Maid Problems

Dear AdviceSeeker Thank you, but you are not been rude at all because you don't get my posting. It can be difficult to keep track of postings and we all may get uptight and upset by peoples comments and lose the bigger picture. My point is always the same, Remain fair and reasonable. Not necessary to feel sorry for maid as their husbands/children may be back in their home country ( not referring to mothers or fathers but their own husband /children as are most maids here ). It was written to remind some posters of facts. The salary the original poster is giving sounds fair but unless we all know the detail of the job and responsibilites involved we really cannot be too opinionated and I am not requesting the o p gives us that information as I personally don't need to know.I have referred to this in posting , depending on job involved and responsibilities will have an impact on salary given. One needs to compare like with like. As I asked in the thread , did the maid or the employer realise how expensive it would be to get out of Victory Heights before the contract was agreed but do not recall seeing a reply. So this could be the reason why the mais is asking / or maybe she is pushing the boundaries. A Maid is no different to any other westerner who may find looking after a family expensive and am sure in the past and again in the future westerners will ask employers for more benefits but currently it is not so easy to do so. Sometimes employers say yes and other times they saw no, but it is not necessary to be off hand or aggressive, just to be fair and reasonable. Might be easier for everyone reading threads if we all agreed on the same definition /expectations of a maid so when discussing we are all seeing it clearer and reduce people getting people so upset. Some people treat maids like slaves and others do not, some maids look after Children others do not, some maids cook and clean others do not.Some maids take on alot of responsibility and sort out workmen/gardens others do not. Some maids just clean. Therefore salaries vary alot and 1200 dhs may be a good salary for one type of maid and 3000 dhs may be fair for different type of maid. Have a good day. AdviceSeeker replied : jewelsmiddle wrote: Dear Sandy Dodd You are sounding a little envious , Uk had been doing very very well but greed too over like in most places and see the mess the world is in now. It is hard times for everyone . There was a time when land was very cheap in the UK, don't begrudge people for wanting to improve their quality of life. These maids do not earn a fortune. If someone is paying 2000 or 3000 dhs a month maybe they are doing the work and taking on alot more responsibility to reflect a better salary. Running a home is under rated and some people are very lucky to have excellent maids and others have maids that do the job fine. How many of us have left our husbands or wives and children back in home countries and sacrifice in order to support back home. There are a few married people ( not separated or divorced ) living here from UK or other western countries who for what ever reason may have their family back in the Uk or another western country but it is not the norm. it is the norm for most low paid workers / maids. Good evening. Sorry julesmiddle, not meaning to be rude, but I really don't get your post at all :S Are you saying, because these maids/ low paid workers come out here to make their lives better for their families and choose to do so by leaving behind their partners/kids that we should feel sorry for them and therefore pay more to compensate?

I understand the reasoning that many maids/gardeners/drivers are making much better wages here than in their home countries. My reasoning is what their labor is worth to me - and that may not be the same as my neighbor. I pay what I think the labor is worth to me (which may be as much as my neighbors are paying or not). Then the laborer has the choice of accepting or not. <em>edited by marycatherine on 10/01/2011</em>

MY DH has one particular Indian man who works for him while his family stay back in India. Believe me when I say this man is extremely well off from what he earns here and what it enabled him to do with it in India.

And there is the law of supply and demand........and affordability. Just how many families would have maids if they had to pay in Dubai, say........central London nannies wages? Or even a the wage of a lady wot does? The market for maids would disappear, and the women who were managing very very well on 1500dhr a month would be back home, and jobless. In an ideal world...........well we can all dream, but it ain't. And edited to add, if anyone thinks that 1500dhr, plus housing is slavery, go ask some of the shop assistants, or clerks, or even some secretaries, how much money they are paid......and how much is left after housing/utilities etc etc. <em>edited by Livelytrish on 10/01/2011</em>

My own perspective on wage levels etc is " what is this person's labor worth TO ME " if she's asking more than I want to pay or think it's worth - on your way. If it is worth it TO ME, then I pay it. End of story. It has nothing to do with what my neighbor pays or what she gets paid in her home country. <em>edited by marycatherine on 10/01/2011</em>

Not wanting to sound too left-wing but... Isn't there such a thing as paying a fair wage for the labour done, rather than concerning ourselves with how the wage is spent? One of the main reasons women were denied equal wages with men in the West for so long was because men were traditionally seen as the breadwinner, so their wage was vital to the upkeep of the family, whereas women clearly only needed to be paid pin money for the same position. Hardly fair.

