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Ruby: I am a very loving person. I go hard for my family, for my friends. I would also say that I am not a very patient person.
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Lesedi: Ruby is 30 years old. She’s from Zimbabwe and she works as a live-in care worker in the UK. She lives in a town about an hour and a half north of London. Ruby isn’t her real name. We changed it to protect her from getting into any kind of trouble with her employer.
Her days are long. So long that she couldn’t make time for an interview even over the phone. So she agreed to send us voice notes whenever she had a moment. Usually recorded late at night when her elderly client was asleep.
Ruby: [Laughs] It’s not an easy job. I am lucky because my client, um, uses the toilet by herself, meaning she wipes herself. She doesn’t use those, um, Pampers pads. Most of the clients, they, um, poop in their pants. You have to change poo you know, so you have to be ready for all of that. You have to be ready to work, work, work, because the more you work, the more you earn money.
Lesedi: Ruby studied to be a teacher.
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Ruby: That’s my passion. That’s my job. That’s what I was trained for.
Lesedi: But she’s put that aside for now, and that’s not the only compromise migrant workers like Ruby have to make. It’s common for them to leave their families behind. Ruby is married and has three kids. She’s on a mission to bring her family to the UK It won’t be easy and it comes at a huge cost.
Ruby: TB tests, that’s like 75 US dollars per child. After that, um, visas, and that’s 518 by three. Then I would have to go back and get them, because my youngest is three and he can’t fly. They all can’t fly by themselves. That means like, um, maybe close to 2000 pounds tickets. So yeah, quite a lot of money actually.
Lesedi: In the meantime, Ruby has to shoulder the emotional cost halfway across the world from everyone she loves.
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Ruby: I cry a lot. It’s really depressing. So what I try to do is hope. I call my mom, I call my friends, I call my husband and express how I’m feeling. Sometimes I just call to cry.
Lesedi: This is Radio Workshop. I’m Lesedi Mogoatlhe.
Millions of Zimbabweans have left their country since as far back as the early two thousands. Many say that they’ve been pushed by economic and political instability. Around 30% of Zimbabweans now live and work abroad. The majority are in neighboring South Africa, but the second largest population of Zimbabweans living outside the country is in the United Kingdom.
Many end up working for institutions like the NHS, the National Health Service. In the UK because care work is so challenging and badly paid in the uk, the sector is basically kept afloat by migrant workers, especially after Brexit, when it lost over 10,000 healthcare workers from the EU.
Then COVID-19 made it all worse. So in 2022, the government needed to fill 160,000 vacancies. So they opened up a new visa program to bring even more migrant workers into the country, and that’s how Ruby got to England. She arrived in January 2024. It was the middle of winter and not exactly the greener pastures she expected to find.
Ruby: It’s not as pretty as we think when we are back home. I was so disappointed when I got here. Everywhere with the same type of buildings. It wasn’t really what I was expecting.
Lesedi: Ruby’s first job is as a live-in care worker, which means living in someone else’s home to provide around-the-clock care. Her client is a woman in her nineties.
Ruby: She is not a hundred percent mobile, so that means I have to support her getting in and out of bed, going to the toilet, changing her, and she’s also a deaf, so she uses those hearing aids and I have a little mic that I speak on so that she can hear me and I can communicate with her better.
Lesedi: Ruby says she’s paid to work eight hours a day, but really it’s a 24-hour job. When she’s not tending directly to her client, she’s busy with laundry, ironing and cleaning up around the house.
Ruby: And then later on I come back and sit and chill with her. The first days I came, she was very active. We would play games. She would teach me how to play piano, but these days she’s a bit less motivated to do such things, so she’s just always sitting, watching TV. I guess it’s depression. I don’t know. But yeah, that’s how she is these days.
Lesedi: Every evening at six o’clock, Ruby’s client gets on a Zoom call with her children. Ruby says they constantly nag their mom to get up and be more active.
Ruby: And then she’ll just say, um, I’ll do it soon after Zoom. And then after Zoom, she’ll say, “Oh no, I’m not going to do that. I’m not.” And I’ll say, “You are going to get me into trouble.” And then she’ll say, “They’re not here. If you won’t tell, I won’t.”
