Im Chalet
20.11.2023
Swiss Press Award 24 Text – E – Jana Schmid
In the Chalet Labour Exploitation of Domestic Workers
Republik
2024
Jana Schmid
Winner 2024
A pair of Filipino siblings have suffered years of exploitation in the chalet of a rich Saudi Arabian family near Gstaad. As domestic workers, the two toiled virtually around the clock for pitiful wages. The investigation into this case suggests that their Swiss residency permits, which are tied to their jobs, should never have been issued. The sister was also coerced into sexual acts with the “boss”. In 2016, the brother couldn’t take it anymore and complained that his wages were being docked for “room and board” even though he still had to buy his own food – whereupon he was fired. In 2019, with the help of a lawyer, he was able to delay his expulsion and free his sister. To date, only the sister is considered a victim: she will be allowed to remain in Switzerland, even without the job, and criminal proceedings have been initiated against the former employer. The brother, HIV-positive and homosexual, is not deemed to be a victim. Whether he will actually face deportation is a question pending in Federal Court. Until a verdict is reached, the siblings are once again working as domestic workers: in a chalet belonging to a wealthy British family, in Gstaad.