Companies, individuals and organisations overseas are now required to pay a minimum monthly wage if they want to employ spa therapists from Bali.

The new regulation has been issued by the Bali Agency for Placement and Protection of Migrant Workers (BP3TKI) and is supported by the National Agency for Overseas Labour Placement and Protection.

Wayan Pageh told Bali Daily that the regulation had been issued to provide adequate legal protection for migrant workers, in particular spa therapists from Bali who would be working overseas: “Currently, around 59 countries are hiring spa therapists from the island.”

The regulation stresses the importance of recruiting spa therapists from registered recruitment agencies and once they start working overseas, companies or users must report the presence of Balinese workers to the Indonesian consulate or embassy in their respective countries.

The spa therapists are entitled to a minimum US$1,000 (£653, €769) monthly wage, excluding health insurance, shelter and return tickets.

In some countries, like the US, Japan and in Europe, Balinese spa therapists are already paid $1,000. These countries also provide health insurance and other supporting facilities.

However there are still many reports revealing the gruelling facts of the recruitment process. “Recruitment through illegal agencies still flourishes," said Pageh. "This is why so many therapists are not treated properly in foreign countries, where they have no legal protection at all. This condition makes our therapists very vulnerable; around 99 percent of them are women. They are so prone to abuse and violence.”