It seems to be a Dubai thing. I have never had any of this kind of trouble with maids in other countries. I don't have one here but quite frankly, seeing the trouble they seem to cause I have no wish to employ one. I suspect that a great many of the maids coming to Dubai have bought into the old "Dubai's streets are apved with gold".......the same illusion that so many peoples' relatives at home seem to believe (just consider the number of posts on this forum alone from members complaining that family back home think they must be earning squillions, because they "are in Dubai".) And as a result the maids assume that their employers must be hugely wealthy, and can afford to pay ...and pay... and pay. It's ironic really, immigrant maids here in Cyprus say they have all been warned off Dubai, on the basis of ill treatment by some employers, yet I have seen some quite unbelievable instances of abuse of maids, here in our own little village, ranging from failure to pay, to feed, to provide basic amenities like bed and bedding...and in one instance gross physical abuse. And it is so common that it causes no outcry whatsoever. Whilst there are sadly instances of maid abuse in UAE, my gut feeling is that there are a considerable number of maids, especially those employed by expats from those countires where domestic workers are rarer, who are doing very .very well, considering their options in their home countries, but nevertheless have learned how to yank their inexperienced Madams' chains by playing on sympathy and misplaced guilt. Ladies, the fault, if any, for these womens' situation lies not with their employers, but their own governments who are incapable of running their countries economies. Pay a fair wage for the country in which you are employing a maid, treat her with respect, kindness and dignity, but do not take her to raise...it's not your job.

mokkapala, very good post. :)

I think many people seem to see maid's job not as a job but the whole concept of a maid somewhat uncomfortable and end up compensating for that feeling. Sometimes I think some people see them as people in need of charity. But they are not. They are here to work for making their lives and lives of their families better. Is it the perfect life, having to leave loved ones behind? Surely not. But that is what you do when you have little alternatives in your home country. In the beginning I was a bit uncomfortable of having a maid - but not anymore. I think it is great to have help at home. We pay her well, but do not have zillions of add ons. There is a reason she gets a salary like everyone else. Our maid manages very well with that and has done really well with savings as well, she has set herself goals in life, her daughters are her top priority, she does not intend to be a maid here forever so she does not go spending her money needlessly. She sacrifices many things in order for her dughters to have a better chance in life. And that is how I think it should be.We think she is a great example how to manage yourself. We all need to manage with our salary don't we. So I do not particularly feel pity for the maids here. They are doing all right. I know they are not rolling in it, but are they meant to, as maids? Sorry, they work as maids, it is not a highly paid profession, so you live with what you have. Plenty of people here, professionals who get salaries of 2000-3000 out of which they pay housing, bills, food, transportation, everything. They are the ones struggling and have nothing end of the month. Maids have guaranteed roof over their head, no bills, food paid in most cases. And do I really care what their bills in their home countries are? No, why should I? Should that reflect what I pay her? No? Does your company pay you differently if they know you for example struggle with a mortgage back in your home country, why should they care of this. I look at what they get here for their work, and I think many of their situations is just fine (excluding of course anyone in abusive working relationship) Pay your maid well and she should be happy. Start with giving in to lots of demands (if you happen to have such a maid - by the way not all maids beg for things or put extra expectations, many of them are very nice and appreciate) and it may never end. Then it is nice to give salary increments, it is nice to give bonus, when you have a person working for you who appreciates you.

It seems to be a Dubai thing. I have never had any of this kind of trouble with maids in other countries. I don't have one here but quite frankly, seeing the trouble they seem to cause I have no wish to employ one.