Lesedi: So let’s just say that they’ve come to an understanding. Ruby and her client get on for the most part.
Ruby: Sometimes like in the morning, right from six o’clock up until like one, she calls me every 10, 15 minutes. When I go, she’ll say, I’m ready to go shower. And then you help her to sit up and then she’ll say, no, I’ll have five more minutes in bed. And then you help with get in bed and it becomes so annoying. Like, if you want to get up, just get up.
Lesedi: Despite all that, Ruby says she’s lucky. Her client is a kind woman, and her children have done their best to make Ruby feel at home. Some of Ruby’s coworkers have shared horror stories about their racist clients.
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Ruby: They have a client when she’s being fed, she’s quiet and nice and she’ll say, “Thank you darling. Thank you so much.” But after that she’ll say, “Go away, you pig! You wanna be light skinned like me!” You know? So, yeah, that’s how it is.
Lesedi: So the question is, why do they put up with it? Well, because for many things back home are so much worse. Ruby struggled to make ends meet.
Ruby: I could not order a $5 pizza. I could not do it for my children. I was struggling to take care of my children. If you want your child to go to a very nice school in Zimbabwe, you would have to spend a lot of money, and that was money I didn’t have. But in the UK, you don’t pay school fees for your children. Education and free healthcare is free. So I told myself I will sacrifice to make this move and try to make life easier for my children.
Lesedi: Next on Ruby’s list is bringing her husband and kids to England, and that might take as long as a year to pull off. Her goal? To have the whole family together by December 2024. And she thinks she can make it happen. But for now, Ruby’s husband and their three kids are waiting back in Mount Darwin in Zimbabwe. That’s where Ruby grew up.
Ruby was the youngest of three sisters. Her dad was the breadwinner of the family. He was a physiotherapist and the whole family lived in staff housing in a hospital complex. Ruby’s fondest childhood memories are of her dad.
Ruby: I remember we, we used to go shopping every Saturday morning. We didn’t have a car, so we would walk, like it was a long walk to the town. He would buy everything and he would come back home and make, um, like a whole branch. My dad was a very, very good cook. I guess that’s where I learned how to cook.
Lesedi: When she wasn’t at home, Ruby was outdoors playing or getting up to no good.
Ruby: I would climb like the tallest cheese. I would, uh, climb over walls. I would, all those naughty stuff I would do. And my mom would be shouting, “Hey, come down, come down, come.” And I would not listen. I was so crazy. I used to fight a lot as well.
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Lesedi: In her teens, Ruby beat up any girl who was interested in her boyfriend, Tinashe, who is now her husband. We’ve also changed his name.
They met in high school and have been together ever since. He was one of those pretty boys. He was a rich kid driving a nice car and a lot of girls would want him. Ruby got pregnant at 21. She was scared to tell her parents she was having a baby before she got married. Ruby snuck out of her family’s house in tears. She was especially worried about what her dad would think. She was a self-proclaimed daddy’s girl.
Ruby: But then she got a text from him. It said, “I hope you are okay. If you’re not, come back home, your medical aid is working, go to a private hospital.”
Lesedi: So Ruby had her first baby and soon after that, she and Tinashe got married, but they didn’t have much time for fun and games with financial stress and a baby to take care of. And then two babies, then three. In fact, they’ve been parents for most of their relationship, so they don’t get a lot of alone time.
But that changed when Tinashe arrived in England in March 2024. Three months after Ruby, he left the kids back home in Zim with his mom. Ruby says it felt good to have Tinashe around, even though she was busy working most of the time. It took a couple of months, but finally Tinashe got a job.
Ruby: So my husband is starting work today. Yay. He got a job working for a very big warehouse, Sainsbury Warehouse, working night shift. Because, [yawns] sorry, because, um. We’re trying to get in the routine of when the kids come, he will have to work nights and stay with the kids during the day.
Lesedi: That yawn you heard? That’s because Ruby is exhausted. She gets two days off every now and then, or a week off every couple of months, and when she does get a break, she goes back to the single room she rents with Tinashe.
Ruby: I think we’ll start looking for a house when we, we are ready for the kids to come over, but for now, it’s good that we are renting out that one room because it, uh, saves us money.
