LAVANYA's STORY. :]

Should maids be considered as a family member in their “family”?

We see them everywhere. Washing cars early in the morning when most of us are probably still sleeping. Rushing to the market. Being verbally abused by their employers in the public. Some of them even at home where it never felt like one. So now we ask a very important question. Are they supposed to feel as though they are part of a family? Should they be treated like one?


Why shouldn’t they be treated like one and when it is that they are not treated like that? I think most employers start off being very neutral- not being too nice nor too harsh and they gradually either treat them very badly or very nicely. However there are a handful few who start with the extremes. Either being very nasty to them like scolding them for no reason or too nice to them by giving them everything they need. The whole problem comes with employers who are too extreme with their maids. Especially the ones who totally ill treat or scold their maids for no reason when it clearly isn’t their fault at all. However certain maids are not treated as part of the employer’s family because the employer most probably has already drawn a clear line between just a worker and a family member mostly influenced but the factor that the maid is not blood related and sometimes they are not treated as a family member because of something they might have done which might have caused her employer to trust her lesser. Thus, that bond’s just gone. Sometimes the employer might feel that being nice to the maid and letting her be part of the family might in the end spoil her. Take for example the cases of maids who do funny things like bring their friends or boyfriends home without letting their employers know.

Why should they be treated as someone part of the family and why is it that some employers treat them like that? They should be because they have come a long long way away from their families and a lot of them, because it’s the only way out, out of desperation. Desperation for money. Certain employers do treat them well because they understand the whole concept of why their maids are down in Singapore and they don’t create a difference because of blood. The only reason why this might change is if the maid does something which questions her employer’s trust. I think I know a tad bit more around this issue because we had a maid who was with us for about ten years and she was amazing.

Anyway this is what my friend had to say about this issue.

My views on whether we should accept them as part of the family I think yes because I wouldn’t want to be treated like a stranger in the family if I were a domestic worker overseas and this might happen some day and I think that treating them as part of the family is a form of trust. And it’s kind of trust because you wouldn’t want your maid to go through your stuff. There an be advantages like sharing your problems or the same hobbies. I feel that by having a good r/s with the worker you don’t have to worry so much and you can treat them like a sister. Like sister taking care of the family and they are human beings who need love too.



Where is the love?