I'm from a country where it's the norm for people to emigrate. Generations have done so leaving family and friends behind and in the days where they had to rely on the post and rare and brief telephone conversations. In my family, a few of my brother emigrated and it broke my mother's heart but it's what people did. My brothers did not have mobiles and credit purchased by their employers and access to internet cafes. The "suffering maids" tune is wearing a bit thin quite frankly. There are literally hundreds of thousands of people who would give their eye teeth to be working for an expat family in Dubai - our mistake as employers is we forget that. <em>edited by A Rancher on 10/01/2011</em>

Dear Sandy Dodd You are sounding a little envious , Uk had been doing very very well but greed too over like in most places and see the mess the world is in now. It is hard times for everyone . There was a time when land was very cheap in the UK, don't begrudge people for wanting to improve their quality of life. These maids do not earn a fortune. If someone is paying 2000 or 3000 dhs a month maybe they are doing the work and taking on alot more responsibility to reflect a better salary. Running a home is under rated and some people are very lucky to have excellent maids and others have maids that do the job fine. How many of us have left our husbands or wives and children back in home countries and sacrifice in order to support back home. There are a few married people ( not separated or divorced ) living here from UK or other western countries who for what ever reason may have their family back in the Uk or another western country but it is not the norm. it is the norm for most low paid workers / maids. Good evening. Sorry julesmiddle, not meaning to be rude, but I really don't get your post at all :S Are you saying, because these maids/ low paid workers come out here to make their lives better for their families and choose to do so by leaving behind their partners/kids that we should feel sorry for them and therefore pay more to compensate?

Envious of what? Not sure I get what you're referring to. None of what you've mentioned in any of your posts (or anyone else's for that matter) impacts me.

There is a maid across from my house, now I don't know how much she gets paid but I do see the amount of stuff the crate up and ship off back home. Better off than better folk as we say. :)

Dear Sandy Dodd You are sounding a little envious , Uk had been doing very very well but greed too over like in most places and see the mess the world is in now. It is hard times for everyone . There was a time when land was very cheap in the UK, don't begrudge people for wanting to improve their quality of life. These maids do not earn a fortune. If someone is paying 2000 or 3000 dhs a month maybe they are doing the work and taking on alot more responsibility to reflect a better salary. Running a home is under rated and some people are very lucky to have excellent maids and others have maids that do the job fine. How many of us have left our husbands or wives and children back in home countries and sacrifice in order to support back home. There are a few married people ( not separated or divorced ) living here from UK or other western countries who for what ever reason may have their family back in the Uk or another western country but it is not the norm. it is the norm for most low paid workers / maids. Good evening.

:\: I am absolutely shocked that so many think it’s ok to pay someone less than £100 per week, Unbelievable But we pay much more than that; sponsorship so the maid can work in the country, flight to the country in the first place, accommodation, water, electricity, food, clothes and often toiletries, supply of a phone, sim and credit as well as interest free loans, generous Chirstmas and birthday presents. Our maid clears 2000 a month that's what a bank manager in the Philippines would earn and out of that would have to pay living costs. So you can't simply convert salary to another currency and draw comparisons. Our maid has built 2 levels onto the family home which they now rent out, plus they are buying another piece of land. She's done this while supporting several members of her family who are not working and sick parents. We lent her Dh10 000 which she paid back over 18months - in the Philippines the interest rate is exorbitant so we saved her a great deal by advancing this. During this period there were also other small salary advances when a family member fell ill or for funerals. The people I pity are those earning Dh 2500 who then have to pay accommodation, dewa, food etc. Really most maids have it good here and try to get as much out of their employers as they can as they probably have a unique insight into how expats live and a very close relationship with their employer. Much as you may like and appreciate your maid you are nothing more to her than an ATM - I've learnt that the hard way unfortunately.

you know ARancher, that makes total sense. Sometimes you can have the same answer to a question 20 different ways, but one answer makes total sense but just says the same thing differently. Now, did that make sense? lol Thanks, I often think the same thing when I read one of your posts on a subject! :-)

closer to 100 pounds per month. Weekly? crikey, what does your maid do for you?

:\: I am absolutely shocked that so many think it’s ok to pay someone less than £100 per week, Unbelievable lol, google the average wage index and you'll see how believable it is, sorry to say but 100 pounds per week is the minority in the world not the majority most people get paid well under 100 pounds a week, so don't understand why you're converting to the pound...

