SINGAPORE: An employer reached out for advice online after finding out that a staff member at a nearby grocery store verbally shamed her domestic helper.
“My domestic helper has lived with my family for a very long time (> 10 years). She is recognized by many of the staff since she goes there daily,” she wrote on r/askSingapore, a Reddit forum.
“Today, I found out that there is one staff who verbally shamed her and has called her fat multiple times. According to my helper, the staff has even touched her (my helper’s) stomach and asked if she was pregnant!”
The employer found the behaviour “incredibly rude and unprofessional,” stating that the staff had no right to make such comments just because her helper was a regular customer.
She is also concerned because these comments have significantly impacted her helper’s well-being. “My helper has started to go on a diet and has skipped lunch for 3 days straight,” she wrote.
Although she wanted to file a complaint with the store manager, she was unsure who the staff member was, and her helper didn’t want to escalate the situation.
“It makes me so angry that the staff is going just to keep working there without any consequences,” she added.
“Suggest healthier options that don’t require caloric reduction, such as intermittent fasting.”
In the comments section, a few Singaporean Redditors suggested that the employer follow her helper on her next visit to the grocery store to identify the culprit.
One Redditor said, “Follow discreetly… and then escalate to a manager.”
Another speculated that the staff member’s behaviour might have resulted from insecurity, saying: “… it sounds like someone who is insecure and needs to put down others to elevate herself.”
However, one Redditor explained, “There is nothing illegal committed here; you won’t be able to do anything useful other than embarrass the staff and be like a Karen caught on YouTube.
If the helper is overweight, she is probably already set to lose weight; suggest healthier options, such as intermittent fasting, that don’t require caloric reduction.
This way, she can still eat all three healthy meals in a day, but within an 8-10 hour window, with no change in calorie intake.”
In other news, a woman brought a troubling situation to light on social media, alleging that her former domestic helper is being mistreated and exploited by her current employer.
In a detailed post on r/singapore on Wednesday (Aug 7), she described the harsh conditions the helper has faced since moving to her new workplace.
“Her now employer has not given her any daily meals, she is not allowed to use the kitchen, she must pay for her own medical visits and does gardening, all the time being scolded by an educated, articulate estranged woman,” she wrote.
Read more: Woman claims her former domestic helper is being mistreated and exploited by her current employer
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