According to a Human Rights Watch report, the failure of the Cambodian and Malaysian governments to regulate both workers and recruiters led to the mistreatment of a large number of people. Sources state that tens of thousdans of Cambodian women were not given protection against forced confinement in facilities, heavy debt burdens, and exploitative working conditions. Some recruiting facilities recruited women as young as 13 to work for them. They often took their passports once they were in the country, so they had no way to leave. One manager even persuaded pregnant women to get an abortion to get hired, and then the abortion fees were deducted from their salaries without their knowledge. The failure to pay off their debts resulted in forced trafficking and debt bondage.
The mistreatment of the lower class and dependent workers is an ever increasing social problem around the globe. The gap between the rich and poor is increasing every year, both between nations and within nations. The working class does a large portion of the workload in corporations and businesses, and the upper management takes all the credit and receives most of the pay and additional benefits. Companies have exported labor to less fortunate countries who can capitalize on cheap labor to maximize profits for the company. As a result of the cheap labor, the employees are exploited and mistreated in a number of ways. Forcing women to have abortions and forcing them to live in confinement is an abuse of power and is just adding to the increase in this problem. If we do not address the issue and make changes, it will only get worse and cause further divides in our social system.
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/11/7/nation/9853195&sec=nation
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