Filipina maid photographs modern slavery in Hongkong.
- Thread starter Poseidon88
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Poseidon88
New Member
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You have a pretty reprehensible view and are probably one of these maids extremely exploits. How can you compare them with those in poor countries, wages in Singapore. People living and working in Singapore and since they must also get the wages that are due in Singapore. What is to compare the salary with poor countrys in Asia/Africa for a strange and inhuman attitude. In Africa, many people get $ 1 per day as wages, there are then the paltry $ 500 in Singapore still much too high if I understand you correctly. Unfortunately, I can here in the forum not write my honest opinion about people like you,
since it is immediately deleted and censored by the moderator.
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Well, you are right if your posting is a personal attack, name calling or something along that line. Best to sleep a night before posting.
Facts and reason are most welcome, instead.
airfins
Senior Member
Maids are provided with food and lodging so they have zero bills to pay. If they were to spend S$100/mth on their necessity and comfort food then they can sent $500 back home every month after they finish paying their loan to the agency. (Min wages for Pinoy maid is S$600 + Goverment levy) that is about 3.7X the average pay of the workers with their equivalent education. After 2 years of full pay in SIN that will be S$12K tax free compared to her fellow friend's 2 years salary of S$3214, that is if they are lucky to get a job. Imagine you are making $30K per year and your friend is making 120k a year, is that a lot ?
Most Company's here pay their FT according to their origins country living standard. Workers from developed country get paid more then their SIN counterpart as their country living standard is higher. FT from 3rd world countries will get paid less then their counterpart doing the same job. I know some company paid them according to SIN rate which benefited them to the max. I have came across China and India blue collar FT getting paid the same salaries doing the same job as SIN workers. Remember why India villages were so sad that our great LKY passed away? He gave them the work opportunity plus making over 10X the money they can make back in India, that's again if they can find a job. Those construction workers are also very lowly paid here but went they go home they are very rich.
Lastly I had the misfortune of having 10 different maids, each giving us different kind of problems and quiting as and when they wanted. I lost thousands of dollars for their insurance and agent fee. My wife had to quit her job in between maids to take care of my son. Trust me, we are not a happy family during those times. I don't mind paying them more if they are competent with their job to solve my problem but instead I believe that I have over pay them. The quality of work they produced does not deserve a S$600/mth pay. I cannot have peace of mind at work knowing the maid will spring surprises every now and then. I even dread to receive calls form my wife knowing it's going to be maid's problem again. My wife is in mild depression now. We have no one to help us our parents are very old, so it's necessary to have a helper at home so we can both work to provide for the young one, hoping that he will not have to go through what a blue collar daddy like me went through.
Most Company's here pay their FT according to their origins country living standard. Workers from developed country get paid more then their SIN counterpart as their country living standard is higher. FT from 3rd world countries will get paid less then their counterpart doing the same job. I know some company paid them according to SIN rate which benefited them to the max. I have came across China and India blue collar FT getting paid the same salaries doing the same job as SIN workers. Remember why India villages were so sad that our great LKY passed away? He gave them the work opportunity plus making over 10X the money they can make back in India, that's again if they can find a job. Those construction workers are also very lowly paid here but went they go home they are very rich.
Lastly I had the misfortune of having 10 different maids, each giving us different kind of problems and quiting as and when they wanted. I lost thousands of dollars for their insurance and agent fee. My wife had to quit her job in between maids to take care of my son. Trust me, we are not a happy family during those times. I don't mind paying them more if they are competent with their job to solve my problem but instead I believe that I have over pay them. The quality of work they produced does not deserve a S$600/mth pay. I cannot have peace of mind at work knowing the maid will spring surprises every now and then. I even dread to receive calls form my wife knowing it's going to be maid's problem again. My wife is in mild depression now. We have no one to help us our parents are very old, so it's necessary to have a helper at home so we can both work to provide for the young one, hoping that he will not have to go through what a blue collar daddy like me went through.
albertri
Senior Member
bro pardon me for saying this its either you're very unlucky you get 10maids all are lemon or your standard very high.... I have a maid also and I think in the past 10 over years I have only changed 3 times the 1st two they completed thier contract and get back home the last one going strong for many years now I think 6yrs already with us maybe her last year going back as she just got married and just want to complete the contract and stay together with hubby.
albertri
Senior Member
Just to clear the air the Maid salary in Singapore is based on current local market rate... so cant compare the rate here and other country. Do remember the maid employer do pay extra levy to the Gov't every month raging from I think 50 to 300 SGD per month so those at the upper range meaning monthly maid salary plus levy close to 900SGD I am paying somewhere there per month, so please be careful with the statement that maids here are under paid employers are paying a lot just that some goes to the Gov't not to the Maids.
