SINGAPORE: A foreign domestic helper who was hired to care for a newborn was seen by her employers to be constantly talking on the phone, even while feeding the child. On average, the employer said that her maid’s calls were at least 30 minutes long.
In an anonymous post to Facebook group FDW in Singapore (working conditions forum), the maid’s employer said that her helper then wanted a loan from them to get a new phone and she asked netizens if she should accede to said request. The employer wrote that this was her first time hiring a helper to take care of her newborn.
“She is overall ok in her daily duty for the 2 months+ with us. Recently she was asking if she can get a loan from us to get a new mobile as her phone is dying. Meaning cannot last her talking for more than 30 mins and phone will shut down”, the woman wrote. She added that she was reluctant to give her maid the loan as she has seen her maid constantly talking on the phone either through the CCTV system or after she had finished her chores.
“Caught a few times feeding my newborn and taking at the same time too. Her avg talking more than 30min or longer. Should I agree to her request?” the employer asked.
In the comments section, the employer said that she did confront her maid and tell her not to use the phone while caring for her newborn. However, “At times i still caught her on cctv when i am out. I did not even told her that she cant use phone during work. For a short conversation in between work i am ok but i spotted her using more than 30 min all the time.but when she see me she did hang up the phone immediately”, the woman wrote.
Most helpers who commented on the post said that the employer should not start lending her helper money for fear it may become a habit. Others also said that the maid’s phone was working so a new phone was hardly a necessity.
Here’s what they said:
Last year, another foreign domestic worker, lacking sleep after caring for her employer’s newborn twins, took to social media to ask other helpers for advice.
The maid who cared for the babies had asked her friend to write to Facebook group FDW in Singapore (working conditions forum) for help. In her post, the helper said that before she started working with the family, her employer was already pregnant with twins.
After her employer gave birth to twins, the family hired an additional caregiver for two months specifically for the twins and to teach the helper how to handle them. The maid did not have any children herself and was inexperienced, but she attended a caregiving course so that she was equipped to take care of newborns.
In the post, she added that after the caregiver’s departure, the maid was the sole caregiver of the twins. She complained that she did not have enough sleep, as her employer’s friends would often visit the babies in the middle of the night. The twins would be disturbed and end up crying, leaving the helper carrying them until they fall asleep again.
“she think she can’t handle if the situation continue like that,she keep asking what to do or is it okay to ask an increase to her salary since she took care of 2 baby’s and sooner or later she will be a certified caregiver,running away is not an option since we come for work and she studied caregiving to took care of baby’s and elderly”, the helper’s friend wrote, asking others for advice on what she should do.