All About Full-Time Maids

[fcmaid]

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st2:

I suppose maids from hell are agent's darlings!!!!!If not, agents will turn them into a transfer happy maid to milked them and then ask them to wise up and work for the 4 or 5th employer or just send them packing back to kampong then..........


Good maids stay for 2 years contract to 1st employer and then renew contract. The agent never gets to earn another $ from her ever...EVER!!!!

!?!?!?!?!?!!?

Hi,

Depending on the business model of the agency, some prefer those as you mentioned \"maids from hell\", some prefer to have good maids.

Like what you said, for the first type which is to keep transferring them as the maximum amount an agency can get from a new maid and transfer maid is the same. Hence, they often open their shops in places like Katong Shopping Centre, Bukit Timah Shopping Centre or Hougang Green, (basically places full of agencies) to increase their visibility by lining up the maids within their premises or asking them to pretentiously clean the place or even get a fake baby to do role playing, sometimes you see the maids sit on the wheelchair to be pushed by another maid to simulate elderly care. As many employers like to window shop for maids around these places, hence a face to face interview will most definitely help the maid to get a new employer fairly quickly.

There is also the second type, that you mentioned maids who fully complete their contract and renew contract again and again. Indeed, the agency involved is not able to get money from the maid but on hindsight, will this maid not be living advertisement for the agency?

Friends, family and acquaintances, will be enquiring. Is it pure luck or is it the effort by the agency?

There are always both sides to a coin. There are bad and good agencies around, just need some time to differentiate them.

Thank you

Mr Soon

[ashana]

There are some questions to ask as I’m new to hiring maid. Our family is looking for one who can take care of a 1 year old.


1) What are the costs involved in hiring a transfer maid?
2) What are the costs involved in hiring a new maid?
3) What are the procedures, timeline and cost involved if transferred maid decided to quit?
4) What are the procedures, timeline and cost involved if a new maid decided to quit?
5) If a maid quit, is it better to send her back to agency or buy her a ticket back home?
5) Is it okay for the maid to sleep in the living room? (Although is not a room, she can watch TV, read books, switch on dining area light to write or do whatever she can when we sleep in our own room. )
6) Is it acceptable to request no handphone and no off day policy? (She can get phone from us if she wants to make phone call at night but she can’t carry/own a phone. I was told to restrict phone usage to once a month only because more phone calls mean more problems. But I am fine with her carrying phone as long as she is able to show sensibility to prioritize responsibility. So, I think I should request no handphone and no off day policy at the beginning just in case I find her not suitable to carry a phone, it won’t be too dramatic to reject her request as it was stated clearly in the beginning.)

Job Scope

She is required to do sweeping, mopping, laundry (washing machine and dryer), wash dishes, wash and sterile milk bottles, bathe baby, change diapers, ironing, prepare and feed baby food daily. She needs to take care of the baby. She needs to prepare evening meals but 60% of the time we will dabao or eat out.

Over the weekend, we will spend more time with the baby. On Sat, she has to go out with us to do marketing and cooking and able to take time off from baby to rest. On Sun, she has to do some cleaning (wash toilet, clean cabinets, clean fridge etc - 1-2 tasks each week), cooking.

She needs to follow us to parents place once a week.

Is the above job scope reasonable? Some of my friends said is too free and easy. But taking care of baby is a 24 hours thing and I know how tiring it can be even though you don’t do much house hold chores.

Another question that I want to know is how should I handle maid?

She is an employee but more than an employee because she lives in with us and have to handle us 24hrs. We don’t live in a BIG house but a small HDB flat unit where we live together like a family. She could properly be the one we get to see more often with so she needs to be one that we grow to like and accept and vice versa.

She takes care of our basic needs which can be as intimate as knowing how often you change your undergarments, the age of your undergarments, how many times you change your sanitary pads, your family affairs etc. She will be the one who knows all our habits, weaknesses, preferences, secrets which we may not even know about each other. If we grow to like each other, I believe the bond will be very strong and at the end of the day, the employer / employee relationship will be even harder to handle for both.

So how should we handle an employee who can be a very potential arch enemy if they turn against us? And how should we handle an employee whom we grow to live like a family and stay together 24 hours / day?

At the same time, we are exposing our family to some risks to allow a stranger to live in and "take over" the house when we are not in.

How can we protect ourselves?

I have heard friends who have maids that stay with them for years, and have maids who requested to go back to agency in less than a month. So, in maid’s perspective, is switching employers be better for them? What will a maid get if she continues to job hop? Is it extended stay? Go back to agency to spend time with "friends"? In maid’s perspective, how should an employer handle them?

[BestMom99]

Dear parent,

Beware of pilipino maid. I just found out recently that maid from this country actually exchange notes about their employer and they form a group to advise fellow maid planning to look for new employer whether to work or not to work for a particular employer.

Avoid hiring the one with the name Divina JN (WP # 024860140). She was chit chating with neighbor maid when was supposed to be buying breakfast for our son. She took pictures and posted on facebook. We were informed by neighbor’s maid to search her on facebook. We found out from our new maid that Divina actually called her and told her about the situation in our house.

[st2]

So these maids form a group and devise strategies to manipulate us. We the employers’ home situation, privacy are being violated and passed around on social media…Thanks MOM for your best job done for our citizens, allowing maids unlimited transfers.

