I received this video in my email, another maid abuse child case in Singapore.
Like many net viewers, I was outraged by the video. What the maid did was extremely cruel and nothing can be said and argue to condone such act. Inflicting pain and causing harm to an innocent child who is powerless. Maybe this will prompt more working parents to set up spy cams, maybe the government will come out with more stringent laws to deter such act, yet, are these enough ? Are there more fundamental issues here ?
In the US and France, live in domestic workers are extremely rare and are only affordable by the uber rich. In fact, we have never seen one despite having lived in both countries for a number of years. I think the main reason is that in both France and the US, foreign labour enjoys the same labour rights as domestic workers. That means, foreign workers enjoy the same pay, and are protected by the same labour laws. An immigrant worker from Africa working in Paris therefore earns as much as a similar french worker. An immigrant Mexican working in LA technically earns as much as an American working in a similar job. Doubtlessly, human trafficking and exploitation of cheap labour still occur in both the US and Europe but it is at least illegal. Due to these laws, labour cost is charged at market rates and it would be extremely costly to employ a full time live in domestic worker. A friend with 4 kids in Paris paid more than 20,000 euros last year for a nanny who worked from 8 to 6 everyday except for weekends.
On the other hand, Singapore foreign domestic workers work abysmally long hours. They enjoy neither similar pay nor rights as Singapore workers. It is not uncommon to find them working more than 12 hours a day. For the first few months of their stay, they do not get any day off and most of their first year’s pay go to paying off their agencies. They are often placed under strict curfews and social restrictions by their employers who fear that the former would get themselves pregnant or run into some sort of trouble that would implicate them.
In short, most foreign domestic workers in Singapore are overworked, poorly paid and deprived, often unwittingly by their employers and the government, of some of their basic human rights : the right to equal treatment without discrimination; the right to socialise.
Before going further, I want to highlight the European and American context that have disallowed discrimination of foreign labour. In fact, the Europeans were one of the greatest perpertuators of cheap human labour: slavery. This sparked a civil war in America, which was fortunately won by those who wanted the abolition of slavery. Eventually, the rest of western civilization followed suit but the stigma remained. Any official policy that seemed to discriminate against foreign labour was frowned upon.
In Singapore, we have embraced foreign labour. Foreign live in domestic workers have allowed our people to work and enjoy luxuries at a price that most foreigners could not even dream of attaining in their countries today. Their cost to a typical household is approximately S$1000 a month, or about S$12000 a year, a miniscule amount compared to my friend’s 20,000 euros (~S$40,000) for a daytime weekday only nanny. No, we have not embraced foreign labour. We have as a matter of fact, in my opinion, embraced slavery in its modern form, the exploitation of people in countries worse off than ours.
It is easy to rebuke the slavery claim by saying that we are paying them and they would otherwise be worse off economically without these jobs. Yet, at the end of their stay here, how much do these foreign domestic workers really make and how much do their employment agencies make? And the main issue is not really about pay but about rights and freedom.
Do you know of anyone who overwork their maids?
Do you know of anyone who employ maids for work other than that authorized in their contracts?
Do you know of anyone who treat their maids as second class people?
Do you know of anyone who confine their maids indoor and control with whom they may socialize with?
And what about our children?
What are we teaching them when there is always Maria who will clean up after them?
What are we teaching them when Maria never join them at the dinner table but is only fed the leftover?
What are we teaching them when Maria has to work around the house from dawn till dusk while the rest laze in bed and curl on the couch?
Are we teaching them respect?
Are we teaching them responsibility?
Are we teaching them equality?
Are we teaching them independece?
Are we teaching them that one has less rights if one is poor?
I am obviously generalizing. I am sure that there are many employers out there that treat their maids humanely and with great gratitude. But my personal observations have shown me that many of them treat their maids less than what they are: an equal human being but who is forced by circumstances beyond their control to work in a country far away from their families.
Again, I do not condone crime and cruelty against children and it saddens me even more to see these videos. However, are we guilty too?
Yahhhh…. my friend posted the video in Facebook weeks ago… and I was about to post it up too…
but now that 2 bloggers have done it. Maybe I might just drop the idea….cos’ not nice mah, some bloggers don’t like….
What can I say????
Unless parents don’t work lor
or put at childcare lor
or *sigh* don’t give birth….
I am surrounded by people who have maids. I even have a friend who runs a maid agency for 20years… so maid stories of all sorts, good and bad are nothing new to me…
they can be really extreme from both ends…. it voice down to one thing – your luck. Really. It doesn’t mean that if you treat the maid well, she will do so to your family too. Not always true girl… very very sad truth…
The video is indeed upsetting….. no doubt.
