Idul Fitri boosts housemaid business<\/p>\n
By Rahmat Effendi and Rani Lilia Sari<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The recent exodus of housemaids and baby-
\nsitters to their hometowns for the Idul Fitri celebrations
\ncreated a boom for the servant agencies.<\/p>\n
As routine life returns to Jakarta this week many people find
\nthemselves in need of housemaids or baby-sitters because their
\nown have not yet returned from the provinces and some will never
\nshow up again.<\/p>\n
Housemaids and baby-sitters are unpredictable, some complain.<\/p>\n
\"I need a housemaid to take care of my household and children
\nwhile I work,\" a mother of three children told The Jakarta Post
\nover the weekend.<\/p>\n
Many people badly needing a housemaid or baby-sitter have
\ntried the servant or baby-sitter agencies but returned empty-
\nhanded.<\/p>\n
Thirty percent of the demand for housemaids comes after Idul
\nFitri and another 30 percent after Christmas, said a servant
\nagency owner.<\/p>\n
Sugito, the owner of Bu Gito Agency, said last weekend that
\nsince he reopened on Feb. 13 following the holiday, the daily
\ndemand for servants reached 100 and baby-sitters 20.<\/p>\n
\"I can supply only 50 maids and 13 baby-sitters a day,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Six servant agencies interviewed by the Post said they charged
\nbetween Rp 125,000 (US$52) and Rp 150,000 ($62.50) each to find
\nsomeone a maid, while the standard monthly salary of a housemaid
\nranged between Rp 70,000 and Rp 100,000.<\/p>\n
Experience<\/p>\n
But the pay could be higher depending on the servants'
\nexperience and their bargaining position with their prospective
\nemployers.<\/p>\n
The agencies get servants from the rural areas sent here by
\nbrokers who get half the maid finding fee.<\/p>\n
\"The brokers' job is to persuade village girls to work in
\nJakarta, they are our key business players\", said Indarto from
\nAgung Bina Karya agency in Kemayoran, Central Jakarta.<\/p>\n
He said; \"The supply of the workers is uncertain, depending on
\nthe ability of the brokers to persuade the prospective workers to
\ncome here.\"<\/p>\n
On arriving in Jakarta, the girls are housed and trained at
\nthe agency's office. They sleep in a simple room without a
\nmattress, and cook their own food.<\/p>\n
They learn simple skills of cooking and cleaning, and after
\nfew days they get a job.<\/p>\n
Some agencies accommodate the girls for few days while others
\nchannel the experienced ones directly to new jobs because they
\nare in high demand.<\/p>\n
During the Idul Fitri holiday workers usually only stay a day
\nat the agency's house because there is such a high demand for
\nthem.<\/p>\n
The AM agency in South Jakarta channels experienced workers
\nto jobs without housing them because it only works to order.<\/p>\n
Housewives looking for servants during the week after the Idul
\nFitri holiday, said they preferred to get servants from the
\nagencies because the maids had all the right documents.<\/p>\n
\"This gives us a sense of security about them,\" a woman, who
\nasked for anonymity, said.<\/p>\n
In addition the agencies are registered with the City's
\nMinistry of Manpower office.<\/p>\n
\"They also guarantee that we can trial a worker for three
\nmonths and if we find she is not the one we want they will send a
\nnew one to replace her.\"<\/p>\n
But this guarantee is sometimes abused by both the agencies
\nand the workers, some employers said.<\/p>\n
The employers said both parties arranged that the maids would
\nleave their new employers after three months and then they
\nreturned to the agencies to be sent to other needy families.<\/p>\n
In this way the agencies made more money, they said.<\/p>\n
However, most agencies denied these assertions, saying the
\nservants really want to work for a long period but \"things depend
\non how the employers treat them\".<\/p>\n
\"That is also the case for baby-sitters,\" a South Jakarta
\nemployer said.<\/p>\n
Baby-sitter agencies charge between Rp 175,000 and Rp 200,000
\nfor each of the workers they supply.<\/p>\n
The difference between the two agencies is that the latter
\ninsists the baby-sitters pay 15 percent of their monthly salary
\nto the agency for getting them the job.<\/p>\n
The standard salary starts around Rp 175,000 with the highest
\nabout Rp 400,000, depending on experience.<\/p>\n
However, when the supply of baby-sitters is low, the agencies
\nsend temporary ones. For this service they charge a daily rate of
\nbetween Rp 25,000 and 35,000.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/idul-fitri-boosts-housemaid-business-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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