I think Nicky must be lucky to find a reliable maid without an agency. I
came to Singapore a year ago and after two tries have given up trying to find
a good maid on my own. When I was new here they told me about the notice board
at Cold Storage. That's how I hired my first maid who was "excellent with
children". Yes, she was excellent with children and I was so pleased because
she handled my own three children so well that I could find time to indulge
myself in some extra curricular activities. She was a good cook too. In short
she was perfect.
But I found out after a few months that all was not as it seemed. I left the ordering of the provisions to her and seldom checked if ever. Then one day I discovered to my horror that I was billed for things I did not even care for, like sardines, biscuits of every description and chocolates. On her days
off she would play Santa Claus and have a picnic with her friends eating the food I paid for!
I blamed myself for not supervising her. Anyway, to cut a long story short, I let her transfer. She got a job before I could say Jack Robinson, courtesy of Cold Storage notice board!
My second maid I found also at Cold Storage. She was as fantastic as her last employer said she was. I assumed that her previous employer was letting her go because she would be going home. Wrong! I discovered later that she was still in Singapore and had a new maid. Anyway, nothing untoward happened. The
maid was good but she had to go home. Her husband had died. Then I knew I had been had. Because I remember that she had said she was single. So it is no use to retain her when you cannot trust her anymore.
When my second "free" maid went home, I thought that perhaps I should go to an agency and hopefully my luck would change. After reading about InterMares I contacted them. What I liked was their website and the profiles they posted of the maids available. I find the profile quite fair even though
I suspected that white seemed whiter. It was better than taking the word of my fellow expat that the maid was so good, etc. And I could evaluate the dozen or so maids on the web site at one go and then request the agency to send me the maids I have shortlisted so I can interview them.
Well, to cut a long story short, I am quite pleased with the first maid that I have hired through InterMares. No the maid is not fantastic, but so far she is not playing Santas Claus with my provisions and her husband is not dead or dying and I think I will have her for the full two years.
I think they know what the real reason is for the maid needing a transfer. They assure me that they will not place a maid if they think there is something fishy.