Rachel : hey angeline, thanks for sharing but I don’t see why you should not voice out your opinion in your blog even someone else has done it
i did not click on the video. i was accidentally sat in my colleague’s cubinet last fri and watch the front part of a video, that who in the vedio was doing something really inhuman on a kid and made me really outrageous & desperate to rush back home to see my girl.
no matter how tough i am now, maid is never a solution for me!
Rachel : hey pc, I guess it is not easy for working parents to make that decision too.
My heart twitched so tightly as I watched the clip. I cannot imagine how painful for that child’s parents to watch it. She seems to be of my son’s age.
Yet again, another maid-abusing-kid incident is taking place. I know it’s a fact that each family has their unique domestic problem. But if a decision concerning a child has to be made at the (potential) expense of him/her, I’d think twice.
Engaging a maid is a ‘convenient decision’ – a stay-in maid is cheaper as a babysiter cum chores helper. No doubt. But I will NEVER engage one.
I have made a decision to stay at home after my son was born The only ‘consequence’ I face is having no lifestyle and no budget for a lot of things concerning enjoyment. But I’m fine with delay gratification. It’s better than having all luxuries but to drop my jaws while watching my webcam at night how my helpless baby has been bashed/squashed/kicked/slapped/punched/stepped on by a total stranger full of grievances.
Oh how I hope children will all be treated with TLC!
Rachel : hey nic, thanks for sharing.
What you have voiced i agree with – there are always 2 sides to all stories & both needs attention.
It’s really sad to see what’s happening in the video. Everything has their cause and effect. But one thing I learnt is that not all maids reciprocate the employers’ kindness. Some would even take advantage of it. I have a maid to helpout, but she is never alone with the kids. There must be some adults to “monitor” at home.
Rachel : Hey Tin, maybe it is like what Angeline said, ‘luck’ ?
this is cruelty!! the maid must be MAD!
but maybe, she is using the poor little girl as a vending machine..its always important to treat the maid good so they will treat ours good.
I reckon that once you have a maid in your home, you will change at least a little, even if you started out as someone who believed in workers’ rights and fair treatment.
Speaking as a stay-home mom (of one tot) with only a freelance income, I do believe it’s financially possible for many, if not most middle-class, one-child families to raise a kid without a maid, i.e. one parent stays home. Of course, it’s also about what you can let go of — the money, the fancy preschools, the cars, and other middle-class concerns.
It’s kinda sad that here in SG, so many parents-to-be scramble to hunt for an alternative caregiver, often settling for a complete stranger because they feel there is “no choice.”
There always is.
Rachel : Thanks E for sharing your thoughts. No doubt that it takes more than awareness and belief to make things happen, esp when we are dealing with another human being.
I agree with you that it is a matter of choice, expectations, priorities and what one is willing to let go.
HI Rachel
Well written and how I wish what you’ve written is posted on our Straits TImes forum.
I am sure many of those questions you raised towards the end of your post have mostly been overlooked by Singaporeans and perhaps even our government.
You are right to say that foriegn domestic helpers here are totally unprotected when it comes to work hours. Many parents do not see the that their treatment towards their maids may have detrimental effects on their children. HOw are we to raise a graceful society in the years to come. We are obviously far from it. Its truly sad
I just employed a foreign domestic worker. She’s been here less than a month and we have been talking, building a good relationship. I’m lucky. She seems to be a ‘good’ worker. As I talk to her, I understand the fears of her coming here to work as well. But it’s for the money. To save money for her son, her family, for a better life. I am understanding the feelings, thoughts from her end of it.
I pity them. How much they gotta pay the agency. I ask her, if it’s worth it? She still thinks it is.
I’m her 3rd employer. Her first one was bad. Some employers are really crazy. They treat their maids as slaves. Expect her to eat the leftovers from an old lady’s plate. She sleeps abt 4-5 hours a day, can’t rest during the day, suppose to work non-stop on a strict timetable, and is constantly monitored by CCTV, one of them even ‘aimed’ at her bed!
Her 2nd employer’s husband got retrenched. But they treat her well while she was there. But when they decided to let her go, they sent her to the agency without telling her, just dropped the poor girl there. She did not even get to pack her things. They did it for her.
I showed her the video about the maid kicking the toddler, I talked to her abt both sides of the coin. She balks at the maid abusing the child. She is a mother herself. She understands the love for a child.
Then as I was talking to her, I thought about it. Child abuse, could be from ANYONE. Not just the maid. Looking after a child is not easy. I have 3, and I raised them the past 7 years. There are times when I get VERY angry. I shouted at them, scolded them, caned them. What if it was the maid or someone else who did it? We never like it if someone else is the one scolding your kid.
I think regarding a dosmetic worker, it is important to set the rules. Have a good relationship with the maid. She is a helper, not a slave. Think about the olden days, they have the amahs to look after the children and house. They respect the amahs and nannies.
But it’s a two-way thing. There are also maids who abuse the good treatment. Then it boils down to luck. But at least u have to do your part. And work towards a good relationship.
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