Canberra, capital of Australia. Photo: Wikimedia Commons, Jason Tong
Canberra, capital of Australia. Photo: Wikimedia Commons, Jason Tong

Two Filipino domestic workers claiming to have been exploited by their employers have been featured in a documentary by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

The documentary titled Behind Closed Doors, which aired on February 12, featured two maids said to have been treated like slaves in Australia, GMA News reported.

A Filipino named Ruth said her monthly salary was supposed to be A$2,150 (US$1,670) per month, but her employer only paid her A$250 to A$350 a month. She also worked for 16 hours a day and was not given a day off. She said she was not allowed to leave the house and her passport and employment papers were confiscated as well.

“I was like a prisoner. I was like in a prison cell, like in a box or in a room. All you see is the four corners of it every day. I cannot even open a window,” Ruth said in the program.

Another domestic worker named Eden, who has not seen her family for seven years, said she was underpaid by A$50,000, not including overtime. She worked 18 hours every day for a salary of A$350 a month.

She said her family was living in poverty in Manila, which was why she chose to work abroad in order to support them.

There are more than 230,000 Filipinos in Australia.

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