Also those saying Maid free house and this etc please stop saying that they deserve it they basically working for you 24x6... Other countries like middle east one even not maid they get free housing and meal/transpo allowance on top of their salaries so pls don't make sweeping statement.
Bottom line here we all making a living everyone of us unless you're parent are rich and you just collecting monthly allowance from them and enjoying life. So let's all just respect everyone including our maids they are human also like you and me.
PS. did you all see the article and the photo of the photographer? don't play play using Sony A7 series cam and lens looks like Leica ^_^
Also those saying Maid free house and this etc please stop saying that they deserve it they basically working for you 24x6... Other countries like middle east one even not maid they get free housing and meal/transpo allowance on top of their salaries so pls don't make sweeping statement.
Bottom line here we all making a living everyone of us unless you're parent are rich and you just collecting monthly allowance from them and enjoying life. So let's all just respect everyone including our maids they are human also like you and me.
PS. did you all see the article and the photo of the photographer? don't play play using Sony A7 series cam and lens looks like Leica ^_^
Well said. First of all let's not forget: maids are employed and the families hiring a maid become employers. One must reflect about what one expects from a good employer, then check whether one would grant the same to a maid. (If not, there's something fundamentally wrong in the mind set, imho). Secondly, Salary goes along job scope and responsibility. How many jobs has a maid, actually? Household chores, children upbringing (yes, many people use the maid as nanny), care for elder people, escorting the kids to school .. without formal training, so the additional stress due to 'learning by doing'. Now please compare to local jobs with only a single scope. Another point: you all get allowance and whatnot for traveling for work. The maid works abroad for the entire period for zero allowance.
Next, the standard rule for any outsourcing applies: you get rid of the job, but you get the additional efforts for organization and supervision. Usually, these efforts are reciprocal to the skill level of the hired worker. Last but not least: you get what you pay for. I have seen where they 'find' these girls one can employ for the minimum salary. It's pure exploitation, not employment. There are agencies that offer well skilled and trained maids, but they don't come for the $600 minimum wage. Conclusion: if you want a job well done best do it yourself or hire a skilled person and pay properly.
Alternatively, get part time cleaner.
Poseidon88
New Member
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100% Consent, I can sign it and have additions.
...waking before dawn and working past midnight,
cooking, cleaning, geriatric nurse, 24 hours standby,
take care for nasty kids etc. etc....
forced to sleep in a storeroom,
Often they get to eat only scrap and waste. (food residues)
What does this service cost: Paltry 600S$ per month - a dole money.
STOP the modern day slavery.
End poor pay, abuse and exploitation.
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G-man
Senior Member
Wah Lau not all like that lah! Hahahaha. But yes I know of many employers behaving in this sick manner.
albertri
Senior Member
bro you make it sound like all maid employers are bad... 600 yes that's their salary actually if Govt not asking for levy up to 300 their salary is around 900 or more some Maids here are getting higher than 600. And again let's not make a sweeping statement I for one my maid sleep in a room not storeroom she actually sleep inside my girl's room. What we eat she eats also there's no special meal for her, so can rest anytime she needs to actually my maid and my youngest kid sleep every afternoon as we know she wakes up early to send my daughter to school and fetch her back. We treat her as if our family member she can watch TV, use her own computer when ever she wants to she has the freedom in my house, in return she never abuse her freedom which we are very happy she did that. Every time we go out she is not our carrier she go shopping if she want to eat with us and when we travel for holiday if she don't want to go back to her home town we bring her with us to holiday. Actually me and my wife always jokingly call her our eldest daughter. So please don't make such sweeping statement.
On the ligther side she even makes me her photographer for her pre-nup shot here in SG (wah she was lucky when I marry my wife we never have pre-nup shoot some more oversea) and they also made me their wedding sponsor
..... so I am hurt to read all sweeping statement coz not all employers are sick bustards as you stated... PS. do you happen to know how much is uncle cleaner earns in a month those uncles and aunties who clean your HDB corridors everyday sometimes including Sunday? So not only maids salary seems low in SG there are a lot more out there who earns almost the same plus they have other expenses also...
Anyways I wont comment anymore about it... if you really feel the maids in suffers injustice and maltreated in Singapore why not do something about it? posting here your sentiments wont change anything...
God Bless and peace everyone
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Our govt can say whatever they want. And they only want to compare with other countries that has same problem. They are in denial mode. How come they don't wan to use Swiss, Aussie or NZ or UK to compare?
The fact is they always wan to make us look better or same as others in the similar situation
albertri
Senior Member
You pay your Filipino maids SIN$500/$600 in Singapore and we pay them AUD$800 in Hong Kong.
Bro i think in other country the employer dont pay any levy so in SG if the levy was added to the maid salary its at par with HK maid salary or maybe even higher there maids now jn SG getting 700-900 salary but sadly there are some still getting low also.
albertri
Senior Member
I wish also lolz.
