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Moving to Singapore: Helper/Childcare questions.

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anon123
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Moving to Singapore: Helper/Childcare questions.

Post by anon123 » Mon, 30 Dec 2013 4:17 am

We will be moving to Singapore soon and have some questions about childcare. We will be living in/near Woodlands as we want to be close to SAS. Not feeling completely comfortable with the maid/helper idea, I'm wondering if there are any other reasonable daycare-type options available. After reading these forums, it seems almost unheard of to send your child to a traditional U.S.-style daycare. I'm not 100% opposed to hiring a live-in maid, however I have a couple of concerns. First, liability seems like a legitimate concern. From what I gather, the employer is liable for ALL medical expenses incurred by a maid. Is it possible to buy reasonable insurance that would cover major illnesses (i.e. cancer). With health-care cost just for my family skyrocketing, I cannot imagine getting stuck with a bill for tens of thousands of dollars for a domestic worker. I'm not trying to be insensitive, just realistic.

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Post by beppi » Mon, 30 Dec 2013 6:52 am

Of course there are other day-care options and many locals use them.
Full-day care costs somewhere around S$1000-1800/month (this is more than the cost of having a full-time maid - locals get a subsidy of half of this) and your kid will learn some Mandarin for free there, too.
Some International Schools have day care centres, too, but they are often only working half day and cost lots more.

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Post by anon123 » Mon, 30 Dec 2013 3:24 pm

Thanks for the response! Can you comment on the medical liability issue? It appears that some basic medical insurance is mandatory for household help, however the government website also says that the employer is responsible for ALL medical expenses. Would this also include extreme cases where bills could run in the tens/hundreds of thousands?

Perhaps coming from a litigious society makes me a bit paranoid about these things, but it seems like quite a risk to take on all medical liability for someone whose medical history is unknown to me.

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Post by Beeroclock » Mon, 30 Dec 2013 4:26 pm

anon123 wrote:Thanks for the response! Can you comment on the medical liability issue? It appears that some basic medical insurance is mandatory for household help, however the government website also says that the employer is responsible for ALL medical expenses. Would this also include extreme cases where bills could run in the tens/hundreds of thousands?

Perhaps coming from a litigious society makes me a bit paranoid about these things, but it seems like quite a risk to take on all medical liability for someone whose medical history is unknown to me.
Interesting question, I think the answer's no, but would also be keen to hear others' thoughts. As I understand everyone here with a FDW will take out the basic Maid Insurance and that's it, I haven't heard of people taking additional medical cover for the Maid.

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Post by beppi » Mon, 30 Dec 2013 5:32 pm

You are liable only while she is under your employment, which can be terminated with short notice for any reason you like (after which she will be repatriated).
I have seen this happen for medical bill reasons. How heartless do you want to be?

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Post by Beeroclock » Mon, 30 Dec 2013 5:53 pm

beppi wrote:You are liable only while she is under your employment, which can be terminated with short notice for any reason you like (after which she will be repatriated).
I have seen this happen for medical bill reasons. How heartless do you want to be?
Foreign Maid Insurance policies cover medical with typical limits up to $2k outpatient and $15k p.a. for hospital/surgical. That's what my policy has anyway.

Regarding the scenario OP mentions of a long-term serious illness such as cancer, that would be a difficult one indeed. Am sure most FDW employers are not going in with such obligations in mind, that's for sure! Like beppi says it might seem heartless to terminate in such sad circumstances, but on the other hand it also seems unreasonable to expect the employer to take care of FDW indefinitely if they become long-term unwell, unable to perform their duties and if the expenses start going substantially beyond the insurance cover.

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Post by beppi » Mon, 30 Dec 2013 6:08 pm

In the case I was mentioning, the FDW fell from a ladder while cleaning the windows and injured her spine. According to the doctors, she'll never be able to do heavy work and needs pain medication for life. The (Ang Moh, in case it matters) employer sent her back to Sri Lanka immediately - and it was his right to do so (as confirmed by a maid help organisation we engaged).
Of course I hope the OP (and any other reader) will have more heart.

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Post by Beeroclock » Mon, 30 Dec 2013 6:27 pm

beppi wrote:In the case I was mentioning, the FDW fell from a ladder while cleaning the windows and injured her spine. According to the doctors, she'll never be able to do heavy work and needs pain medication for life. The (Ang Moh, in case it matters) employer sent her back to Sri Lanka immediately - and it was his right to do so (as confirmed by a maid help organisation we engaged).
Of course I hope the OP (and any other reader) will have more heart.
Yeah if the injury actually occurred while FDW was performing duties that makes it different again. I agree beppi there is a moral obligation if not a legal one for employer to act compassionately in such circumstances.

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Post by anon123 » Tue, 31 Dec 2013 8:01 am

I'm not sure why there seems to be the assumption that I don't have a heart or compassion. If you re-read my initial post, I thought I made it clear that I would prefer other childcare alternatives anyway. However, for whatever reason it seems that the system in Singapore is set up so that a maid is a much more viable solution to childcare than some more familiar (at least to me) alternatives.

As far as my medical liability questions, I find them extremely valid. If, in the unlikely event I had to choose between the financial future of my family and the well-being of a stranger...well perhaps I don't have as much compassion (money) as some of you. While we will live comfortably on our package, we will not be admitted into the Singapore millionaires club any time soon. :wink:

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Post by Beeroclock » Tue, 31 Dec 2013 9:29 am

anon123 wrote:I'm not sure why there seems to be the assumption that I don't have a heart or compassion. If you re-read my initial post, I thought I made it clear that I would prefer other childcare alternatives anyway. However, for whatever reason it seems that the system in Singapore is set up so that a maid is a much more viable solution to childcare than some more familiar (at least to me) alternatives.

As far as my medical liability questions, I find them extremely valid. If, in the unlikely event I had to choose between the financial future of my family and the well-being of a stranger...well perhaps I don't have as much compassion (money) as some of you. While we will live comfortably on our package, we will not be admitted into the Singapore millionaires club any time soon. :wink:
I wouldn't take it personally Anon, I reckon the heartless question is a more general one highlighting the attitude of many FDW employers rather than specifically to you. Yes the medical questions are valid, certainly got me thinking and to recheck my policy. We also use a FDW for childcare as a non-preferred but pragmatic solution, and with very close supervision.

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