24. Social security laws. Domestic workers, especially those who are migrants, are often excluded from rights under national law related to social security. The lack of social security benefits and of gender-sensitive health care coverage further increases the vulnerability of migrant domestic workers and their dependence on their employers. Protection gap: practical 25. Even if certain protections for migrant domestic workers are provided under national laws, there is often a gap between protections enjoyed by such workers in law and in practice. Some of the practical obstacles faced relate to the “hidden” nature of domestic work and factors preventing or deterring migrant domestic workers from claiming their rights. 26. A range of factors constitutive of domestic work itself, and even more so, of domestic work performed by migrants, hides abuses from view, and makes detection of protection needs difficult. (a) Workplaces are unseen, behind closed doors and out of the public eye; (b) Domestic work is commonly part of the informal labour market, where work and workers are unregistered; (c) The physical and social isolation of workers blocks individual and collective action; (d) The large number of workplaces, their geographical spread and national privacy laws complicates effective inspections and monitoring by labour departments. 27. A number of factors make it difficult for migrant domestic workers to claim their rights and seek redress in case of violations, including the fact that: (a) Specific mechanisms available to receive and address complaints from domestic workers are often not available; (b) Migrant domestic workers often do not know to whom to address their labour problems or may be reluctant to contact the police or labour authorities out of fear of deportation. Language barriers and the costs of administrative and legal processes may be additional deterrents. (c) Migrant domestic workers who depend on their employers for their immigration status may not report abuse for fear of arrest, detention or deportation. In some countries, if the victim brings a formal complaint against the employer, he or she can neither seek alternative employment while the case is in court, nor leave the country for the duration of the case. These restrictions, and the long periods it may take for cases to be resolved, often lead to domestic workers choosing not to report complaints or withdrawing their cases in order to return home more quickly. C. Recommendations to States parties Pre-departure awareness-raising and training 28. For nationals considering whether to migrate for domestic work, States parties should take appropriate measures to disseminate information on their rights under the Convention as well as the conditions of their admission and employment and their rights and obligations under the law and practice of other States (article 33). Such awareness-raising could include: (a) Information on different types and arrangements of domestic work; (b) Basic knowledge of applicable national and transnational legal frameworks; (c) Essential information and perspectives on: (i) Migration-related fees and debt; 51