Hi we will be hiring a helper for the first time. We require her to look after our 1 year old son, cook and do the housework. Which country do you hire your maid from? We're so confused after speaking to a number of our friends and maid agencies. Any advice is much appreciated!

Getting the right help all depends on luck regardless of nationality. Some may work for one but may not work for others. What is your priority? Look after your son or cook? Do you have time to train? Are you willing or not to allow hand phone usage and off days? Are you looking at transfer maids or fresh maids or ex Singapore? Fresh maids are with zero experience and have to train them from scratch. Transfer maids are those for one reason or another did not complete contract with their employers. They may already have some experience and hence do not need to teach from scratch. You can interview them face to face and their availability is quite fast. Ex Singapore are those who have previously work in Singapore before and do have experiences. You can check with respective agencies for both transfer and ex Singapore employment records with MOM, however do take their biodata with a pinch of salt. For nationalities wise, got to depends on your comfort level too. May have language barrier with Myanmese and need quite some time to train them to your standard. May need time to instill Cleanliness and hygiene level into them. Indonesians are pretty much like Filipinos and except that Filipinos can communicate well in English. Good luck.

My #1 criteria, is able to communicate effectively with us (I have 3 young kids). #2 - shows she loves kids - not afraid of kids' mess. Standard questions don't really help.. (they seem to have a std reply - OK sire) in the end, it cames down to our vibes. I interviewed Philippines and Indon helpers, and went for the Ph lady who showed us she understood our questions, and expectations. This is only possible, because we were able to talk and listen to each other clearly. Today, she's shown herself to be awesome helper. Perhaps, it's not about nationality, but the one who communicates effectively with you. My neighbour's helper is from Myanmar, worked 8yrs and is effectively a part of their family, and speaks fluent english (she didn't use to) and dialects now. Hope this' a food for thought for you :)

My domestic helper is from Indonesia. Our rationale for hiring is as follows: 1. Relatively cheaper than helpers from Philippines. 2. May not speak English as well as Philippino helpers but it's the next best option other than Burmese and Cambodian maids. 3. We are able to converse in Malay if we experience any difficulty communicating. 4. Indonesians tend to be (based on personal experience) more obedient and willing to work without mobile phones. The cons are: 1. Diet is an issue as they do not take pork. May have to cook food separately depending on how strict they are on this. 2. Some Indonesians do not or are afraid of taking care of dogs. I have a dog at home.

I agree that being able to communicate with the maid would be key. For your case, experience in looking after children would be another factor. The rest such as cooking and doing chores could be taught (as long as you can communicate with her). One of my neighbour, who had hired both Indon and Myanmese maids made a general comment that the latter usually tended to have received formal education and could handle tasks more efficiently. However, Indon maids appeared to be more hardworking. All the best!!

Hi, I hire a Filipino for the 3 main reasons: 1. Ability to communicate in English (impt as children are also learning from them) 2. Can handle and eat pork 3. Can handle dogs (we have a dog at home) Other sub reasons from stereotyping (though many may disagree with me) 1. Higher hygiene standards 2. Adapted to city living, less cultural shock 3. Generally smarter, which can be an issue too! Hope this helps and wish you the best!

Mine is from Philippines. Reason being my girls from birth need to take medications and different kind cause being premature. So I need a helper who is good in English and can understand instruction and more hygienic especially dealing with weak babies. So far Filipino to me are better in English and can understand instruction better.

My reply is the same as Stephanie. I have employed Myanmese and Indon and I prefer Indon. They are more down to earth. Currently, my experienced maid is still without off and without hp which I think most Myanmese and Pinoys can't. Most of my Indon muslim maids can take pork and this is not an issue with us.

Hire the right person for the job. Why does it matter which country they are from? In some, more developed countries in the world, having a bias over which country a person is from is illegal. And the comments above about certain nationalities being more "obedient". Urg. How horrid.

Mine is from Indonesia. Don't worry about communication problems as they tend to pick up language very fast. My helper even know abit of Cantonese now already. You can request for 1 who has experience in taking care of baby in their own country.

My opinion is that the nationality has no link to how good they are. I have heard of excellent and also horrible Indon/ Indian/ Myanmese helpers.. So it's just your luck, how well you treat and train them and maintain open communication.