Mental Health Challenges of Migrant Domestic Workers in the Covid-19 Pandemic: The Case of Brunei Darussalam

Abstract

This paper offers insight into the mental health challenges encountered by migrant domestic workers (MDWs) during the first phase of the COVID-19 pandemic in Brunei Darussalam. Data collected in one-to-one interviews evaluate their oral stories using various mental health linguistic codes. A preliminary study addresses initial signs of anxiety and other mental health issues that a segment of the migrant worker community has confronted due to employment conditions, structural restrictions, and a lack of access to mental health resources. A pilot study focuses on three narratives that pave the way for further studies into the causes, structures, and solutions around the lived experiences of crisis and control in a global pandemic.

Precarity among transient migrants: Mainland Chinese workers in Brunei Darussalam during the COVID-19 pandemic

“…For instance, in 2019, there were 269 Mainland Chinese workers in Brunei compared to 23,121 Indonesian workers, and between 10,000 and 13,000 workers from Bangladesh, the Philippines and India, respectively (Brunei Department of Labor, n.d.). However, despite the significant number of migrant workers in Brunei, literature on their experiences remains scarce (Ho, 2022; Kumpoh, 2022). Specifically, the study seeks to fill this gap and demonstrate the vulnerable conditions of Chinese workers in Brunei during the COVID-19 pandemic by using the case of Mainland Chinese migrant workers.…”