All About Full-Time Maids

[minnie2004]

janet_lee88:

I wonder if maids are here to work or to enjoy life. They suffer a fair bit during the training in Indonesia. Once selected to come, they go overboard. My maid dresses up even when we go IMM.


If they are not given handphones, they find opportunities to go downstairs to use public phones. If they have handphones, they yak or sms non-stop. If I allow them to use hp, they yak until wee hours of the morn and don't get up at 6am.

As for food, I usually put aside some food for them and then we can finish up the rest. Whether they throw food away or not, we won't know. Bcos of Indonesians not eating pork, every meal is mainly chicken.

Having a maid means you have to close BOTH eyes, esp those who are SAHM. As employers, we are literally at their mercy. Strict with them=either spit into our food or murder us. Lenient=climbing on top of our heads.

Totally agreed. We can't live with them but can't live without them either I'm waiting for the day when the kids are older and shift to part-time maid.

As an SAHM, I have to face my maid 24hrs a day. I sometimes will find excuses to go out, just for a cup of tea or something just to get away from her. She's on the other hand, very happy to be left alone at home so she can turn on her music and be the queen of our house.

[minnie2004]

janet_lee88:

As for food, I usually put aside some food for them and then we can finish up the rest. Whether they throw food away or not, we won't know. Bcos of Indonesians not eating pork, every meal is mainly chicken.

Don't think it's a good idea to eat chicken so much. Heard the hormones in chicken will make kids reach puberty earlier (esp girls). My kids eat lunch in their kindergarten and every other day there's chicken on the menu. I think it's b/c the school can't provide pork and fish due to religion and safety reasons respectively. Therefore we don't eat chicken that much at home nowadays, maybe once a week. I try to diversify into other types of meat like beef, pork, squid, even frogs.

[minnie2004]

peapot:

Then she starts using my housephone to cut down on her phone expenses. All her friends start calling my house! I was so mad!! So I tell myself, its enough!! No more hp for her.

It's better not to let them use our phone, at least not openly. Better just let them use their hp as they have to pay for it themselves so probably will exercise some restraint.

We never specifically told any of my maids regarding our phone policies. My previous maid who's more sociable, would talk on my phone for hours whenever i'm out (I knew that as many times when my friends or mom tried to call my home no. the line was always busy. Also, there's always a list of unknown dialed nos when I returned home :x). My current maid is better in the sense that she rarely use my phone when i'm out, and it's usually just her sister number of the dialed list.

[peapot]

littlebubble, I like your post!! I missed the article you’ve mentioned. We can only help ourselves. I think must feedback to the minister, I just don’t know how.


Hquek, don’t let your maid use the housephone to call back. Pass her your hp instead. Do you know my previous gila myanmar maid use my housephone without my knowledge and her villagers call my house?? I m not even sure how they got my house no. I question one of them and she said somebody pass the no to her. I asked who is that somebody, she said don’t know!!??

[minnie2004]

littlebubble2000:

In other words, if my govt does more for me, surely I will do more for my maid. Until more flexibility and protection is given to employers and until the levy is reduced or even removed - we should not expect to see much change. Why should we treat our maids like queens when the country treats us like slaves? Try it - tell anyone you're a SAHM and they'll give you a wry look like you wasted their resources on your education. Want a second maid? Read the rules first! Do you qualify? Changing maid for the how-many-th time? Time for re-education! NGOs for maids - hey what about for SAHMs? I mean, isn't anyone feeling ill from the double standards?

I also can't understand this maids' levy. Don't think any other countries have similar heavy levies. The govt is basically taking a big chunk of our maids' salary from them, making us employers in Singaporean less competitive compared to other countries, even though we pay the same amount of $$. That's why we always end up a stepping stone for new maids.

[hquek]

peapot:

Hquek, don't let your maid use the housephone to call back. Pass her your hp instead. Do you know my previous gila myanmar maid use my housephone without my knowledge and her villagers call my house?? I m not even sure how they got my house no. I question one of them and she said somebody pass the no to her. I asked who is that somebody, she said don't know!!??

Thanks for the advice peapot, but boh pian. Between evening to night time, and for some of day time, basically she is home alone. Even if I dun let her use, will also become empty threat. Anyway, my mum's house number is blocked....so even if she use, the other party cannot see via caller id.

[hquek]

peapot:

My maid is an Indonesia and she doesn't take pork. Although she can handle pork, she refuse to cook pork because she cannot eat. So, I also close one eye to it. Only my child got no pork to eat. I tolerate for 1 month plus until I can't take it anymore.

Actually this should have been resolved BEFORE she step into your house. On their biodata, it should be highlighted if they are not going to handle pork even - nobody ask her to taste it. Your family's diet should not be restricted by her.

So if she only take beef and lamb how? A lot of chinese I know don't take it....then all eat vegetarian arh.

[shine_fs]

minnie2004:

peapot:

Then she starts using my housephone to cut down on her phone expenses. All her friends start calling my house! I was so mad!! So I tell myself, its enough!! No more hp for her.

It's better not to let them use our phone, at least not openly. Better just let them use their hp as they have to pay for it themselves so probably will exercise some restraint.

We never specifically told any of my maids regarding our phone policies. My previous maid who's more sociable, would talk on my phone for hours whenever i'm out (I knew that as many times when my friends or mom tried to call my home no. the line was always busy. Also, there's always a list of unknown dialed nos when I returned home :x). My current maid is better in the sense that she rarely use my phone when i'm out, and it's usually just her sister number of the dialed list.

I don't have the problem of using the house phone, cos I don't have telephone line and my maid don't have HP too......:lol:

[shine_fs]

hquek:

Actually this should have been resolved BEFORE she step into your house. On their biodata, it should be highlighted if they are not going to handle pork even - nobody ask her to taste it. Your family's diet should not be restricted by her.

So if she only take beef and lamb how? A lot of chinese I know don't take it....then all eat vegetarian arh.

I agree, how can our diet restricted by the maid. My mum told my maid that she can't take pork doesn't mean that we have to follow her.

So, if there is pork, she just eat the veg. We will not force her to take pork. :evil:

[littlebubble2000]

janet_lee88 - That’s right. even if they do not eat pork, they should be able to cook it. The reason they are here in singapore is because they agreed to handle pork (it is a requirement for many training schools and maid agencies). So, she CAN cook pork. She just isn’t required to eat it.