Employing a Local Part Time Cleaner

[jazskimo]

Hello,

My husband and I have been expats in Singapore for about 6 months now. In this time, we have tried 4 agencies for a part time cleaner to come 3 days a week for 3 hours.

All cleaners and agencies have let us down by either not doing a good job or not turning up at all. Also communication with the agencies is not very good and one agency sent us the same invoice 3 times with new figures added each invoice.

A college of my husband suggested we hire a Singaporean part time cleaner and suggest one that has worked for him.

I have searched the MOM website to find out how we do this and can not find any information relating to hiring a "local" worker.

I am sure there are fees and taxes to pay, but I cant find this information.

My husband said that his college's current cleaner works on private contract for a number of clients and therefore he doesn't need to pay medical or tax.....

This does not sound legit to me, so I was hoping someone could tell me where to look for information, or if anyone currently employees a Singaporean part time cleaner, what I need to do.

Thanks

[the lynx]

Hello,

My husband and I have been expats in Singapore for about 6 months now. In this time, we have tried 4 agencies for a part time cleaner to come 3 days a week for 3 hours.

All cleaners and agencies have let us down by either not doing a good job or not turning up at all. Also communication with the agencies is not very good and one agency sent us the same invoice 3 times with new figures added each invoice.

A college of my husband suggested we hire a Singaporean part time cleaner and suggest one that has worked for him.

I have searched the MOM website to find out how we do this and can not find any information relating to hiring a "local" worker.

I am sure there are fees and taxes to pay, but I cant find this information.

My husband said that his college's current cleaner works on private contract for a number of clients and therefore he doesn't need to pay medical or tax.....

This does not sound legit to me, so I was hoping someone could tell me where to look for information, or if anyone currently employees a Singaporean part time cleaner, what I need to do.

Thanks

Refer to our moderator's link for expats (sundaymorningstaple, I'm borrowing your link to show to OP ) under "Domestic Help / Courses for Maids / House Cleaning Services". These are the ones recommended by fellow expats and uses Singaporean/PR cleaners.

http://www.keynote-engineers.net/useful_links.html

And you are right. Foreign domestic workers or janitors are not supposed to clean in premises aside from the ones mentioned in their Work Permit card. Both the offending cleaner and employer (and the employer whom she moonlights for, which refers to you in your case) can be punished by law when caught.

[x9200]

Hello,

My husband and I have been expats in Singapore for about 6 months now. In this time, we have tried 4 agencies for a part time cleaner to come 3 days a week for 3 hours.

All cleaners and agencies have let us down by either not doing a good job or not turning up at all. Also communication with the agencies is not very good and one agency sent us the same invoice 3 times with new figures added each invoice.

A college of my husband suggested we hire a Singaporean part time cleaner and suggest one that has worked for him.

I have searched the MOM website to find out how we do this and can not find any information relating to hiring a "local" worker.

I am sure there are fees and taxes to pay, but I cant find this information.

My husband said that his college's current cleaner works on private contract for a number of clients and therefore he doesn't need to pay medical or tax.....

This does not sound legit to me, so I was hoping someone could tell me where to look for information, or if anyone currently employees a Singaporean part time cleaner, what I need to do.

There is no consensus about this also on this board so you may hear different opinions. Mine is that the freelancing, local (SC or SPR) part time cleaners are just service providers so you buy their services similarly as you do it paying for shoes or car repair. These are not the employment contracts but contracts for providing of the services and the service providers are responsible for paying all related taxes and cpf by themselves.
And yes, it is very, very difficult to find in Singapore a good, reliable part time cleaner for a reasonable price regardless it is the said freelancer or somebody arranged or provided via/by an agency.
I would follow your husband's colleague suggestions although if that cleaner is available or she wants money comparable to what you already paid via the agencies (etc) she is probably not good neither The only thing you should ensure is whether she is SC or SPR. Only these two categories can be legally hired.

[jazskimo]

Thanks for your replies.

On further discussion with my husbands work mate, she is SC and has her FIN card etc.

The rate she is offering is good, and I would rather pay someone direct then an agency, Sorry I am a little burned by them!

What is CPF please?

I just want to find out as much information as I can as I have heard the horror stories, and I do want to do the wrong thing and get deported. My husband would kill me lo!

[x9200]

Thanks for your replies.

On further discussion with my husbands work mate, she is SC and has her FIN card etc.

If she is SC then she can not have a FIN card as FIN is exclusively for foreigners. She should have a pink NRIC.

The rate she is offering is good, and I would rather pay someone direct then an agency, Sorry I am a little burned by them!

What is CPF please?

A compulsory contribution in a form of savings paid by both the employer and the employee to a special account (applicable to SC/SPR only).

I just want to find out as much information as I can as I have heard the horror stories, and I do want to do the wrong thing and get deported. My husband would kill me lo!

Don't worry.

[sundaymorningstaple]

Actually she can be a PR or SC and her NRIC (Not FIN) should be either Blue or Pink.

[jcrflint]

i beg to differ.
for my husband and i, on our previous work relocation 3 years back (we are slated to come back again next year), we used to engage a cleaning company who turned out to be disastrous.

in the end, on the advice of local colleagues who are singaporeans, my colleague suggested a local singaporean "auntie".. they seem to call ladies who are married or of a certain age, "aunties" here.
anyway, she is local and i did not pay any cpf at all. paid her hourly rate of $15 to $25 and she came in twice a week for 3- 4 or even 6 hours each time.
rates and hours differ because we had stayed in an apartment along devonshire road initially. then relocated to a bigger semi detached house nearer to suburbs.

she was a gem. and i entrusted her with a spare key to come in during the hours we were away or out from the house especialy on weekdays.
my ex local colleague told me that there are locals here who are housewives and who wishes to supplement their income.
this is legal i heard from him. he says a lot of singaporeans hires these local ladies.

you may want to keep a lookout for this.

[x9200]

i beg to differ.

You beg to differ what?

[jazskimo]

Thank you all.

Its a pink card lol. I always think its a FIN cause all the forms say NRIC /FIN so I thought they were the same ahhahah

First time expat much? ha ha ha.

It is really confusing trying to find information here in SG. And I have found that I often get told 2 or 3 slightly different variations on what it actually is!

I think we will give her a go. If she is ok, then I might just go into MOM and ask someone what I am meant to do.

I dont want to have to pay any large medical bills should she injure herself on our premises either

Thanks so much for all your replies!