Feedback on helpers hired from Asia Expat

Can users of Asia expat domestic helpers database or services provide a follow up and feedback on the quality of helpers found from Asia Expat. There has been many many problems , such as false references , lies and even helpers who have been stealing are able to find a job easily on Asia Expat. So it would be good to have an idea of how many helpers hired on Asia Expat are based on screened information and how many on false data aimed specifically at the Expat community who may be new or innocent to these untruths and have to suffer later after hiring these women.

We hired our first ever DH via AXP and she was great BUT what everyone should remember is that you must be completely prepared up front as to the type of person you are looking for, experience, etc and this is where so many people fall down, quite badly in some cases.


First narrow down the type of person you want to employ, married / single, kids / no kids, age range, experiences, qualifications before you do anything. Think deeply about what you expect from that person, child care / cleaning / dog watching. If there are any particular schedules you want followed, any particular types of food that you want cooked, where to shop, in fact think of everything.


It's important to run through this at the initial interview stage, preferably in written form so the prospective DH can take it in and ask questions.


Overall the more preparation you do the more chance you have of finding the right person. Finally always make sure that you contact previous employers for references and if that employer ONLY speaks Cantonese then get someone to help you. To be honest most people who have hired DH do speak some English anyway.


Do not make the mistake many here do make of expecting the agency to do all the work for you. You are not shopping for a can of beans, you are about to become an employer. Laziness is no excuse for later problems and the resultant threads on here. Do your preparation and you wont be one of these people.

Just to clarify, we do not screen the helpers who post ads on this section of our site http://hongkong.asiaxpat.com/helpers/


It is up to the potential employer to verify that the reference letters and experience claimed by the helpers is truthful...


We are only an advertising medium much the same as the SCMP... if you were to hire office staff from an ad in the SCMP jobs section and they embellished their CV I don't think anyone could claim that this was the fault of the SCMP...



If you want to hire candidates that are screened by our staff you would have to engage the services of our agency (Evelyn's contacts are at the top of the helper channel). With this service our staff will do a pre-screening and select the best candidates from those who advertise on our site. But ultimately, as with any hiring, I strongly suggest that you speak with a previous employer directly before signing a contract...

If you hire a helper it is YOUR job to screen her with regards to references etc. An agency neither can nor will check these things.

I have a good deal of experience with hiring people from Asiaxpat and am in the process of doing so now. My findings:

1) Some people were terminated and they don't get much of a chance with me unless it was for financial or relocation reasons. If you hire them without a letter from their employer, you are taking a risk.

2) There are many well-qualified excellent helpers on Asiaxpat!Any helper who can work and complete a contract or two are generally tried and true helpers, but I also believe you need to write down your questions and carefully think about your requirements. One person's dud is another person's prize. One woman told me she's not a good cook and I was glad she was honest. You have to sort through the resumes online and your homework and you will definitely find what you need if you ask the right questions. My last helper loved to cook, but I don't have time for her to make 4 hour soups.