Sanddy Dodd What planet are you on? Most maids are not saving they are supporting families in another country. Calm down. Yes, I worded it badly. I didn't mean that they all sock their wages away in a high interest account each week, but meant that what they earn is often theirs to do with as they wish - including send it home, and if it is the equivalent of £100 a week or thereabouts, that's a pretty tidy sum. It probably goes a bl**dy site further for their families than it does for people in the UK. Many maids earn enough to buy a plot of land, put a house on it, put their kids through school including higher education. Many people I know back home can't do that.

How can one convert the salary into another currency and assume it is shocking? See how much it is in Pesos and then see the cost of living in Flip Flop Land. Trust me, they are buying fields, educating all their nieces and nephews and saving some. In GBP the money is worth nothing. But are they sending the money to the UK?

Sanddy Dodd What planet are you on? Most maids are not saving they are supporting families in another country.

We pay our maid 1600, we buy the food she wants, she gets toiletries if she needs them, we provide simple things like soap toilet roll etc anything else she purchases, we dont pay transport, we live in MotorCity where there is no bus service however, there is a large community of Filipino maids in the area so between them they get a taxu to the ranches and get the bus from there to wherever they need to go, prior to her living with us, she lived out for the first year, which we paid 200 aed per month to her transport costs to and from our home, that stopped once we moved here, we give 1 flight home per year and 2 days off, she is happy with that. Tally Ho - it may be a shock to a uk person, however, remember to a Filipino thats a far better salary than they earn in their home country, 1 months salary at 1600 paid for my maids son to do on the job training in his home country, :)

But if it's £100 straight in the bank each week, and many maids have few/no expenses, then it's better than a lot of people in the UK manage to save.

:\: I am absolutely shocked that so many think it’s ok to pay someone less than £100 per week, Unbelievable

If you don't ask - you don't get!

you know ARancher, that makes total sense. Sometimes you can have the same answer to a question 20 different ways, but one answer makes total sense but just says the same thing differently. Now, did that make sense? lol

What people should remember is most people on here who have said how much they pay their maids are actually paying more than the respective embassies recommend. How often do the rest of us get paid above the recommended limit?

I was thinking this morning of my niece at home who now has a baby. She's on extended maternity leave but with reduced salary. Her husband is an architect but does not have a full time job and is working in a bike shop part time. They don't have a car and granted public transport is better there but they are certainly not taking taxis everywhere. They've got a limited sum to live on and have to adjust their lifestyle accordingly, especially discretionary spending like entertainment at the weekend. The maid in this case has a real cheek;She's being paid above the standard rate and now wants a transport allowance for the weekend. If she can't afford her transportation on the salary she has she should adjust her lifestyle accordingly and maybe go out every second weekend and make some friends in her neighbourhood. We come here and we forget sometimes how we managed and how people still do manage in other parts of the world. Yes, we earn more than the maids and maybe we could afford to pay an extra one or two hundred dirhams but that does not mean maids have the right to demand it.

No to transport allowance. But tell her you will drop her off and pick her up and MOE at specific hours on Friday. That at least would have her coming back at a reasonable hour. This then means you have to work your day around your maid. Who is employing who? :\: Anyone willing to do that on a Friday, work their day around maid's pick ups? Since when do maids need to be travelling around in taxis? ..... Actually, just for a story, when I was greener, I gave a previous maid taxi money when she needed to go to a few places for herself (this was years ago in the lakes when that was considered very far away, before MoE and IB mall etc were even around), she always came back with no change because taxi was very expensive, then one day my neighbor came home and said, oh I just dropped your maid at the bus stop, any way maid came home and I said, can I have the change for the taxi, she said oh no change very expensive taxi, I said ah OK how much was it to come home, she said taxi was x to come home, but it was x to get there so no change... any way long story short, she was pocketing taxi money and finding alternative ways for transport by organizing car lifts with other maids, getting to a bus stop etc etc... so even if you give a "transport allowance" she'll probably just pocket it and still become creative with transport options..