My interview: Jolynn Ang - S10037265G

http://jolynnang.multiply.com/music/item/1

sorry mr chong. odeo was a no go so i used multiply instead. hope this is okay.

Radio Story

Foreign domestic workers – they are all around us.

Today, though, we will be exploring a more significant part of this particular group of people living among us- specifically, the ones living with us in our very homes.

That’s right. We will be talking about maids, or if want for a better word, our domestic help.

Most maids that we Singaporeans employ come from the Philippines and Indonesia.

However, over the years, there has been this conception among Singaporeans that Indonesian maids are more inferior compared to Filipino maids.

Is this true? We don’t really know. Do Indonesian maids really have less credibility and ability as compared to their Filipino counterparts?

Yvonne Tan, 30, an independent career woman with a successful husband and 2 beautiful kids. Sounds pretty much like a good employer who is easy to get along with.

What, though, are her thoughts on Indonesian and Filipino maids? Over the years, she has come across a fair number of different maids from both countries. She has had 5 Indonesian maids and 1 Filipino one now.

Let’s talk to her, and find out exactly what her experience has been with them.

“How many maids did you have before this current one?
Ans: 6, including this one who is a Filipino. “

“What went wrong with the previous maids that you had?”
“Ans: The first one accidentally put my son’s fingers into the toaster. And the rest actually stole from me, of course there’s some language problems between me and the maids.“

Hmm. Is it just me or does it sound like our maids are turning violent?

“ Do you think Indonesian maids are less capable than Filipino maids?”
“Ans: I definitely think so. I think Filipino maids work better. They take the initiative to do stuff and I don’t have to nag at them. Whereas Indonesian maids they tend to act a little bit “blur”, and maybe their mentality is a little bit lower than normal. So if I have to get another maid, I’ll definitely opt for Filipino.“

“ So why did you employ so many Indonesian maids before getting a Filipino?
“Ans: Because employing an Indonesian maid is cheaper. Even though the levy is the same, but a Filipino maid would be more expensive.”

“ Out of so many Indonesian maids that you employed, weren’t there any good experiences that you had with them?
Ans: Yes, definitely with the second maid. She brought joy especially to my son and took care of him. And she did all the housework meticulously without me having to complain much when I come back from work.”

“ How is your relationship with your current Filipino maid?
Ans: Not bad. We can actually talk about almost anything, about whether she’s got a boyfriend or whether she’s maybe sick of her work here. She’s quite open with me and I’m actually quite open with her as well about things that I like her to do and things that I don’t like her to do.”

“ Do you think the relationship would be the same if it were an Indonesian maid?”
“Ans: I doubt so. Because first of all, its the language barrier. Most of the time they can’t speak proper English. I normally get quite impatient after I have to repeat the question a few times so I just shut her off and most of the time she would not be able to hold a proper conversation with me. “


We have heard from Yvonne and her experience with maids. It seems like we have a firm supporter of Filipino maids on our hands.

However, will Indonesian maids, in time to come, earn an even more negative reputation of being inferior or less capable than Filipino maids? How can we help them? Is it fair for all Indonesian maids to be thought of this way?

And also, for Filipino maids to have a more superior reputation and getting paid more. Is there a specific reason why the government states that Filipino maids must draw a higher salary than Indonesians? What about those Filipino maids that aren’t that good? We will explore these issues in the future.

I sincerely hope that potential employers will give Indonesian maids a chance to prove themselves and not get influenced by what others think of them. Some of them really are conscientious workers. Imagine, what would become of their country and economy if nobody ever wanted to employ Indonesian maids in time to come.

This is Jolynn from T01 reporting for Newsradio 938.