upon or promised and often in a language they do not understand, without legal counselling, and under duress. 12. The withholding of passports by the employer is widespread, reinforcing isolation and dependence and restricting the movement of the migrant worker out of the house as well as out of the country. 13. In the workplace, many are subjected to abusive working conditions, including: (a) Partial and in many cases, total, restriction on movement outside the house and on communication with individuals outside the house, including with family members left behind; (b) Excessive and often undefined working hours. Especially for migrant live-in domestic workers, there is often an express or implied expectation of total availability, where the worker can be called on to work at any time; (c) Insufficient rest and leisure time. Many migrant domestic workers have no agreed leave day at all; others only have one day off per month and frequently any agreed “day off ” is cancelled or changed arbitrarily by the employer; when the employer is on holiday, or the worker is ill, a practice of “no work – no pay” is applied. Others experience reprimands or threats of losing their jobs even where there are legitimate reasons for absence such as illness or personal/family emergencies; (d) Restrictions on their ability to travel even for essential family matters, such as serious illness or bereavement in the family; (e) Low salaries and late payment or non-payment of salaries. As a result of the absence or inapplicability in most countries of minimum wage laws for domestic workers, many migrant domestic workers are paid only a fraction of what other workers in comparable sectors receive, often without any traceable payments into bank accounts, or with salaries paid in kind; (f) Lack of social security protection, including sickness and family benefits and building pension rights; (g) Psychological, physical and sexual abuse and harassment from their employers as well as from recruitment agents or intermediaries; and (h) Inadequate, unsanitary and degrading living accommodations. 14. The risk of abuse is heightened for child domestic workers, who make up a significant proportion of domestic workers. Their young age, isolation and separation from their families and peers, and near-total dependence on their employers exacerbate their vulnerability to violations of their rights under the Convention, including the basic right of access to education. Families left behind 15. The prolonged absence of migrant domestic workers negatively affects the family unity, and the social and psychological wellbeing of members of their families and also often results in violations of the rights of their children who have remained in the country of origin. Upon return 16. Migrant domestic workers may encounter difficulties in reintegrating into the labour market and society in their countries of origin upon their return. They may also encounter difficulties related to the portability of pension and social security benefits. 17. Many migrants are unable to seek remedies for violations of their rights by employers because they are not entitled to stay in the country of employment once the employment relation has been terminated. As a result migrant domestic workers may for example return to the country of origin with less pay than they are due and with no possibility of seeking 49