Prof. Hans LADEGAARD, Department of English and Communication

Language, discrimination and employability: Hong Kong employers’ othering of Filipino and Indonesian domestic migrant workers on social media. Marginality and migration: Narratives of resilience and belonging. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong Baptist University, 25-26 July 2024.

Abstract
Testimonials from migrant domestic workers (MDWs) show that they feel marginalized and excluded from Hong Kong society. However, little research has looked at the employers’ perspective, and we therefore know little about how they position the MDWs that work for them. This talk looks at two Facebook groups for employers
 of MDWs in Hong Kong, and it provides evidence that these FB sites cause considerable damage to MDWs’ reputation and integrity. Employers’ posts confirm what MDWs have testified in their stories: that they are marginalized and deprived of any sense of belonging 
in a city where they have spent the better part of their lives. Finally, the paper discusses what we as researchers can do to oppose the demeaning discourses about MDWs and make Hong Kong a more inclusive society.