RM700 - Get your own accomodations

I wrote about my opinion on the illogical One maid, one task decision in my previous entry. I'll add to that post my further take on the minimum RM700 maid salary.

Image credit.

By setting yourself a minimum salary of RM700 per month, doing only the task you are trained for, you are in your own right a professional. You are governed by a structured work ethics, a guaranteed fixed salary structure including compensation for working outside of your stipulated working hours. This is exactly what the the Indonesian Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration set out in its training to prepare aspiring maids to work in Malaysia.

Common sense would have it that for the above to have taken place, the worker (in particular, the maid) is a competent, self-sufficient employee just like anyone working for someone else. As such, the maid is expected to:

1. Provide for his/her own accommodation, probably by renting a house or room nearby. Or, rent a room in the employer's home.
2. Provide for his/her own meal. Buy all the groceries he/she need and never touch a single piece of rice in the employer's kitchen
3. If he/she is renting a room in the employer's home, he/she will provide for her own cooking utensils.
4. In-house entertainment. A maid is not allowed to turn on any TV, media players, computers, etc without the employer's verbal permission.
5. Like any other professions, a maid is subjected to disciplinary actions when he/she violate the working ethics and job descriptions.

Now that would be harsh, tense or at least 'too formal' for a housemaid who is expected to bond a fairly good tie with the employer and the children under his/her care. You don't want to go to that extent so why set a condition to your prospective employer in the first place.

Let the market sort out the demand-and-supply issues

A job is a contract that both parties agree to. If there is big demand for certain job, supply will be short and price will be higher. So be creative and source for locally available supply,  or from oversea supply elsewhere where talent requirement is similar at less demanding cost.

One maid, one task not logical

"If a maid is employed as a cook, she will only be tasked with chores related to cooking and will not be doing any other duties such as babysitting or washing clothes," - Dr Reyna Usman, during a task force's meeting at the Indonesian Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration, Jakarta.

Daily Express - Mar 17, 2012

Okay, this is not in line with the understanding achieved by the two nations, according to Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam. But if it is going ahead as stated by Indonesian Minister Dr Reyna Usman then employers are likely to have to hire 4 maids to cater for the different chores:

1. Cooking
2. Babysitting
3. Taking care of the elderly
4. Housekeeping

In most cases families would take care of the elderly and the more likely scenario is to have maids for babysitting, cooking and housekeeping.

So, here is what I think will happen:

Different maids for cooking, babysitting and housekeeping: RM700 x 3 = RM2,100
Cost to hire maids ( one time, to hiring agencies, etc) = RM4,511
Overtime payment if working on rest days = RM27/day

Rest day per week: 1 day
Passport: To be kept by the maids

By spreading the cost for hiring into 36 months (3 years), it is an equivalent to RM125 per month and add this to the monthly wages of RM2,100 and the employer ends up paying RM2,225 every month for the next 3 years. Is this the scenario you want to put yourself in?

No, thank you

No, not for me. RM2,225 can go a long way. I will hire a local who would be happy to do all 3 chores at RM800 - RM900 per month, give the maid a 1 day of every weekend, and I can make use of the remaining RM1,425 to pay for a brand new car of my choice, or pay my home loan.

My local maid won't need any passport and I do not have to worry about a maid running away to a better paying employer. 

Human Resource Ministry partly to blame!

The reason why locals are reluctant to become household maids is that there is no salary structure or scheme and no clear employment benefits put in place by the Human Resource Ministry. If there's one, and there is minimum wages for maids then it will become a profession.

It takes a bold move from other countries for the government to start thinking about solving the maids shortage in Malaysia. Why foreigners? Why not locals? Are we locals really not that interested in this kind of profession? I don't think so. Given the right working condition, and a clear framework for remuneration, anyone would do it. It is similar to the construction and plantation industries.

What do you think?

To be fair to the Indonesia government, this may have been the current practice and arrangement with other countries where its maids are deployed to. But if it's not then we have every right to question such move and reject the seemingly illogical decision.

If you think locals are hard to deal with, or problematic and lazy, it makes very much sense to look elsewhere other than Indonesia.