All About Full-Time Maids

[raynreg]

jtoh:

So unscrupulous. So they're instigating your maid to leave you so they can arrange for transfer? Can you just send your maid home? The maid will not want to go home right?

Yah..that's what WE should do instead of letting the FDW choose/decide what they want. Anyway the ticket for the low cost carriers are not that expensive. Probably it cost the same as your levy plus the salary while awaiting for the transfer.

I'll prefer not to be taken hostage by them

[jtoh]

raynreg:

jtoh:

So unscrupulous. So they're instigating your maid to leave you so they can arrange for transfer? Can you just send your maid home? The maid will not want to go home right?

Yah..that's what WE should do instead of letting the FDW choose/decide what they want. Anyway the ticket for the low cost carriers are not that expensive. Probably it cost the same as your levy plus the salary while awaiting for the transfer.

I'll prefer not to be taken hostage by them

Any idea what the steps are if we were to send our maids home without going through agency? Do we just cancel their work permit online and send them to the airport? What other steps are there?

[hquek]

jtoh:

Any idea what the steps are if we were to send our maids home without going through agency? Do we just cancel their work permit online and send them to the airport? What other steps are there?

I just log into workpermit online (http://www.mom.gov.sg) using my singpass, click on the appropriate options and voila! I can print a letter that the maid will have to carry with her when she clear customs in Singapore. Her wp card must be returned (she can pass it to the customs officer)

So far I did so for my 2 Indo maids that way - but they departed on mutual understanding. No problems. I believe so long as she exit the country, there should not be issue. IF the maid don't want to leave, then things may get hairy and in such cases, it could be better to get someone else to escort her to the airport.

[hquek]

LKVM:

Also must make sure she gives her WP back

Yes, but I wonder if we can hold on to it and then give back on our own - will she have issue checking out of customs?

[Chenonceau]

hquek:

LKVM:

Also must make sure she gives her WP back

Yes, but I wonder if we can hold on to it and then give back on our own - will she have issue checking out of customs?

I just sent my helper back. You need to cancel her work permit. Then you need to print out the special pass. She needs this special pass to clear customs.

After that, you have a few weeks to return the work permit to MOM personally or via an agent.

[jtoh]

Thanks for the info, LKVM, hquek and Chenonceau.


hquek, you mentioned that things might get hairy if the helper doesn’t want to leave. What might happen?

[peapot]

When your maid gives you problem during the last few days with you, it’s better to get the maid agency to escort her to the airport. My previous Myanmar maid was very cunning and gave me so much problem as she was looking for a job here (other than being a maid). Luckily my husband was around to make sure she was escorted to the airport. I was working and really don’t want to see her face.


If the maid don’t want to leave, she might jump out of the moving vehicle or run away in the night. I didn’t even let her prepare our meals. My mom came over and stay with use and took over the cooking. That was how serious it was. Then the next Myanmar maid also gave me hell, soaking her underwear with our clothes!! I mention this in my previous post. I sent her off to the agency and now I m lucky to get a good indonesia maid.

[peapot]

Actually you can’t hide the newspaper from the maid. When they meet other maids outside, they will also talk about it. Unless, your house don’t subscribe newspaper, you don’t let her go out to run errands and she has no off day, and you dispose the rubbish yourself then maybe it’s possible to hide from her.

[jtoh]

peapot:

When your maid gives you problem during the last few days with you, it's better to get the maid agency to escort her to the airport. My previous Myanmar maid was very cunning and gave me so much problem as she was looking for a job here (other than being a maid). Luckily my husband was around to make sure she was escorted to the airport. I was working and really don't want to see her face.


If the maid don't want to leave, she might jump out of the moving vehicle or run away in the night. I didn't even let her prepare our meals. My mom came over and stay with use and took over the cooking. That was how serious it was. Then the next Myanmar maid also gave me hell, soaking her underwear with our clothes!! I mention this in my previous post. I sent her off to the agency and now I m lucky to get a good indonesia maid.

Oh yes, now that you mentioned it, I remember reading about maids trying to jump out of moving vehicles.

Can they also raise a ruckus once they're in immigration? As in, refuse to leave? Call embassy to complain etc? Thought I'd heard something like that before.

[jtoh]

peapot:

Actually you can't hide the newspaper from the maid. When they meet other maids outside, they will also talk about it. Unless, your house don't subscribe newspaper, you don't let her go out to run errands and she has no off day, and you dispose the rubbish yourself then maybe it's possible to hide from her.

True lah, but do what is within our means to keep info from the helper.