sun96, afcai,
that's a standard market practice. If dun give, they would ask for it too. When report to work, need to give CL a "kai gong" ang pow to signify good employer-employee relationship. Then when CL leave on 28th day, need to give another ang pow to thank her. The rate is around 100+ for the appreciation ang pow depending on how well u think she did the job, then the kai gong ang pow ranging from $20 to $80 according to those people I've asked. so besides the quoted price of 1.9k, still need to add the ang pow and then when the CL travels to your place and back, need to reimburse them for taxi fare, depending on the distance from custom to your hse. This transportation fee, some CL claims some if they willing to take MRT and bus, then usually they don't claim. So getting a CL is quite a "big" decision to make also since incur quite a sum, especially after delivery we already burn a hole in pocket.
When I had my #1, my mum did confinement for me, my hubby gave her an ang pow of $1800 which is equivalent to market rate of CL in 2006 so with or without engaging CL, this money still got to spend, unless DIY.