Feminization Of Migration Case Study

Introduction
According to Ross-Sheriff, (2009:235), almost half of all migrants worldwide are women, and a country where this trend is most prevalent is the Philippines. It is a leading labour-exporting country, with over 10% of its labour force overseas (Asis, 2006; Bindra, 2012; Cortes, 2015) with 74% of new migrants being females (Cortes, 2015). Hence, the Philippines is an appropriate case study in discussing the feminization of migration. The female domestic worker will be examined as they represent a significant proportion of female migrants abroad and they are among the most vulnerable migrants, with some likening them to modern slaves (Mantouvalou, 2012; Sloan, 2013; Leghtas, 2015).
First, I will discuss the reasons initiating the move

This creates a gap for female migrants to fill, freeing the local females from their households. Traditionally, the maintenance of the household would be under the wife’s or mother’s purview (Yinger, 2006), but today it is instead increasingly outsourced to a foreigner. This illustrates female agency overseas plays a role in driving demand for domestic workers.
National Scale
The Philippines economy is a weak, service-dominated industry, with high rates of underemployment and unemployment making it difficult for men to be the sole breadwinner, forcing women to supplement his income (McKay, 2011). Rather than working domestically, women tend to migrate overseas as the remuneration they obtain often would be too tempting to pass off. Even for low-skilled domestic workers, their monthly remittances would often exceed their husband’s salary (Pingol, 2001: 33). Hence, at this also illustrates how the family’s economic situation have forced women into the becoming migrant domestic

At this juncture of their life course, it can be expected that they take on the roles of a mother, wife and daughter simultaneously, implying that when they leave, they leave behind their children, husbands and parents. This alters family structures and the responsibility of the children will usually be delegated to relatives (Cortes, 2015). Since some have their own families and responsibilities, they grudgingly take on this role as an extra responsibility and cultural expectation they have to fulfil. (Parreñas, 2005: 115).
There is a tendency for the domestic worker’s children to be adversely affected since fathers often do not readily assume caregiving responsibilities. It was found that there is a tendency for these children to underperform academically, become susceptible to illnesses and are more likely to become lonely and anxious (ESCAP, 2008). Paradoxically, this conflicts with the aims of the domestic worker, where they try to provide for a good education. In part, this is due to older children becoming surrogate parents for younger siblings when their father is at work (Cortes,