What Age Child Domestic Workers Begin Work
Restavek girls are extremely vulnerable to emotional physical, and sexual abuse.
Research in Haiti has identified that the majority of domestic servants join their host families between the ages of 5 and 14. As highlighted in the bar chart above, Some Child Domestic Workers begin work at an even younger age. Since many children in Haiti live in homes without their parents, the research has also provided a baseline of the age that children who are not domestic servants join their host families (for example, children who are raised in the homes of their grandparents or other extended family members).
Restavek
This is the latest installment of this blog highlighting the conditions of Child Domestic Workers in Haiti.
In Haiti, many poor rural families hoping to provide a better life for their children will send them to live as domestic servants in the homes of urban / semi-urban families. The majority of these children are girls and are extremely vulnerable to emotional, physical, and sexual abuse. These children are known as Restavek.
Data Source
The raw data provided to Haiti Now by FAFO Research Foundation and the Institut Haitian del’ Enfance, were collected in 2013 - 2014.
Haiti Now has published this data online in an interactive manner. Click here to review this data in more detail, and to see other dimensions of the living conditions of Restavek in Haiti. Click here to see all our visualizations.
Building The Residential School
Haiti Now administers comprehensive programs that enable girls to overcome domestic servitude. It is now working on building a residential school dedicated to the long term empowerment of Restavek girls.
In this residential school, Haiti Now will provide an accelerated education, health care, emotional support, mentoring, arts, sports, and healthy socialization with peers and adults. Our goal is to provide the comprehensive support needed for Restavek girls to build a healthy and financially secure future, all under one roof.
Please support us at https://www.haiti-now.org/donate/