Maids say they would rather not have a fixed timetable

SINGAPORE: When asked about their daily schedules, a group of maids wrote online that they would rather not have a fixed timetable but prioritise their own tasks.

In an anonymous post to a support group for domestic helpers and employers alike, one maid asked others to “share what daily timetable your employer gave you and how you changed it for the better”.

Responding, a number of helpers said that they preferred to observe their employers’ schedules for the day and plan their tasks around that.

One helper wrote: “No timetable but I observe my employers routine and jive with it on a day to day basis. But I ask a lot of their expectations, and I’m the one informing them want I’m going to do on a weekly or monthly basis. Though schedules are helpful specially when u just join the family u work for. Its helps you manage time and accomplish things according to their expectations. Eventually u will find time for yourself to rest when u get use to their routine and the things they want u to accomplished. As long as the schedule is realistic and reasonable”.

Another helper also said: “No timetable given, i do my work with my own initiative”.

Earlier this year, a frustrated employer wanted help deciding whether to extend her maid’s contract. The employer wrote that her helper had been with the family for almost 2 years but had still not got the daily routine down to memory.

In an anonymous post to a support group for domestic helpers and employers alike, the woman said that she could not make up her mind as to whether or not she wanted to extend her maid’s contract.

The woman wrote that her maid was good at cooking for both the adults and the children. She also said her helper was good at cleaning as long as directions were given.

“But, when it comes to initiative it’s zero. I have to keep directing her on what needs to be done when. My household literally runs on the same routine day in and day out but even then she can mess up the daily routine if I dont keep her time in check. She is also very slow in getting work completed and to be honest I’m not sure if this is done on purpose”, she added.

https://theindependent.sg/employer-says-her-maid-needs-to-be-repeatedly-told-what-to-do-despite-the-household-running-on-the-same-schedule-daily/