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Singapore is counted in one of those countries, where people come to earn their living. Apart from all the corporate class, there are maids, who come from various parts of the world to this country, to get work so that they may send funds back to their families. Over the past few years, it is seen that these domestic workers are found to be increasing in numbers, which showcases that the people of Singapore are in much need of maids, but this has also increased the percentage of negative incidents.
Most of the maids come from villages, where there is no concept of high-rise homes and apartments, which is why they are unable to understand the new system and housing style, especially in their initial employment years. This lack of understanding creates confusion and forces them to take actions in the difficult situations, which they shouldn’t even think about. There have been several cases in Singapore, where maids were brought out of death’s den, as they were not sure what to do.
Things-To-Do to Keep Your Maids Safe and Sound
As an employer, if you are willing to hire a maid in Singapore, then it is one of your prime duties to instruct them and make them learn about the new system, such as high-rise apartments in order to make your maid safe. If you are not sure what to teach them, then here are some important things you must immediately do
- Train Your Maid
Training your maid is the first thing you must do after hiring her. Maids are innocent and most of them have never worked in the high-rise homes before. They are unaware of the technologies and new hardware systems, which you might have installed in your home, such as automatic doors or password locks. It becomes very difficult for them to understand these new gadgets, so as an employer; you must introduce her to the technology or new systems. This might sound non-serious, but imagine your maid has accidentally locked herself in one of your rooms and she is unable to unlock the door, while your kids are out alone. This type of situation is not only dangerous for your maid, but also for your family.
- Reminders
The training should be given on the regular basis so that your maid memorizes all of your instructions and this can be done by reminding her directions. But wait! Reminding her doesn’t mean to abuse her verbally or physically in order to make her learn because that can make you face serious legal charges, so try to be humble while you are reminding her. You must understand that every maid has a different learning strength, some are quick learners and some of them are slow, but at the end, they can learn if trained well.
- Communication
Communication is the key to make people understand your message and the most important thing is that the person, you are being in conversation with, understands your language. Most of the maids are not able to understand the official languages of Singapore, as they come from different countries, such as India, Bhutan etc and the majority of them are also not well-educated in order to understand the English language completely. So if you encounter a similar problem with your maid, then try your best to give her instructions in her own native language. In case, you are also unknown to her native language, then try to train her by giving instructions in the simple words of English, as most of the maids in Singapore do know a fewer English vocabulary.
- Help Your Maid
Your maid is like a family member and a good employer is always there to help her. While she will be under your training, she will feel uncomfortable, tired, shy or confused. So in case you see her in one of these conditions, just try to relax her and do not over react. Remember, your help and support can make her the best and trustworthy maid. Soon there will be a time when she won’t be scared anymore with all your high-rise apartment and lifestyle.
The Rescue Case
A 24-year-old maid from Myanmar mistakenly locked herself in a room that was on the fifth floor in one of the high-rise apartments, situated on Bukit Panjang Ring Road, Singapore. This incident took place in one of the units at HDU and the maid was working there for about a month.
She tried her best to unlock the door but wasn’t successful, so she crawled out of the window in order to escape and to get back to her apartment, she then tried to use the ledge. Unfortunately, she lost her control and was hanged as she was holding the corridor railing.
The whole incident was captured on video and went viral, where her struggles can be clearly seen, while another tenant of the same apartment is trying to bring her up safely.
The situation was about to take the wrong direction when one of the neighbors called the police and gladly they reached on the right time. The four police officers, with the help of the neighbor, were successful in bringing her up and inside.
According to Staff Sgt Chan (one of the four police officers), “As she was hanging, there were maximum chances that in just a few more seconds, she might have lost her grip. Gladly, we reached on time”.
