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Part Time Maid - Is this legal?

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sundaymorningstaple
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Post by sundaymorningstaple » Mon, 26 Mar 2012 2:05 pm

fatmouse76 wrote:I understand about the laws but they cant deny that Singaporeans just dont want to do cleaning , well someone has to do it, let the maids do it. We dont even have enough bus drivers here, thus we need to get PRC or Malaysians in, Singaporeans love to complain, but are they going to do these jobs ?

If the employer knows his maid is doing part time outside, then yes he should be punished. But if he doesnt,then i think its really unfair. I have a FDW now who has been with me for a week, takes 4 sundays off and says she is taking Accounting classes for maids every Sunday. I have seen the timetable but yes I just hope that she is not doing part time outside instead of going for classes.
With all the news items about foreign maids in the media weekly, there is no excuse for an "employer" not to know about hiring illegal maids. The same goes for renting flats to people. The LAW requires landlords to ensure that the tenant is here legally with a proper residency permit. Likewise, the tenant has the ability to see it the landlord is who they claim they are and if it is legal for them to rent out their flat/rooms.

Ignorance of the law is no excuse.
SOME PEOPLE TRY TO TURN BACK THEIR ODOMETERS. NOT ME. I WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW WHY I LOOK THIS WAY. I'VE TRAVELED A LONG WAY, AND SOME OF THE ROADS WEREN'T PAVED. ~ Will Rogers

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Post by mitlan » Thu, 03 May 2012 11:43 pm

with the shortage of manpower nowadays in the cleaning business, there are definitely companies out there who will want to engage non-legal workers. these companies should be not be let off as they are breaking the law and also risk getting others into trouble.

imagine the non-legal workers need money and are taught by the companies to get through the system and maybe are misled that it is not serious even if caught?

usually these companies charge lower than market rate and thus have to resort to all these.

i used to be in the cleaning industry years ago, and have since sold it. however, i am still very much in touch and i know all the tricks. it really does not make sense to exploit workers like these.

then again, it takes time to make the customers understand that the salary expectation for local and PRs are increasing and it is getting more difficult to employ reliable and good ones.

glad i am no longer having to worry about all these.

the lessons i learnt from my previous business taught me the importance of ethics in doing business. and never break the law when doing business, if you do business and break the law, why not just go find some illegal business to do then?
Time has emerged as today's key commodity. People can now buy back time with EcoVerve!

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carteki
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Post by carteki » Fri, 04 May 2012 10:49 am

I'm confused ...
As far as I was aware cleaning companies were allowed to employ foreign workers to go and do work for their various clients. They would arrange the visa etc as the employer would be the cleaning company. There is an assumption in this conversation that she's working for the cleaning company illegally without you ever having checked those facts (a quick look at her work permit would've told you who her employer was). Yeah, the visit-motive and tailgating makes it suspicious, but I can see a legitimately employed worker doing the same given the level of harrassment these ladies live in constant fear of.

It is only where the arrangement is directly between yourself and the maid that you can only employ PRs or citizens.

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Post by mitlan » Fri, 04 May 2012 11:15 am

if it was the cleaning company that employed her, and her occupation is declared as housekeeper or cleaner, she will definitely not have any problems. why then is she so worried?

few scenarios:
1) she has a work pass, but her occupation is not declared correctly
2) she does not have a work pass
3) she may even be an overstayer

with the current crunch in manpower and the difficulty in getting foreign workers for this position, companies are "thinking out of the box" to beat the the legal system.

which is pointless, just use more time, effort and make the salaries more reasonable, i am sure there will be locals to work. the common perception is that cleaners should be earning little, and i don't understand why this perception.

we should pay according to skills not just job. of course i am not saying to pay a degree holder's pay but if they put in additional hours and prove that they can do their job excellently, i don't see why they should be deprived a better pay.

people with education may have a more comfy job, work less for say $3000? if a cleaner puts in 12 hours daily and works 6 days a week, why not pay them a more reasonable pay?

i ever heard some cleaning contractors' bosses around my office telling another colleague a cleaner wanted to work only 5 days and not 12 hours and he was saying she was crazy. guess what, he offered her only $1000 a month for 6 days of 12 hours each.
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Post by Sisi2000 » Thu, 09 Aug 2012 7:34 am

I had a very similar situation with a part time maid. I found out she was a study mama on LTVP. the company and her decided not to apply to MOM for approval becos the company would not pay the levy. If MOM-approval is sought the company said they would take the levy from her salary. I would like to add that these people very rarely get caught becos they work at homes. Of course i discontinued their services when they could not produce the mom approval

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Post by importantmum2012 » Sun, 15 Sep 2013 3:14 am

We would like to add more important information for those considering 'part-time maids', if there are any such legal term for them at all.

If you employ a "part-time" maid, domestic helper, they must either be
- Singaporeans /w compulsory CPF contributions (so that they can get and do not miss out on their government workfare bonus)
- Singapore PRs /w compulsory CPF contributions (so that they can get and do not miss out on their government workfare bonus)
OR
Foreign Cleaners WITH PROPER WORK PERMITS DIRECTLY UNDER THE PAYROLL of the cleaning company.
If they do not get their CPF, they can go to CPF Board to sue you and you will be liable for criminal charge. Even if they ‘agree’ to take cash in private, if things go sour between you and them, they may ‘still decide’ to go to CPF Board to sue you and CPF will still go after you.

Any filipino / Indonesian/ or other country maids working OUTSIDE their original employer's houses ARE DEEM TO BE CONDUCTING IN ILLEGAL ACTIVITIES, can be ARRESTED and CHARGED in SINGAPORE COURT and DEPORTED BACK TO THEIR HOME COUNTRY.

The employment agencies supplying such 'part-time maids' are liable of up to S$80,000 fine by MOM and the house owner employing the part-time services of the filipino / Indonesian / or other country 'part-time' maids is also liable to be fined up to S$15,000 by MOM. Pleading 'ignorance' is not an excuse of violating Singapore Law.

MOM Officers are stepping up their inspections from 500 to 5,000 per year. That is a 10 fold increase. And so is CPF Board performing checks. Both are doing their work, rooting out offenders.

The bottom line is: It doesn't pay to pay less for illegal maids. Look for cleaning companies who only supply Singaporean or PR helpers, OR foreign helpers with PROPER WORK PERMITS. These come at a premium cost, but at least you can be assured you are acting in accordance with Singapore Law and you can sleep in peace. More and more have been caught and charged.

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