FDWs in Singapore are usually live-in, the employer is required to provide appropriate living arrangements, food, medical care and insurance. Most FDWs will remit most of their salary to their home country, where SGD$600 will go a long way.

Singapore is an orderly country and there is some institutional support to safeguard the working conditions of FDWs. However there is a power imbalance between employee and employer, and the FDW may not know her rights, or it may not be in her short-term interest to assert them.

Additionally, many FDWs are employed through agencies who will usually prioritise fee-collection over FDW welfare.