Woman films herself berating maid for not filling in logbook
Foreign maids in Singapore come from varying backgrounds, there are those who have lived only in their village while there are others who have tertiary education.
Miscommunication arises not only due to differing educational backgrounds but also language barriers as many of the maids who come to Singapore to work are not fluent in English.
An employer has recently filmed herself berating her maid for apparently not filling in her chore logbook. She had put in a place a system where the maid had to log her chores and the time taken to complete each chore.
In a Sept 16 video shared by Regent Maid Agency on Facebook, the woman is seen asking a maid a question.
However, the woman continues to stand in silence.
The employer tells the maid she is filming because she has not been answering her question. "I am not scolding you now," says the employer.
When the maid still keeps mum after almost a minute, the employer appears to lose her cool. She slams her hand on the table and shouts: "Hello!"
According to the agency, the employer has been having issues with the maid's language proficiency and work performance. "Despite our efforts to align expectations and offer support, these issues have continued," it explained.
The employer, who claims to be a social media influencer, told the agency she planned to bring to light her situation for it to serve as a warning to other potential employers.
The agency shared that the maid "experienced significant stress due to the work environment, including instances of verbal abuse". She even considered repatriation due to the challenging conditions.
"While employers have the right to express their concerns, it is also important to recognise the challenges faced by agencies and helpers," Regent Maid Agency wrote in its Facebook post.
"We acknowledge the challenges faced by helpers, including verbal and mental stress. We continue to address these issues within existing guidelines and will provide feedback to the relevant authorities."
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