PS..Sorry about the last line of my note...I was talking to someone and writing and it didn't make sense.....I suggest you spend a fair bit of time talking to the employer, even a previous employer if you can and the potential employee. See them in a few situations. It is illegal to have the person 'work' for you before you hire her, so it is important that you try hard to make the person relax and be honest. I just interviewed someone who said she really can't cook and didn't have to cook at her last job. Some people would not hire someone like that, but I was trying to explain in my last note that I'd rather have someone who isn't interested in cooking very much than someone who wants to plan out meals and study cookbooks all day. We eat simply and some helpers find it annoying or don't like our food. My last helper would start her lunch at noon and her dinner at 5:30 and take too much time making it and only AFTER she was done did she think she should help me feed my family. I guess I made a mistake because I'd hired someone who had gotten used to her routine. I just did the cooking, but it annoyed me because she would not eat our food and she had said in the interview that she would. Sometimes she did though. She also asked for a food allowance after she started working...She made a point of NOT eating our food and bringing out dried fish and her own spices and making her meals separately. SO, I learned that I really need to hire someone who has worked in a situation more close to my own. If you have naughty children, you must have the helper understand that, meet them and then you can decide if she can follow your discipline. If you want a good cook, I suggest you do NOT tell the helper or employer that. Instead, don't say much about the job. Just ask "What do you/the helper like most? Cleaning, Cooking or watching children?" If they say everything, say "I like that you are flexible, but everyone is better at something than another thing. Some people find cleaning boring. Some people prefer to eat bread for every meal. Some love to cook and try new things..." THen if they say they love to cook, ask what they have for breakfast.Wait for the reply. Ask what the employer has for breakfast and if the helper helps them make it. Ask about lunch and dinner. I just had an interview and the helper was at my home for seven hours! I didn't plan on it taking that long, but it did. She met my family and pets. I showed her around my apartment and we were talking and talking about every tiny little detail of my job. It took a long time because she is not used to a western family. She watched children who were different ages than mine. She has her own children and I don't want her to feel she can tell me how to raise mine, but I want someone strong enough to ask my children to behave, but also nice enough to not yell at them. Some people don't like to spend so much time interviewing, but I am only interviewing a few. Some people hardly speak to their helper, but I feel it helps me if I have a helper who tries to understand why and how things work in my home. I also need to understand the strengths and weaknesses of a helper before I can decide if she is a good fit for my family. THis helper was very outgoing and is used to working in a tiny apartment and doing mostly childcare. I need mostly cleaning so I have to decide what to do. I have another woman who is more used to cleaning, but I don't think she will enjoy my children as much or be as patient with them, so I will have to weigh all of these things out. I may interview each one two times and speak to them 5+ times on the phone! Why? Because I want to know as much as I can so there are less surprises. WHat is her family like? Does she have parents she supports? ARe they sick and old? How many siblings, neices and nephews does she have? Where in the Phillipines is she from? Helpers from the provinces in my view tend to be from farms or fishing villages and have different perspectives and have been exposed to less than those from Manilla. What will that mean in your situation? You also want to know where she is from so you know how long it will take her to get home. For example, ask how do you get home? Do you take a plane from Hong Kong to Manilla and then fly or take a boat or bus to your home? How long does it take? Can you get there in a day? I have heard of helpers telling employers it takes 3 days for them to get home, so the helpers uses this excuse to try and get 2+ weeks holidays. I don't think it takes anyone more than 8 hours to get from HK to their home in the Phillipines, but some of them have to plan it because there may only be one boat a day to their province, etc. Ask if I gave you a week's holiday to go home a year, would that be enough?She willl be entitled to a week's holiday, but some will say that's barely enough to actually get home! If you can give 2-3 weeks holiday, great. If you only plan on giving her a week, say that upfront. Talk about hours she will work, what happens in special emergency situations, and ANYTHING else you can think of. Someone on this site recommended to put it all in writing. You could even give a copy to the helper. Evildeeds gave great advice and Ed recommends using Evelyn. I spoke to her. She is very helpful and could help. I interviewed someone and said she and I have to sleep on it and I honestly told her that I am doing more interviews, but that I have to because I'd already arranged it and she and I both need to choose each other. You also have to give an honest portrait of your situation to your helper. Mine goes something like this..."We are demanding to work for because there are a lot of dishes and the laundry and ironing takes a lot of time. My kids don't always behave, but usually they do.If there are problems, this is what happens,etc. The hours of the day are like this unless my husband is out of town and then I want you to work a bit later as he won't be home to help me at bedtime, etc...I always, always point out that the main things I need are flexibility, cheerfulness and a willingness to learn and try. Some helpers have worked for one family for 10 years. Some people think that makes them reliable. It does, but it also may make them inflexible. Thus, some nuts like me can end up interviewing someone for a day. Yet, I interviewed someone else this morning and in an hour and a half, we had covered many areas and were done. However, she and I met at a public place. The second helper was at my home. The first one has to come to my home next and since my little kids will be there, and the phone will be ringing, etc. it may take an hour or two or three! Good luck. Call the former employer once or twice too!Good luck.

wow, thanks for all the good advices.

Here are some of the most common answers I received on 3 days of interview :


(1)Actually my employer still wants me to stay but I thought I wanted to go home, then I changed my mind

(2)my employer does not know I am staying back , I recommended my sisterinlaw to her and i prefer to find another job, so I cannot give you my employers nymber

(3) ''yes, you can speak to my employer'' 3 days later : ma'am I changed my mind I cannot come

(4) my employer is overseas , I don;t have their phone number anymore

(5) I have a reference letter but I don;t know if you can speak to my employer ,


and a rare few who allowed me to contact the employer but so far the above out numbers the rare few. One told me , I am quitting because of hygiene problem, my employer won't let me change my underwear twice a day !!!!!!! I just had to laugh. Think I will need a lot of luck. thanks for all advices !

Dear helpersss,

I have to agree with u. In most cases, helpers don't want you to contact their employers, but I have also heard of helpers who are very apprehensive about asking their employer for a reference even if their employer is relocating or if their employer terminated them for financial reasons. Some helpers truly don't know their worth. I've pushed and pushed to call employers and got great references to the seeming surprise of humble helpers. However, i had to push the helpers and tel them things like how I'd still hire them if the employer said she was too quiet or too talkative or slow or something, but I just had to .hear the employer say the helper was honest and tried hard. After saying these kinds of things, you may find you get to speak to a lot more employers. I'm told local employers often don't want to be bothered though. They think writing a letter is enough, but for westerners, it isn't so you might have to explain that letters can be forged, etc. I do find that getting a good reference meant the world to me. I'd rather hire someone with a broken contract due to an honest reason like relocation or financial reasons than a helper with a finished contract and no reference.#5 of your reasons may really be true. If you tell a helper that you are seriously interested and MUST speak to the employer, I think they will often get up the nerve to ask. You'll then find the helper seems to often have NO idea what the employer said. I'm glad I'm not a helper. It is not an easy job, especially when you don't have confidence or an open relationship with your employer. Good luck!!