Domestic Workers in El Salvador
Salvadoran Child Laborers Vulnerable to Abuse
Unclear age limits, poverty and cost of education all contribute to girls seeking out employment as domestic workers in El Salvador.
While there are many forms of child labor in El Salvador, domestic workers remain hidden and the government is reluctant to group them with other forms of child labor. Since most work is done in private homes, they seem invisible and few children complain which makes it appear there are actually less of them than there are.
- El Salvador is the only Central American country to participate in ILO’s time bound program initiative that focuses on eliminating the worst forms of child labor in the next five to ten years. The program offers alternatives to child laborers but El Salvador’s government does not include domestic labor.
- Although many of the children work in order to pay for their schooling it often ironically ends up interfering with their education. Some child domestics in El Salvador work up to 16 hours a day. One 17 year old named Flora N.described to Human Rights Watch how she gets up at 2:00am to get to work at 4:30 am. Once there she cooks, washes, irons and takes care of children. After her workday, she heads to school and finishes there at about 7:30pm. She only receives $26.00 per month and gets one day of rest per month. Most domestic workers receive less than minimum wage.
- The law requires that all Salvadorans receive free basic education from grades 1 to 9 but most schools charge a matriculation or “voluntary” monthly fees. Uniforms, books, transportation and other supplies are not covered in this free education. High school fees are even higher so discourage attendance further for the poor. Legally lack of a school uniform should not impede a child’s education but many schools turn children away who do not have one.
Salvadoran laws on the right to a free education should be more strictly enforced and schools that are illegally charging fees and turning away children without uniforms should be charged.
Even if some children manage to find time and money to attend school, transportation can be dangerous for girls in a lot of neighborhoods and is one of the contributing factors for children quitting.
Stats on Child Domestic Workers in El Salvador
- 90% of domestic workers are girls under 18 and wages received can be anywhere from nothing to $114.00 a month.
- 60% of child domestics reported physical or psychological abuse including sexual harassment.
- The typical age for school dropouts is between the age of 15 and 17.
- There are estimated to be 21,500 youths between the ages of 14 and 19 in domestic service. 95% of them are girls or women.
- A quarter of the girls began working when they were between the ages of 9 and 11.
El Salvador’s laws on ages that allow domestic work are contradictory and because of this, some authorities are even unaware of what the age limits are. A clear minimum age for employment needs to be set so that children’s rights can be more adequately protected.
To get involved or for more information see Human Rights Watch, Abuses Against Domestic Workers Around the World.
Source: Human Rights Watch (Abuses Against Child Domestic Workers in El Salvador, Jan.2004)
