Hi mummies,
Must update you guys on my maid...my weekend was so drama...
My maid of 5 months was generally quite ok and did housework well, took care of my baby well but then we found out she had a bf here. Last week she found out that he was two timing her with another indonesian maid...she was so angry and depressed and emotionally unstable - was on the phone the whole day with her friends, refused to do any work, hide herself in the toilet crying, ask me to let her go find her bf at his office in chinatown, big drama lor. My SIL say Jade cry she also bo chap, dun wan to make milk for her, etc. We told her to pull herself together but after 4 days no improvement, so we decided to terminate her contract.
So we went to discuss with the agent, and they actually asked us to let her transfer to a new employer and say they will help her find one. But I told them I wanted to send her back because I don't want to make the next employer suffer. So they helped us to terminate her work permit online that day which was Friday, booked an air ticket for her the next morning on Saturday, and they arranged to come my house to pick her up and told us they will take care of things and send her back. We decided not to tell her anything in advance because I didn't know what she will do to herself or us. So Saturday morning they came to pick her up at 7am...I told her we were terminating her contract and she is going home, asked her to follow the agent, and gave her $350 out of our kindness to pay her for the month. I handed the agent her passport and documents. Then at the airport, the agent called me and told me that she ran away! He said while they were queueing to check in at the counter, she was holding her passport and she asked the agent to let her change first and she took her luggage with her and never came back! Stupid agent shouldn't have given her her passport, and then let her out of his sight in the first place...inside the departure hall got so many toilets for her to change lor! And best thing is he let her hold her passport and her luggage! Idiot right...I scolded him and he say he sent so many maids back before and none of them ran away. He told me he can't stop her if she wants to run away.
Then I received calls from my maid and she begged us to give her another chance, told me sob story that she is the only one supporting her family and she need to have income, cried and even threatened to go to MOM to report that we abused her. When I told her that her work permit already cancelled and she will be caught by the police if she didn't go home today, she hanged up. Then a few hours later she called me and said she's in the philippine embassy. She will complain to them that we ill treat her, asked us to go and extend her work permit. I was so worried, although we treated her well, its our words against hers, and I heard from other mummies that some cases previously the employers were charged in court! I almost gave in to her demand and was thinking to renew her work permit and let her find another employer...coz the stupid agent also keep asking me to give her another chance. And in the MOM guidelines, me as her employer is responsible for her until she is repatriated back home or finds another employer. So that means I have to book another air ticket back for her if I want her to go home. I scolded the agent that they were the one who let her runaway in the first place, they should pay for the air ticket but they refused, and toldme that they were just 'doing me a favour' by sending her to the airport. They are not responsible. And I found out later they got a bloody taxi driver to send her to the airport and I paid $70 for the transport! I tried calling MOM for help but they were closed. I tried calling the embassy but they were also closed, Open only Sunday to Thurs. So I waited till Sunday morning to call them - I spoke to the lady and explained what happened. To my surprise, she told me that they cannot let her stay there coz her work permit alraedy cancelled, and asked me to book a flight for her to leave asap. They scolded her for running away and this time round they say they will send her to the airport and make sure she leave. The embassy told me they councelled her and told her she don't have a choice otherwise she will go to jail because she is an illegal immigrant. I also called her to tell her the consequences that if she really complains to MOM, go ahead because we didn't do anything to her, and furthermore she has no proof. She will have to stay at the embassy till the case is closed, which may take up to a year, so in the meantime she don't earn any money, she can't see her family and she is not allowed to go out of the embassy shelter. In the meantime, I will be getting on with my life. I also told her to go home and see her family and spend some time with them, and that she can come back to work for me after she gets better (of course it was a lie!). So I booked another flight for her to leave that day. This time I wanted to make sure she dun run away again....tried getting police to escort her but they all said they don't do such things...she needs to leave willingly. The embassy said they will send her to the airport so I trusted them.
Then who knows, my maid called my SIL abt 4 hours before her flight, and ask her to give her money because she got no money left, she told her that she is at the airport all by herself and said the embassy told her to take a taxi to the airport and she had to pay $35 out of her pocket! She asked my SIL to give her money otherwise she will not leave. Then I called the airline manager and spoke to him, and he say he will personally escort her to the plane. He said he didn't want the flight to be delayed because of her also. And he said he handled so many such cases. So in the end, lucky she didn't run away again! Seems like the embassy also don't care abt the maid and want to get rid of them instead of housing her in their shelter, and they don't care if she runs away again because then it will be a police case and they are not liable.
I think after this episode, I have learnt so many lessons...and I will not get another maid unless I really really really have no choice! And now that the maid is gone, I'm actually coping ok. And I feel so nice again that I have our privacy back and that I don't have to keep a watchful eye over my maid anymore, and can leave my money and valuables lying around again
what are u feeding him btw?