A Study on Social and Economic Impacts of the Migrated of Domestic Workers on Their Families and Children Left Behind

Abstract

Unemployment and low wages prevailing in the global market pushes female workers to look for better employment in foreign country. Therefore, labor export is the main source of foreign exchange earnings for Sri Lanka. These migrant women come from low income families and have lower levels of education. The main objective of this study is to investigate the economic and social impacts of married females migrating overseas as domestic workers on their families and children left behind.Mirigama Divisional Secretariat Division was selected as study area. The 30 families of domestic workers were selected under the judgment sampling methodology. Field Survey, Interviews, case study and Questionnaires were used for collect primary data. Secondary data were gathered Institutional publications, reports, Internet articles. Data were analyzed by using descriptive data analytical methods. Migration can have both positive and negative impacts of socially and economically. The migration can have positive impacts on the increasing migrants‘ household income, savings and investment, build houses or repair the condition of their houses, buy lands, reduction debt burden and develop their daily consumption, increasing involvement of women in decision making, financial matters and household activities, improvement in the skills of the migrant, personal development, improvement in the social status of the family, improvement in children‘s education and the changes in gender roles. It can have negative impacts on if the marriages of the migrant are disrupted due to migration or they lose their recognition in the family or their children, the migrant had accumulated debts, the family members at home had misused migrant‘s remittances, migrants‘ husband has stopped working jobs and husbands getting addicted to liquor. The study revealed that the migrated housewives mentioned above have not achieved their object completely.