Days off for maid

[Chu Liu Xiang]

beanstalk:

I am not sure what your point is?


MOM does not stipulate any day off. The text quoted merely says employers are to comply with the contract agreed upon.

So if the employer/employee agree on a \"no-day off\" in the contract, the employer is complying with 'regulations'. The contract is drawn up based on the needs of both the employer and employee. Some employers need help almost 24/7; some employees don't want to leave the house. Every pair is different.

In general, market forces will iron out the less ideal employers. There are no regulations to force employers to give more salary, days off etc but if they are not aware of market conditions, they will simply lose their helper to someone else. That's all.

Chapter 91A Part 1 says 'TO BE COMPLIED WITH BY EMPLOYERS'

MOM will go after you (NOT THE AGENT/AGENCY) if anything wrong arises from its non-compliance

Can you read clause 11b) and say whether MOM stipulates it or not - the meaning of employer.......shall grant.........rest-day(s)?

The word 'shall' is mandatory in official documents

No day-off is covered under Clause 8


:xedfingers:

[verykiasu2010]

c’mon, rest day is not the same as going out; rest day means can rest at home


many maids just refused to go out because going out means spending money and getting more tired

the MOM clause says "rest day according to the employment contract"…not day of getting out of the house

too many people fighting for the maid’s "rights" getting too fixated on days going out

to the FDW, their place of work is also their place of rest / residence

[LOLMum]

if i am the maid, i wont want to stay at home on my day off. to save money and have a rest, i would go to the library. free air-cond, comfortable seat for a few winks, clean toilet. pay membership fee for a year and can borrow books, video to watch there.


at least library is a bigger space than the tiny room (worse if got to share with kids).

[verykiasu2010]

LOLMum:

if i am the maid, i wont want to stay at home on my day off. to save money and have a rest, i would go to the library. free air-cond, comfortable seat for a few winks, clean toilet. pay membership fee for a year and can borrow books, video to watch there.


at least library is a bigger space than the tiny room (worse if got to share with kids).

agreed. if only you were my maid ! sigh :rotflmao: :rotflmao: :rotflmao:

the question is rest day, which can be in many forms and manner, and some off days become even more tired ..... tsk tsk

[Chu Liu Xiang]

verykiasu2010:

c'mon, rest day is not the same as going out; rest day means can rest at home


many maids just refused to go out because going out means spending money and getting more tired

the MOM clause says \"rest day according to the employment contract\"......not day of getting out of the house

too many people fighting for the maid's \"rights\" getting too fixated on days going out

to the FDW, their place of work is also their place of rest / residence

I believe rest day is use interchangeably as day-off otherwise if you specify day-off in the contract then what about rest day in MOM requirements? Are you also going to specify rest day(s) in the contract too in order to comply with MOM reuirements?

Generally, the more sociable Filo maids would prefer day-off(s) over the Indo maids.

The first thing Clause 11 states is that an employment contract is required between the employer and maid. Follow up Clause 11 states that rest day(s) SHALL be specifed in accordance to the employment contract. Which means a minimum of 1 rest day needs to be specified into the contract as per MOM's Clause 11

If no rest day is specified in the contract then it shall follow Clause 8

I reiterate, Chapter 91A Part 1 shall be complied with by the employer of FDW

:xedfingers:

[verykiasu2010]

the problem lies with people who champion for the "rights" of the maids who insist that "rest" must not take place at the place of work (which is also the rest place of the maid at the end of the day), hence must get out of the house, which some maids just refused to get out.


in this aspect I think Hong Kong has a better environment as many of the maids do not live-in, so they can do whatever they like once they get out from their work place

so they get higher pay to pay for their own accommodation (zero sum game)

[michyms]

verykiasu, maids in HK pay for their own accommodation? Then their S$800 salary is hardly enough considering how expensive accommodation there is. Why then do all these maids want to go there?

[verykiasu2010]

michyms:

verykiasu, maids in HK pay for their own accommodation? Then their S$800 salary is hardly enough considering how expensive accommodation there is. Why then do all these maids want to go there?

I think I did not say all of them pay their own accommodation, many of them do, and they share - many maids in one apartment to split cost, widely reported, justifying the \"higher\" pay they get there. HK's apartments are mostly very small, how to accommodate a maid ? even if they do live-in, they become 'master of the hall'......

all these maids want to go because they think the living environment is like singapore - tell them oso they won't believe you

I had a maid worked for me for 5 years - then wanted to go HK, after one month, called and said want to return - how to ? already got replacement maid

[LOLMum]

middle income families, unfortunately, do live in very small flats (most cant even afford to buy private flats). but as both need to work, die die must get maid to look after kids especially during the school holidays (july - aug) and the many half terms…


so either the employers rent a room for maid to stay elsewhere or the maids pooled together the $$$ (employers usually pay an agreement portion while the maids come up with the rest themselves) and get an apartment to share.
i am unsure if this is allow in hk but the govt probably closed both eyes because the housing issue in hk is really really really bad and the govt knows it very well.

[michyms]

Too many maids think that the grass is always greener outside. My neighbour’s maid left because she thought working for expat would be better. She had higher salary and also get to live on her own outside (expat rent a room for her). But she often comes back to visit her old employer. I heard that recently, she was sent home because she quarrel with the expat wife. Then one of my friend’s also changed to work for a Japanese expat family because she wanted higher salary. In the end, she couldn’t stand eating sushi everyday, and had to be transferred again!