Maid’s employer asks, ‘What’s the standard ang pau amount to give my helper during her birthday celebration?’

SINGAPORE: So how much love (in SG dollars) should you pack into an ang pow for your maid’s birthday? Well, one Singapore employer decided to ask Facebook—and things got festive fast!

In the Direct Hire Transfer Singapore Maid / Domestic Helper Facebook group, a seemingly innocent query sparked a whirlwind of responses: “Could you please advise on what the standard ang pau amount is to give my helper during her birthday celebration?”

🎂 Turns out, there’s no fixed formula. Just a lot of cake, kindness, and an unexpected range of SG dollar signs as one commenter cut straight to the chase: “There’s really no ‘standard’ amount for ang pows — any amount that you are comfortable with will be appreciated. Thought that counts :).”

Still, others came armed with figures. The most common? A modest S$50, sometimes accompanied by a cake, but some helpers hit the birthday jackpot: “My employer gives me S$100. And my sir’s parents? S$300! They are very generous,” said one lucky helper.

Another chimed in with a birthday trilogy of surprises: “My boss gave me S$90 + phone and perfume. Second birthday: S$500. Third: Hang out with friends, banana boat ride included.”

And the crowd went wild, but not everyone’s celebration story sparkled with confetti.

“My employer? Nothing. They don’t care,” said one bluntly. “Don’t make me jealous, I always get nothing,” another wrote with a sigh.

Others preferred consistency over surprise, like the employer who explained their no-ang-pow policy: “I don’t give ang bao on her birthday because I know once I give, she’ll expect it yearly. I’d rather give a bigger one during CNY. You won’t forget CNY.”

Wise or stingy? Depends on which side of the cake you’re on.

Still, many helpers were grateful just to be acknowledged — even if it was with “just” a cake or a thoughtful gesture, as one wrote: “Almost four years here, never received anything on my birthday, but I’m still grateful to my employer for being kind.”

One helper remembered a special celebration with her Malaysian employer: “They threw me a simple party, got cakes from Baskin-Robbins, gave me a speaker set, took me to a Japanese restaurant, and — the best part — they didn’t ask me to cook that day!”

🎁 Whether it’s a red packet, a perfume bottle, or just a heartfelt “Happy Birthday,” the consensus is clear: There’s no standard way or rate to give — only sincerity as the helpers themselves declared their final words: “As long as it’s from your heart ❤️.”

In other news, we think we’ve cracked the perfect birthday gift idea for this next helper, like maybe a buffet voucher because the Maid eats over 5 meals a day: Employer complains, ‘My maid can’t stop eating until she overstretched my monthly food budget by 1.5 times’