Posted by
popsicle
19 yrs ago
I am in the process of interviewing for a full time helper.
I would much prefer to pay a food allowance on top of the wage, i.e. $4250 + $500 food - (I am an at home mum with a 1 yr old)
Firstly is this a fair wage for an experienced DH with Western / baby experience?
Secondly, should they currently have 'free food' on top how does one manage meals when we buy expensive meats for ourselves...I could end up paying $2000 per mth for DH food - that I can not afford!
Should anyone with experience of food on top be able to give me a comparison I would much appreciate it.
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I think that fair enough !
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RiceT
19 yrs ago
considering the minimum contract wage is $3320 per month, it's more than fair to even offer the $4250 alone. consider using the minimum ($3320)in the contract and offering bonuses outside the contract.
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I know, I too think it is very very reasonable, especially as there are only 3 of us and I will take care of the baby most of the time. However, experienced (i.e. 7+ yrs) helpers with Western families are pretty much on $4,500 upwards. And if I had been here 7+ years I guess I too wouldn't want to drop my wage...
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Brit
19 yrs ago
why not start at the minimum plus food allowance and then up it after completion of a probationary period - after all just cos she worked with another family doesn't mean she will work with you. I think the minimum food allow is $300 so $3620 in total. I know its not much but will incentivise her to try hard?
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As for the food allowance, $500 is probably fair but at the low end of what the helper needs to survive. There are lots of threads here about how $300 is enough, and I tend to agree with that assessment, especially for helpers working for "local" families. Then again, if my helper is really going to be taking care of my first born and be on call, I wouldn't want any chance of her being too hungry or tired to do her job. I was just doing a rough calculation, and I estimate that we contribute at least $600-$800 in food and kind each month to our helper and we are hardly extravagent.
As for the expensive meats, you simply tell your helper that it is not for her consumption. Simple as that. Every household has its rules, and you get to set them however you choose.
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ritad
19 yrs ago
dear employer,
pls don't start paying so much a head of time...i have been really kind to my maid..and trust me ..it is better if you give them in the form of bonus....orelse you will just have a hard time...
as for food allowance...give her 500 that is good enough...if you see that she has a big appetite then give her more..orelse this is fine...and also...most of them don't eat that much....regardless from experience...you must lay out what you want from her..dont' think just cause she is experienced she will do everything...maybe at first..but later..you willb e doing everything...
i do pay above mimimum wage...and also....i end up doing all the housework...cleaning and taking care of kids...it seems she is too busy on the phone nowadays..she gets all her sundays off and also statutory holidays on the days itself...but it will soon cahnge....i will replace those holisayd on other days...since i feel she is ...just taking advantage of my silence..
best of luck..you want a maid to be help to you..not stress..
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mmmm, thanks all for sharing opinions/ experiences ... Have decided to start lower, so I have room to move, i.e. when bub #2 comes along etc.
cheers
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ueberandout, try paying your next helper the minimum and see if there is any difference in performance.
The simple (and sad) fact is that helpers who go through agencies in the Philippines have to work 6-9 months before they even break even on their application and processing fees, according to my helper (who paid these fees twice). That is why I get pissed off at the attitude of some employers who think they can just fire people for the smallest problem. Sure, your helper is your employee, but you also have a responsibility to train the individual and set reasonable expectations. I think the best gift an expat employer can give their helper is to give adequate notice of their plans in Hong Kong and/or help them find a new job when they suddenly leave the country.
While we pay more than the minimum, I agree with jbebeb. What's so bad about the minimum? It is still a heck of a lot of money for the helpers and not a small sum for the vast majority of employers in Hong Kong (and elsewhere in Asia). It's all relative.
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cd
19 yrs ago
We pay our help $3,800 plus $500 food allowance, plus we pay the tax. We tried not giving a food allowance to a previous helper but she didn't like the food we ate so its easier if they cook their own. She normally has toast for breakfast, a packet of noodles for lunch but she adds veg and an egg or luncheon meat to it, then rice, veg and meat for dinner. She sometimes buys herself pepsi or sweets. If I have food left over that I know will get wasted I give it to her, or sometimes I buy a new type of biscuit or snacks for the kids that they won't eat then she has them. She's never said that she can't manage on the money.
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It's not a paltry sum. My helper has been earning the minimum since she arrived in HK 6 years ago (she's been with me for 5 months only, still on the minimum). She has bought a piece of land, built a big house, and has now bought a second piece of land where she plans to build a second building so she can have a business to return to in 4 or 5 years. She has a husband and son at home. She works very happily, my son loves her, and she lives in the flat above me with a friend's helper. (By the way, in answer to the original question, she does not get a food allowance but buys whatever she wants with my shopping money. She writes down all shopping expenses and I know she spends way less than $500 a month.)
I also employ a man in the same country my helper is from to take care of my property there. I pay him 20% of what I pay my DH here, a sum way in excess of what he would earn in any other job locally. He supports his wife and son and the last time I saw him he proudly showed us round his newly renovated house.
In both cases we are not talking about a large sum of money in HK terms. I feel that all three of us are very happy with the situation.
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They're obviously not law-abiding then, are they?
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Where I live, the local Chinese ladies (mostly) who empty the bins and sweep the streets get something like $4200pm for a 6-day week. No accommodation, no food, nothing. My domestic helper (as I already said) owns multiple properties. Like the others have said, we have our priorities wrong.
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It is important to also consider that although DH salaries seem low, they are generally living in a much improved environment with free room and board. Boarding houses can be terrible and still relatively expensive, so the fact that they usually receive their own private room, bathroom, food, electricity, sometimes phone and TV is worth at least HKD 1500/month or more. I'm quite sure that when our helper goes home to the Philippines for her holiday she does not have as much space to herself (she has a large room with private entry) and all the food she wants. FYI: we pay her 4500/month plus holidays and bonuses, but we could not afford to pay much more, because as Americans, we do not make more money in HK, rather we make the same salary, pay the same US taxes, and pay higher prices!
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I paid my DH above the minimum wage,I think if employer had a good income why not paid them well also?I understand what ueberanbout talking about,the helper working for us long hours,taking care of our children,cooking,cleaning,laundry,and do some marketing,she make sure that our household is OK,can imagine doing all those things?My helper even pack my luggages whenever I go for trip.The important is,it is very hard to leave your children to a person w/c you dont know her background.Thats why we paid our helper above minumum because she's taking good care of my children.
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barbara30
Despite the fact that your comment is completely off the topic,(Hello? Maybe you need to get out a little bit more yourself?) I had to point out that Popsicle never said she doesn't find looking after her baby a pleasure and a joy, nor did she say that her helper is doing all of the baby care. It could very well be that she just wants an occasional babysitter-who knows?
In our own case, our helper does most of the housework so that I can spend time with my children. In the year that we've had a helper, she's babysat for us only a handful of times, but since we do not have the support system that we had in our "home" country (i.e. family, friends, and babysitters willing to watch the kids from time to time) we feel that a helper is necessary.
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I agree to you Barbara30,if I can just have a chance to take care of my family and look after my children I will do it,absulotely had a pleasure and joy if it is me taking care of my family.Sometimes I feel so guilty but cant do anything I need to work.If I am just a sitting around Mom I wont ever hire a full time helper.
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cd
19 yrs ago
To barbara30, maybe you should find out peoples circumstances before slamming them for having a help. We have a physically and mentally disabled son, who because of having live in help we have manged to keep at home with us. If we were in our 'home country' he would be in a residential home by now. Physically, it would be impossible for him to constantly lift him in and out of the car to do school runs for the other kids, afterschool activites etc. And have you tried pushing a shopping trolley, pushchair and wheelchair at the same time! Don't assume that everyone has a helper so they can go swanning off having lunch and facials all the time. And what if they do have lunch occassionally without the kids, its not a crime. Everyones entitled to time off.
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Barbara30,
I didn't mean to sound as if I was complaining actually; I was simply stating facts. I did not want to hire a helper initially when we moved here; I went one year without one. I enjoyed the privacy, but it was exhausting keeping up with keeping a house clean in a sub-tropical climate, and I often had to miss working at the childrens' schools because we had deliveries or errands that had to be done. Once I hired an excellent helper, I was free to volunteer several hours per week at the schools and other places. We treat our helper kindly and with generosity and both she and we are happy. My point was simply that I have MORE time to spend with my children than I did before having a helper. Of course I do housework here too, but my helper does most of it, just as my part time cleaner did most of it when we were in our home country. (As you know, it is illegal in HK to hire a non-Chinese part-time.)
I actually preferred my life before, but as you said, we must adapt to our new environment. I would never criticize someone else for having or not having a helper, but I do agree that there are some that abuse the situation, and ignore their children. Those parents, however, are the exception, I believe, and they would never be good parents with or without a helper! Among my friends who I consider to be good parents, some have no helper, some have one, and a few even have two or three! Just as some parents must hire a teacher or assistant for their children, there are many different cases, aren't there?
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nes
19 yrs ago
I doubt moving to Hong Kong with no support was a choice babette made, instead I'm sure she chose to move here and have help. Why is this choice not acceptable? She isn't complaining about it, she is just addressing it by hiring a domestic helper (who actually wants the job). I don't understand this arguement that tries to imply that by doing this you are a bad parent or not facing up to real life, since when is life in HK not real? its just not the same as life at where ever it is you come from. Lets face it, if we wanted life exactly as it was in our own country,we would still be there.
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