Consider allowing households to share maids

As time progresses and the situations in our homes change - retirement, part-time work and so on - the affordability of maids becomes a serious concern.

This being the case, could the Ministry of Manpower consider more flexibility in the hire and use of foreign domestic workers?

One area to consider is allowing families to participate in a maid-sharing scheme.

Sometimes, in households where the families are small or where there is only an older couple, hiring a maid can be a financial strain.

There are also households that require the help of a maid for only a few hours a day.

If such households could share a maid, they would not have to bear the full cost of hiring a full-time one.

Since the maid will still get paid and the work is kept divided, there will not be any problems of the maid being overworked or underpaid.

It can be a win-win situation for everyone.

Ishwar Mahtani

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on September 05, 2017, with the headline Consider allowing households to share maids. Subscribe