“Protection” through Mobility Restrictions: Experiences of Nepali Women Migrants in Domestic Sector Jobs
- Arjun KharelDetails
29 June 2025/१५ असार २०८२ (आइतबार, दिउँसो ३ बजे)
Research Seminar Series
“Protection” through Mobility Restrictions: Experiences of Nepali Women Migrants in Domestic Sector Jobs
Arjun Kharel, PhD, Assistant Professor of Sociology, Tribhuvan University and Research Fellow, Centre for the Study of Labour and Mobility
Abstract:
The presentation, based on data collected from returnee women migrant workers in Nepal between 2015 and 2024, examines the notion of “protection” through the policy of travel bans. The presentation discusses the prevalence of different forms of violence among women migrant workers while engaging in overseas employment and also identifies the factors associated with the risk of violence at workplace.
The data shows a significant rate of physical (18%) and sexual violence (6%) among women migrant workers during their employment in foreign countries. The issues such as low and non-payment of wages and extremely long hours of work were even more widespread: 23% were not paid in full and 36% did not get enough rest. Destination country and employment sector were good predictors of violence. Most of the cases (22 out of 25) of physical violence and all cases of sexual violence took place in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. Similarly, nearly all the victims of physical and sexual abuse were employed as housemaids. As the housemaids provided live-in services they were at a higher risk of abuses from employers and employers’ relatives. Nepali State’s sporadic travel restrictions against women migrants for their “protection” seems to have only increased their risk of violence, as many women travel using unauthorized channels. A higher rate of sexual violence was found among those migrating informally (10.6%) compared to those migrating formally (1.4%), although the rates were identical between two groups in the case of physical violence.
About the Speaker:
Arjun Kharel is an assistant professor of sociology at Tribhuvan University and a research fellow at the Centre for the Study of Labour and Mobility of Social Science Baha. His areas of research interests and expertise include migration, labour, development, social change, health and wellbeing and evaluation of development interventions. He has achieved a PhD in Sociology from Kansas State University.