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Lesedi: Summer ticks over into autumn and by November, Ruby’s client can no longer afford to pay for live-in care. Ruby says saying goodbye wasn’t easy.
Ruby: We grew very close. So when I left, she cried a lot and I was so used to just being with her all the time and I had grown, uh, to love her like a grandmother. You know, she said the sweetest things to me. You know, “I, I’m so happy for you. You’re going to get your children. Please, please, can you visit me when you come back?” You know? So you get close to your clients. Sometimes, whether you like it or not.
Lesedi: Now, Ruby has about five different clients. She drives around in circles all day, checking in on each of them, once in the morning, once in the evening, and once at bedtime. The upside to doing day visits is that now she gets to come home every night. Even though Ruby and Tinashe have opposite schedules, they find a way to make the best of it.
Ruby: I think we’ve been more of a, of a team than we have ever been since we got married. He starts work at 10:00 PM and finishes at six, and I start work at seven. So between 6:35 and 6:40, I’m sitting in the car and then my husband pulls in and kisses me. Good morning and says goodbye.
Lesedi: Ruby says, when they get to spend time together, it feels like they’re in the honeymoon phase all over again.
Ruby: Most of the times we are in the house cooking together, watching tv, cuddling, you know, just spending time with each other.
Lesedi: But that is about to change. December is getting closer and it’s almost time for Ruby to fly back to Zimbabwe to get the kids. In less than a year, Tinashe and Ruby managed to save up 4,000 pounds. That’s enough to pay a deposit and one month’s rent for a house. But there are a few more obstacles in their way.
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Ruby: We also have to have a bit of money left in the account for the kids. When they come, they’ll need to buy some clothes. You need to take them out, and also when you go back to pick them up, you’re not going to go empty-handed. My mother-in-law has been taking care of my children ever since I left. You need to buy presents or whatever.
Lesedi: At long last, Ruby and Tinashe have enough money to go get the kids and pay for the TB shots, visas, gifts, all of it. So Ruby books herself a ticket and packs her bags.
[Sound of Ruby saying hello to her children]
Ruby: Don’t cry, Kyle. Don’t cry.
Lesedi: Her 8-year-old son Kyle couldn’t stop sobbing. While his younger siblings, Maita and Junior, jumped around in excitement and squeezed in for a hug.
[Sound of Ruby saying hello to her children]
Lesedi: The kids had no idea she was coming. They knew their mom would come one day soon. They just didn’t know when. And Ruby, well, she wanted to surprise them.
Ruby: Ugh. It was emotional, but I couldn’t cry because my son was also crying. If I had cried, it would’ve it, it would’ve been worse. I think I felt relieved, and I was also in disbelief that it’s really happening.
Lesedi: Ruby says that being back home in Zimbabwe is exciting, but it’s also overwhelming.
Ruby: I, I, I don’t wanna lie, I am terrified because, um, it’s been a few days and I’m exhausted already. How am I going to do it when I get home, when this one is crying and that one is crying? How am I going to handle it?
Lesedi: But there’s another reason why being home is hard. Ruby’s father passed away about four years ago.
Ruby: When I’m far away, I might think of my dad, but not like in a emotional, crying way that I am right now. My dad was a very loving person. Oh. So yeah, I think he would’ve been very proud because out of, um, all his three children, uh, I don’t think he ever expected me to be where I am today.
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Lesedi: Ruby drives across town to go see her mom. She surprises her with a brand new phone, but there’s so much more to do, delivering more gifts, buying the long list of supplies to take back to the UK, and then finally pick up the kids and pack up the car.
Ruby: Can you say bye, Uncle Zweli! Bye, Uncle Zweli! Bye bye. Miss you. You guys even care that you’re not going to see people anymore?
Lesedi: The kids say their final goodbyes and it’s time for the big adventure to begin. It’s a little hard for them to wrap their heads around the journey ahead.
Ruby: Okay. Everybody! Is everyone excited? What are we preparing to do?
Kyle: To go to should I say it?
Ruby: Yeah. And have you ever been on a plane before?
Kyle: No.
Ruby: And are you excited or scared or?
Kids: Scared. Excited. Excited to, excited!