[BestMom99]

Dear parent,

Beware of philipino maid. I just found out recently that maid from this country actually exchange notes about their employer and they form a group to advise fellow maid planning to look for new employer whether to work or not to work for a particular employer.

Avoid hiring the one with the name Divina JN (WP # 024860140). She was chit chating with neighbor maid when was supposed to be buying breakfast for our son. She took pictures and posted on facebook. We were informed by neighbor’s maid to search her on facebook. We found out from our new maid that Divina actually called her and told her about the situation in our house.

[BestMom99]

We called MOM & were advised that we can feedback via email and MOM will keep a record of the incident. MOM also agrees that employer may report to police of receiving anonymous letter.

[paithorn]

Hi all,


I am currently having a Myanmar maid for 1 month. She is fresh in Singapore but has 2 years working experience as a maid in MEZO, India. She took care of 2 kids aged 1 and 3 till Jan this year. Ended her 2 years contract. Rested at home helping out with farming before coming to work in Singapore to earn money for her younger brothers school fees. She is the eldest in her family of 5 siblings.

She is for the past month, honest and hardworking with good initiative. Offered her afternoon rest but she kept asking me for work to do. She is a Presbyterian at home. She do not need to call home often thou I offered her. So far only requested from me once a week after arrival. Thereafter I offered her to call but she declined. She has no wish for off days and do not mind not having handphone as her wish is to earn money. Currently salary is $400 + $62 for 4 off days.

Her command of English is not good. However she is trying and her family actually emailed me a 400 page dictionary which I’ve printed out in small fonts. Have to talk to her slowly for the time being.

I have this problem as my previous maid (Myanmar) who has gone back last month to start her University could not get in as the term has started. On advice from her friend, she now wishes to come back to my family to work. I really couldn’t bear to send the current one back to the agency as she is really trying her best. At the same time, I would like to help the previous maid as she had taken good care of my 3 kids for 2 years.
She has good height and size but not fat at all. Fit is the word. Skin is tanned. She is 23 years old born 25 April 1991. Eldest child in a farming family.

Current maid’s loan was $2400 for 7 months. I am thinking of transferring her out. By time of transfer over, new employer would like have to put up $1600-$1200 for her loan.
Interested parties can arrange for viewing and interviewing her at my place. I personally think she is a nice girl. Will not lose patience on your kids nor being dishonest.

Do PM me for discussion or queries

[liquidskye]

can wondering whether to change my pinoy maid. thinking ahead though i just renewed her contract this apr. renew contract le getting lazier…n my pils nt happy w her attitude…


if i tahan til end of this contract ie apr 2016, how do i change her? just send back to agency? den collect new maid thereafter? r we allowed to have overlap of maids?

what happens to my maid if i send her home? she nid to tk loan to come back to sin if she wana work here again? thx!

[panickymum]

liquidskye:

can wondering whether to change my pinoy maid. thinking ahead though i just renewed her contract this apr. renew contract le getting lazier...n my pils nt happy w her attitude...


if i tahan til end of this contract ie apr 2016, how do i change her? just send back to agency? den collect new maid thereafter? r we allowed to have overlap of maids?

what happens to my maid if i send her home? she nid to tk loan to come back to sin if she wana work here again? thx!

I have the same problem b4 . My renewed pinyo maid quarrel with my mum and kids . Give me black face when I talk nicely to her . Don't clean the kitten . Very oily , In the end , we decided to forfeit some $ on insurance and send her home . She wanted to go agency but we felt that we did not want others to suffer and also make her releaised not so easy to change employer . Nowsadays , maid thought very easy to change employer so after renew , all sorts of pattern .

[liquidskye]

panickymum:

liquidskye:

can wondering whether to change my pinoy maid. thinking ahead though i just renewed her contract this apr. renew contract le getting lazier...n my pils nt happy w her attitude...


if i tahan til end of this contract ie apr 2016, how do i change her? just send back to agency? den collect new maid thereafter? r we allowed to have overlap of maids?

what happens to my maid if i send her home? she nid to tk loan to come back to sin if she wana work here again? thx!

I have the same problem b4 . My renewed pinyo maid quarrel with my mum and kids . Give me black face when I talk nicely to her . Don't clean the kitten . Very oily , In the end , we decided to forfeit some $ on insurance and send her home . She wanted to go agency but we felt that we did not want others to suffer and also make her releaised not so easy to change employer . Nowsadays , maid thought very easy to change employer so after renew , all sorts of pattern .

So if i send her home, i will just need to bear her airfare for sending her back right? how long before her flight then u tell her u sending her back ah? i tink some of my mil's panaroid thinking abt maid rub off on me. now im scared she wil ki siao and harm my kids if i tell her im sending her back instead of to another employer.

kns lo. her contract finished in apr... but she said she go for home leave this dec cos she wana spend xmas with family. then say kids skl reopen wana spend 5 and 6 jan with her. at first she tell me she ok to go back only 10 days, so i plan for 13 day, then now she count say want 15 day... kns. everythg oso she say. lunz... i just need a mid nov onwards my dd1 go to cc... if everythg ok with the cc... once dd2 reach 18m in a years time... i will pack her off... :mad: :mad: :mad: