Posted by
tobin
16 yrs ago
Hello,
My wife is pregnant, and we are expecting in December. I believe that we need a helper, as we are both teachers and need the double income to finance our mortgage.
Any advice on the best agencies?
We are hoping to have a helper who does not live with us, but who can come around 7am when we leave for work, and leave around 5pm when we get home.
Any advice is much appreciated!
T
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A Foreign Domestic Helper must by law be live-in unless you get an exemption from the Immigration Department. This is for practical purposes impossible unless you have a tiny living space. You can of course get a legal part time nanny and/or maid, but this tends to be less efficient cost wise. That is, the amount you pay per hour will be much more.
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Ed
16 yrs ago
If you need an agency please use the AsiaXPAT Agency run by Evelyn. The reason we decided to open our own agency was because of the horror stories we were hearing about virtually all agencies in HK e.g. one tactic they use with helpers is gouging them for illegal fees when they know they have lost their job and are about to be sent home - they will line up interviews if the helper pays more cash...
We have over 600 helpers sign up on our site each month - most of the agencies use our database to 'recommend' helpers site unseen.
Evelyn and her assistants speak with ALL of them when they register so ONLY they know which ones are best
We charge less you less than other agencies and we charge the helpers NOTHING when we find them jobs.
Evelyn's details are at the top of this page http://hongkong.asiaxpat.com/helpers/
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Axptguy38, hi, how do you get a legal part-time nanny/helper ? Thx
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I'm not sure exactly. I suppose you could look in the classifieds of the papers. I know it is harder to find one compared to a live-in. And as mentioned, ultimately more expensive. The person in question needs to have HK residency or citizenship and so can get any other job, meaning she can command a totally different salary and terms. Also, live-ins in any country are cheaper because living expenses are one of the bigger parts of anyone's spending. If you take that away, salary can be dramatically lower.
The law and the labor market very much favor having a live-in. Do you have a very small place or is there another reason you don't want a live in? As you are having a kid, think of the hours involved. Having had a nanny who worked 0730-1800 while in the US, and a helper six days a week here, I must say the current arrangement is far superior.
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JinHK
16 yrs ago
I think the name of a professional / qualified nanny service is Annerley midwives. A friend used them at night time so she could get a good nights sleep for a few months then switched to day time care when she went back to work.
Not cheap but she was pleased with them.
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I have also heard good things about Annerley midwives. But they don't seem like a long term solution.
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Try www.rent-a.mum.com for professional nannies and babysitters. They are very good and preferable to getting an fdh - except more expensive.
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The correct URL is http://www.rent-a-mum.com/
"They are very good and preferable to getting an fdh - except more expensive."
I don't understand. How are they preferable?
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Maybe preferable means "personal preference"? Each family has different circumstances and needs.
But if you think you won't have problems dealing with local helpers and other services, think again. It's just the way it is: when you deal with people (boss or servant) there is bound to be problems. Come to think of it, even husbands and wives who have declared eternal love and to live together come rain or shine still have problems, why won't anybody hiring a full time fdh expect relationship problems?
If husband and wife have divorce, employer-employee has "termination" and both parties can avail of it!
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punter, very well said. It's all about finding the right person. Live-in or live-out are not as important as finding the right person.
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