Kuala Lumpur - Malaysia plans to make it mandatory for foreign maids to be given a day off every week, following calls for new laws to protect domestic staff, officials and news reports said Wednesday.

Currently, days off for maids are not a requirement.

Under the new ruling, all foreign maids would only have to work six days in a week, with errant employers facing a fine of up to 10,000 ringgit (2,700 dollars) if caught denying their domestic helpers a day off, Human Resources Minister S Subramaniam said.

"The Employment Act currently covers all sectors except for maids," Subramaniam was quoted as saying by the Star daily.

The move, which comes after a spate of highly-publicized cases of maid abuse, follows calls by rights and labour groups for new laws to protect foreign domestic staff.

Earlier this month, an Indonesian woman allegedly escaped her abusive employer and ran for help to the Indonesian embassy. She said she had been beaten, scalded with hot water and practically starved for three years. Police have remanded the employer for questioning.

But the government's new law also sparked criticism from labour groups and calls by employers for a thorough review.

"Of course it's for a good cause but we also have to weigh the pros and cons and there seems to be more negative repercussions than positive ones," said Raja Zulkeply Dahalan, president of the Malaysian Association of Foreign Maids Agencies.

The criticism is apparently linked to employers' fears that maids would be swayed by negative influences outside their homes.

"My maid doesn't know anybody here, where will she go on her day off?

"She is young and naive, and it will only be a matter of time before she gets influenced and even harmed by the people she will meet outside," said a housewife who only wanted to be identified as Irene.

Malaysia is home to more than 400,000 foreign maids, who come mostly from Indonesia and the Philippines.(dpa)