckster007 likes this.

  10. #40

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    @Elegiaque I was more talking about the initial stages of treatment. If any operation and first stage of chemo or radiation need to be done, 2-3 months would cover that critical period. Ongoing treatment of course can take months or year but she's better off getting medical care here at first even if she has to transfer back home eventually.

    On another note - seems the helper medical checks in Philippines don't include pap smears? To have stage 3 cervical cancer a year after leaving home, means it was never picked up in previous check ups. I may arrange one for my helper if this is the case.

    JAherbert and Elegiaque like this.

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