‘I never even thought of running away’ — Maid upset after employer refuses to give her a two-month salary advance of S$1.2k

SINGAPORE: A domestic helper shared on social media that she felt genuinely upset after her employer refused to give her a two-month salary advance of S$1,200.

In an anonymous post on the Direct Hire Transfer Singapore Maid / Domestic Helper Facebook group, the helper explained that she had requested the advance because her family in Myanmar was facing serious problems.

“I asked my employer nicely if they could give me the next two months in advance. But they said no,” she wrote. “[They told me], ‘If you run away with this money, where will we find you?’”

That comment, she said, broke her heart, as she had “never even thought of running away” with the money.

She also mentioned that this completely changed how she felt about the family.

“I have been at their house for 1 year. They had problems with the maid before, but I don’t know. I haven’t done anything wrong this year,” she continued. “There were some things that were inconvenient for me, but I didn’t say anything. But since I found out how my employer feels about me, I am not happy anymore.”

Despite the accusation, the helper said she does not intend to transfer to another employer.

“Whether it’s good or bad, I’ll accept it because I have my family behind me. If I’m good, my family will be good. And the 3-year-old boy I take care of is very nice and good, so I don’t want to change employers because of him. I really like and love him,” she wrote.

“Just work and get the money and send it back.”

In the comments, a number of netizens came to the employer’s defence, saying that it was perfectly reasonable to be cautious about giving out such a large sum in advance.

One told her, “My honest answer is if I’m the employer, I might not know if you’re going to run with that S$1200. Even if you work with me for two or three years, it can be unpredictable. I would suggest you manage your funds well. Not everyone will want to lend to you, honestly.”

Others pointed out that most employers themselves don’t get advances from their own jobs, so it didn’t seem fair for helpers to expect one.

“Employers also cannot get advances from the company. I seriously don’t understand this kind of helper,” one netizen said. “Why, why, why.. just work and get the money and send it back; there is no need to ask for an advance or whatsoever…. employers also work on a monthly basis…”

Another employer shared her own experience, recalling how she once lent her helper S$2,000 after being told it was for a family emergency.

“We lent her S$2,000 because she said she needed it for her family. Since she’s like family, we trusted her. You know what happened in the end? Within three days, she was involved in a scam and a loan shark. On the 4th day, we needed to file a police report; the next day, she was sent home. Did we get back our money? NO.”

Is it a good idea to lend money to your helper?

According to HelperPlace, a platform that connects helpers, employers, and agencies, it is generally acceptable to lend money to a helper if she has been working with the family for a while and has shown herself to be reliable.

That said, employers are advised not to lend too much. The amount should ideally be limited to one or two months of the helper’s salary.

HelperPlace also advises employers not to offer a second loan if the previous one has not been fully repaid.

They also recommend setting up a proper repayment plan for any loan given. For example, the helper can repay the loan over six months through small monthly deductions from her salary.

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