People have different reasons for migrating to other places. During this process, they experience diverse challenges and impacts upon settling in foreign countries. Women, in this case, have some reasons for their migrations. At first, women face diverse challenges in securing visas in order to move to their countries of choice.
In comparison, the females undergo several problems than the benefits while in the foreign land. From this point of view, women have more things to lose as an alien than men do. Notably, if a female wants to migrate, she experiences more difficulties in securing travelling documents like clearance forms at the immigration department and obtaining a visa than the male counterpart does.
For example, some countries have extremely strict policies on women migration to foreign nations than men. Evidently, these scenarios affect the women psychologically, as these are gender-based forms of discrimination that needs to be addressed worldwide. These inequality acts can cause low self-esteem in women; thereby, lowering their work productivity.
When these migration rules seem tough for women, they ensure that they reach their destinations by opting for other illegal means. An example of these options is human smuggling. At the same time, smugglers exploit these women sexually and criminally.
At present, most of these women have contracted HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. These acts do not only cut short their dreams but also shorten their life span. This vulnerability makes women lose more than men do. In line with this, women secure low paying jobs such as caregivers, sex workers, domestic house workers, and mail-order brides.
Although they receive cash in return for their services, their economic status remains incomparable to the native women in the foreign country. Moreover, they are exposed to harsh working conditions; for example, no job breaks, no rewards for overtime work, and even verbal abuses. From the onset, these jobs are exploitative and are always meant for those people who are at the lower end of the socio-economic status.
Sadly, the change in earning level sways most women, especially mail-order brides, into abusive marriages. As a result, the women lose their dignity, self-esteem, and worth. These women can also incur physical injuries, hence leaving a stressful life. This is contrary to men, who do skilled jobs and are accorded automatic job protection cum benefits.
Additionally, most women migrate in order to unite with their families. From the economic point of view, these women do not add substantial values to their husbands’ incomes. Apart from the family unification, these women mostly deals with household chores and to some extent, settle for low paying jobs since they have no skills.
From another point of view, if a woman migrates to seek employment in the diaspora, the husband leaves all the family responsibilities to her. Culturally, most men do not feel comfortable if their wives earn more money than they do. For that reason, men will tend to forgo other responsibilities so that the wives’ earnings are used up. Such women will feel more burden than when they had not secured a job.
Alternatively, if women go to foreign countries and leave the entire family behind, naturally, they socially suffer the disconnection from the families than men do. This lose of touch make the females feel some guilt, as they miss the physical presence of their families, especially the children. Most men also do not care about the well-being of the children and even the household chores, as they associate these responsibilities with females.
Therefore, migration among women is more of a double responsibility. This divided attention can lower their work output at the workplaces thus leading to layoffs. Further, such women can develop health complications due to stressful lives. Thus, in migrations women have more to lose than gain as compared to men.