Is paid annual home leave for Singapore maids a good idea?
Is paid annual home leave for Singapore maids a good idea?
Should it be mandatory for employers to provide paid annual home leave to foreign domestic workers?
Should it be mandatory for employers to provide paid annual home leave to foreign domestic workers?
Jaya
Hello mummies! MP Louis Ng is planning to debate this question in Parliament: “To ask the Minister for Manpower whether the Ministry will consider making it mandatory for employers to provide paid annual home leave to foreign domestic workers.” What do YOU think about it?
Dawn Kee, Mum
I disagree. Maids have already been given many rights whereas employers do not have. Sure, we do have some nasty employers who do unmentionable horrible things to their helpers but those type of employers are only a handful and not representative of the entire population of employers in Sg. Most employers I know are good and reasonable. A good maid is not easy to come by, and most employers like myself do not mind rewarding them based on their capability. We do not need to make annual leave mandatory for maids in Singapore.
Michelle Ong, mum
I think that there are actually more important things to discuss than this issue. As a mum, I don't agree in making it mandatory. E.g., when my maid goes for home leave, I give a token ang pow & other stuff she needs like 2nd hand handphone or laptop, even buy new clothes for her. These are gestures I make from the heart to show my appreciation. Bringing up a kid is already so expensive. When maids go for home leave, some mums have to take unpaid leave from work to stay home and take care of the kids. Forcing them to pay for maid's home leave is double the expense for them.
Andrea Lim, Mum
I don't agree. We have to protect ourselves. We can pay them when they come home. But not before they leave.
Sreeja Pradeep, Mum
Most helpers stick with the same employer for only 2 years and then go back home, with the flight tickets already being paid by employers. If they do choose to come back, employers book both ways, so then can't understand what is the issue ??