'Red eyes' looking for a maid

Scarce, good income

In recent years, the health of Ms. Pham Thi Huong Giang's parents in Hai Tan Ward (Hai Duong City) has declined significantly. They can no longer take their grandchildren to school. Cleaning the house and cooking meals every day has gradually become too much for them. Ms. Giang and her husband are both busy with work and do not have time to take care of their parents and children. The couple has discussed hiring a housekeeper.

Ms. Giang has asked around at some places that specialize in job referrals, asked acquaintances in her hometown to help her find a job, and even posted information on some public groups on Facebook. However, for the past 2 months, she has not found anyone. A few people called when they heard about Ms. Giang's job search, but after discussing the job, they could not agree.

“I didn’t think finding a housekeeper would be so difficult. It’s not that I’m picky, but most of the people who called me were old, some didn’t even know how to cook, and it was difficult to meet the family’s needs, so I didn’t dare hire them,” Giang said with a sigh.

According to the Hai Duong Center for Employment Services and Vocational Education, there is currently a high demand for domestic helpers, but supply cannot meet demand. Almost everyone who comes to the center to register is introduced to work immediately. However, those who register to work as domestic helpers are mostly older, around 55 years old or older. Those under this age choose to work at companies because they are still healthy and have more flexible hours. Domestic helpers usually have to work and stay full-time with the employer's family.

Due to the scarcity of supply, the salary and benefits for domestic workers are currently quite good compared to the average income of ordinary workers. According to the investigation of Hai Duong Newspaper reporters, the salary of full-time domestic workers in Hai Duong is currently from 7 million VND/person/month or more. Professional domestic workers when working in families all require a 13th month salary, holiday bonuses, Tet bonuses, summer and winter clothing purchases, etc. Those who live far away all request or suggest that the homeowner give them extra money for transportation each time they return home.

Many people are unprofessional.

Many families say that although they find a domestic worker, they face the reality that the quality of work is very poor.

After giving birth, Ms. Nguyen Thi Hue in Binh Han Ward (Hai Duong City) asked an acquaintance to introduce a maid who was over 60 years old. This person said that she had worked in many houses in Hai Duong City and Hanoi, but the longest time she worked was 6 months. All the families let her go because their children were grown up or they had arranged their own jobs so they did not hire her anymore. Hearing this, Ms. Hue was hesitant, but because she needed someone urgently, she had to accept.

However, over time, it was shown that the maid she hired was really clumsy and incompetent. Apart from looking after the child, she didn't know how to do anything else.

On her days off, she didn’t help Ms. Hue clean the house and just kept looking at her phone. Ms. Hue couldn’t ask her to do any chores because her leg hurt and she couldn’t climb the stairs. So when she looked after the child, she mostly just let the child hang around the house. Although Ms. Hue really wanted to replace the housekeeper with someone more agile, she still couldn’t find one.

The current reality shows that the domestic worker profession is still considered freelance. In 2024, Hai Duong City conducted a survey on this profession. The results showed that only about 4% of domestic workers have signed labor contracts with employers. Working without a labor contract makes many young people not want to participate in this profession. Only the older workforce participates, so poor quality is inevitable.

Grasping the increasing demand for domestic helpers of families, recently, the Provincial Women's Union has directed grassroots associations to establish "Family Help Service" groups based on the actual situation. Some groups operate very effectively, typically the "Family Help Service" group of the Gia Xuyen Commune Women's Union (Hai Duong City).

This group was established in 2017 and currently has a total of 22 members. Ms. Nguyen Thi Nhan, President of the Gia Xuyen Commune Women's Union, said that the members' main job is to clean houses by the hour or by anyone who hires them for suitable work. Some members work during the off-season, but others work periodically and regularly.

During Tet, the team members are overwhelmed with work. Some homeowners have been with the team for many years and have even trusted the team with the keys to come and clean when they are away. It is known that many families, after having arranged the work, have switched from hiring full-time helpers to hiring hourly helpers, which is both cost-effective and more satisfying.

However, in reality, not every family can choose hourly help. Therefore, families should not put too much expectation on full-time helpers. Depending on the conditions, make reasonable arrangements for both sides to facilitate work and life.