PETALING JAYA: Many Malaysians can relate to the case of runaway maids, either from direct experience or from someone they know.

There are many reasons for the maids to run away, among them are abuse by their employers, being misled by agencies on job description, poor working conditions, better opportunities elsewhere or sometimes, the simple need for freedom.

Statistics now show about one in every 20 maids run away from their employers, The Star reported today.

It is no small number when one considers the total number of maids officially registered with agencies in the country.

“There are more than 250,000 registered domestic workers in Malaysia. That would translate to 1,250 domestic workers running away. It is a serious concern.

“And what about the unreported domestic workers? Even just one domestic helper running away is a big issue as it should never have happened in the first place,” Malaysian Maid Employers’ Association (Mama) president Engku Ahmad Fauzi Engku Muhsein was quoted as saying by the daily.

No matter what the reason for maids running away, Engku Ahmad Fauzi said, every effort must be made to reduce such incidents.

“The majority of them want to earn an honest income. Yes, there are some naughty ones with a different motive but some are also cheated by agencies.

“Employers should preferably pay more, about RM12,000 to RM14,000 a year, to the foreign maids. But there is no guarantee that the maid will not run away,” he told The Star.

An assistant manager with a recruitment agency concurred with the statistic saying that was roughly the same rate of runaway maids from their clients.

“Maids from bigger cities in Indonesia have a higher tendency to run away. They have experienced city life and have mingled with various people compared with those who lived in rural areas and who tend to be more quiet,” Agency Pekerjaan Cosmoten assistant manager Alice Leong was quoted as saying.

However, a staff from another agency suggested that with maids leaving their country to earn some money for their families back home, the likelihood of them running away was low, unless there was some problem with the employers themselves.

“Some maids are not paid on time, not allowed to have proper meals, not allowed to speak to their families, or just not given enough time to rest,” the woman from the agency in Puchong, Selangor told The Star.

“If we treat them as part of the family, they would not run away. There must be a reason why they are unhappy enough to run away,” she added.

Meanwhile, an NGO speaking up for the rights of migrant workers said it was good that more Malaysians are now aware of the abuses that maids go through.

“We have neighbours or relatives of these employers who report to the authorities when they see abuse happening.

“So, Malaysians are helping these domestic workers seek help,” Tenaganita’s Aegile Fernandez was quoted as saying by The Star.

Though employers are allowed to make police reports over cases of runaway maids, but according to the authorities, any investigation and follow up falls under the jurisdiction of the immigration department.