Options available for households which need a second domestic worker
- Lianhe Zaobao (13 Sep 2022): "Hope to get more subsidies in application for second maid"
Options available for households which need a second domestic worker - Lianhe Zaobao, 17 Sep 2022
We thank Mr Han Fengguang for his letter, “Hope to get more subsidies in application for second migrant domestic worker” (13 Sep 22).
In his letter, Mr Han called for more support for families who need to hire a second migrant domestic worker (MDW) because of caregiving needs. The Government recognises the challenges of caregivers and has been working to enhance support for caregivers.
MOM grants levy concession for hiring an MDW if the employer lives with i) a young child below 16 years old, ii) an elderly person aged 67 and above, or iii) a person with disabilities. If a household has more than one person who needs care, the employer can hire a second MDW and receive levy concession for both MDWs. This means paying a monthly concessionary rate of $60 for each MDW, instead of $450 for non-concessionary rates.
Additionally, a household with a family member who needs permanent help with three or more activities of daily living may apply for the Home Caregiving Grant with the Agency for Integrated Care (AIC), which provides a monthly grant of $200 to defray caregiving expenses, including the cost of hiring an MDW.
Households can also explore other home-based caregiving options with AIC to support those with caregiving needs.
Doris Kuek
Director, Foreign Manpower Management Policy
Workplace Policy & Strategy Division
Hope to get more subsidies in application for second maid - Lianhe Zaobao, 13 Sep 2022
In Singapore, people would try their best to hire MDWs or caregivers to take care of their impaired and seriously ill family members 24 hours a day. They would rather work hard than send their families to a nursing home. After all, home was the warmest and most comfortable place, and it was also a fine tradition of the Chinese.
My friend was a driver, and his son had a job. He hired two MDWs to help take care of his sister, who had a stroke and suffered from cancer and had been recovering at home for many years. From time to time, my friend took his sister, who was weak but in good mental state, out to eat her favourite food, and he didn't feel troubled or tired at all.
The MDWs had to take care of the seriously ill patients' daily life and food, helped them up and down from wheelchairs every time, and took the patients to the toilet in the middle of the night. I had cared for my father who had a stroke and hemiplegia for four years and had to ask a Malay woman to take care of him until I got off work. I couldn't go anywhere for four years because there was no one else to help take care of my father. Because I could not concentrate on my work, I was finally fired from the company.
Some patients were obese, and the MDWs needed the help of family members to complete the tasks, which was very hard. During the day, they had to cook and do housework, and take care of the children. They were exhausted every day before they could rest. They didn't work in shifts and took long vacations like hospital nurses.
Some people might suggest that if one did not have the means and couldn't take care of the sick or the dementia patient, one should send them to a nursing home.
Just imagine, if we were patients ourselves, although the conditions at home were not as comfortable as some nursing homes, recuperating at home, seeing our family members every day, and having their company and care, would always make us feel better.
I hoped that the relevant authorities would give more allowances when the family members needed to hire a second MDW. After all, hiring an MDW was to take care of the sick elderly, not to take care of the young and healthy family members. Letting more seriously ill and disabled people live with their families until old age meant that there was no need to find ways to build more nursing homes and elderly care centres.
Han Fengguang