Bukitimah
Senior Member
There will always be bad apples whether it is employer of maids or factory or offices, so we should not generalize and just use such statement. I have maids for more than 15 years because we both work. Now my kids are all grown up, I don't need one. I don't believe and consider myself as one that mistreat maids. They are my partner in this family.
They came here to work and they know what they are being paid before they took on that job. Nobody force them but we should treat them fairly. Just like I go to work and are paid that amount a salary. If I am not happy then look for another job. If I can't find one that is better, than that is my best paid job.
Why would people think maids are like slave working here? They are paid, fed and housed. Compared to many Singaporean with low paying jobs (many took 2 jobs to survive), they aren't worse off. Many maids ate together with their employer like myself. To many of us, they are like our own family member living under the same roof. The only difference here is one day they will need to go back.
If they think they are a slave, there is no contract to bind them here. Just return home or look for another job in another country. My fist maid went to Hong Kong after working for me for 2 years. Why? there is no levy and the pay is higher. I am happy for her and it is just a contract we both agreed on.
If we need to 'fight' for better terms for the maids. how about the cleaners and security and low wage workers? surely they deserve our utmost attention than the maids. Today's maids are paid very well consider our living standard. Whether they are being exploited by agents, that is something else.
They came here to work and they know what they are being paid before they took on that job. Nobody force them but we should treat them fairly. Just like I go to work and are paid that amount a salary. If I am not happy then look for another job. If I can't find one that is better, than that is my best paid job.
Why would people think maids are like slave working here? They are paid, fed and housed. Compared to many Singaporean with low paying jobs (many took 2 jobs to survive), they aren't worse off. Many maids ate together with their employer like myself. To many of us, they are like our own family member living under the same roof. The only difference here is one day they will need to go back.
If they think they are a slave, there is no contract to bind them here. Just return home or look for another job in another country. My fist maid went to Hong Kong after working for me for 2 years. Why? there is no levy and the pay is higher. I am happy for her and it is just a contract we both agreed on.
If we need to 'fight' for better terms for the maids. how about the cleaners and security and low wage workers? surely they deserve our utmost attention than the maids. Today's maids are paid very well consider our living standard. Whether they are being exploited by agents, that is something else.
albertri
Senior Member
If you look a bit deeper into the industry you will these cases of maids being kept like slaves: bad food, sleeping in a store room with hardly and space for herself, being the first one up and the last one in bed and many other examples where families exploit the employment contract and create working conditions that deserve the term 'slavery'. About the reasons we can only guess..
On the other hand: maids are not as free as you describe it in your case. Many take up loans in their home country to pay for the courses they have to attend before they are sent to Singapore. Others support their families back home. It is simply not possible for the maid to cancel the employment contract and look for a new employer as you can do it in your job. The huge amount of debts is their shackles. Another point is (sadly): the education level of many is too low to understand the rights and obligations of the employment contract. They fear the loss of money more than bad treatment - and many who hire a maid know about that. Perfect conditions for abuse.
This said, I met many families where it was obvious that the domestic helper is treated fairly, generalizing is not appropriate. I think, the entire system of maids is somewhat dated and needs a proper review. On the other hand: the main driving factor is still the salary gap between Singapore and the surrounding countries. Once the gap closes the maid business will become obsolete. Something else might come up, instead.
albertri
Senior Member
Bro I agree with most of your statement other than what I have quoted above... you are looking this again from maid's POV have you look at the employer's pov also? again most countries employers are paying their maid around as mentioned by other CSer 800AUD this equivalent to 825SGD. In Singapore Maids average salary is between 600-700 some even higher and on top of that there's Levy of 300, employers are actually paying more than 800SGD close to 1000SGD actually. So is salary the main issue here? If and only if those levy were given to the maid not to the Govt then I think those maids working in HK etc will come here and apply.... So bro you think increasing maid's salary will solve the issue you just created another one by adding burden to the employer who in the 1st place hired a maid not becoz they are lazy and want someone to do house chores etc the reason is both of them are working and no one would watch over the kids while they are working...
To solve the real issue we need to dive deeper and find the root cause, salary is the overlaying problem only. What we have learn from school to solve a problem we must find the root cause... do you all think salary is the root cause here?
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Bukitimah
Senior Member
For your first point. When you applied for a maid, do you need a permit? Who approved the permit and collect that fee? The responsibility should then rest on that party to ensure employer background is conducive to employ a maid. Aren't that being done for construction workers? Most maids do have a decent rest area and don't work till they collapse. When they fall.sick, who suffer? Too much stories you are hearing. Wait till you hear the other side of the stories.
Many of us work long hours, even on our off days or bring home our works. There will be families that require more but many maid took afternoon naps if you don't know. Working environment differs. Why do we work so hard? We have housing loan, car loan and on top of all these, we don't have a vegetable farm to turn to if we are sack!
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