Ruby: Everyone let’s say, UK here we come.
Kids: UK here we come.
Lesedi: This adventure will be full of firsts. The two youngest seem to be taking everything in their stride, but for Kyle, it’s a little hard to know how to feel.
Kyle: On Monday when we, when I was playing with my brothers and sister, then I was like, oh my God, I’m gonna miss this place.
Ruby: I think Kyle, because he’s eight, he understands a little bit more. Kyle is a very, very emotional boy. He might not be able to say out what he’s feeling, but he will cry. So when he cries, you know it either that he’s very happy or he is very sad.
Lesedi: Then it’s time to go to the airport and say goodbye to Zimbabwe for who knows how long.
[Sound of them at airport]
Kyle: I’m excited of it’s just big and I’m flying in a plane in the sky. I get to see the clouds closely and stuff.
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Lesedi: Ruby and the kids arrive in England in the middle of January. She filled her bags with cigarettes for Tinashe, wigs for herself, and cooking utensils for making sadza, Zimbabwe’s staple food. All the things Ruby can’t find in England or can get for cheaper in Zimbabwe. But Ruby wonders if Tinashe is ready for the whirlwind that’s about to hit their home.
Ruby: It might be difficult for him because you know, when it’s just you guys, you can walk around the house naked, or we used to wake up at like 11 or 12 or three o’clock. And, um, that’s going to change.
Lesedi: This might be the end of Ruby and Tinashe’s honeymoon, but it’s the start of their new life as a family in the UK. If Ruby’s Visa came through just a few months later, it would’ve been a different story. A new law was passed in March 2024. It prevents migrant care workers from bringing their families along with them to the UK. So Ruby got in just in time.
Ruby: I know it’s after Christmas, but I still have my Christmas tree up, all the lights up and presents under the tree. I have their, uh, bedrooms all set up and I’m also excited to take them out, uh, shopping. I want them to pick out the things that they want without saying, no, I don’t have money for that.
Lesedi: Ruby wants to do everything she can to help the kids fit in.
Ruby: I am terrified for them because they’re going to see a whole lot of white people, especially at school. I, I, I worry a lot about racism at school. The school seems to be a very good school. I haven’t seen any black person in the area that I’m staying. But when I went to meet my youngest son’s teacher, she said she has a lot of children who are not British, so they will be fine. But you know, you never know what to expect.
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Lesedi: A lot is about to change. In fact, a lot has already changed even on a personal level.
Ruby: I thought I was not a patient person, but I am. I am. And I thought I was, uh, kind and loving person, but I didn’t know to what extent. I have more love to give than I ever knew. Yeah, which is quite good.
Lesedi: So what’s next? The plan is to stay in the UK until her kids are grown up. Then Ruby and Tinashe will head back to Zimbabwe. They’re already saving up money to build a house back home. But the kids might want to stay in the UK in a year or two.
Ruby: They’re going to be different people, but I am there to remind them of their roots. So my goal is to, um, get them to have that good relationship, like real love with each other. You know, when one falls the other is there to pick you up. That’s the only thing that I really want in life to leave my children working, taking care of themselves, taking care of each other. Then I’ve done my part, I can come back home and, you know, relax.
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Lesedi: In the meantime, Ruby will keep doing care work for as long as she has to. The trip home to Zim was expensive, so she’s working hard seven days a week just to pay it all off.
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Lesedi: This episode was produced by Jo Jackson with support from reporter Martha O’ Donovan. It was edited by me, Lesedi Mogoatlhe.
Jo Jackson is our managing producer. Mike Rahfaldt is our executive producer. Vuyo Lutseke is Radio Workshop’s Executive Director. Music by Qhamani Sambu at Edible Audio in Cape Town. Sound Engineering by Jo Jackson and Mike Rahfaldt.
A special thanks to Veryus Studio for recording assistance in Harare. A special thank you to Hindenberg for supporting Radio Workshop’s projects across Africa with audio editing software.
This episode and the work of Radio Workshop would not be possible without the support of the Anne Levy Trust, the Shin Creek Trust, Luminate and the Ford Foundation.
Find out more about what we do and donate to support our work at radioworkshop.org.