Call to cap fees from maids

Source: http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Regional/2015/02/27/Call-to-cap-fees-from-maids/

SOME maid agents are colluding with their foreign counterparts to jack up recruitment fees that foreign maids have to pay to work here.

This has resulted in foreign maids’ fees almost doubling in the last two years, said the body representing employment agencies here.

“Some maid agents in Singapore are working with foreign agents to raise fees. They want a bigger cut of the profit,” said Association of Employment Agencies Singapore (AEAS) president K. Jayaprema.

She is now pushing for the industry to cap fees that can be collected by agents here.

In 2013, foreign maids paid, on average, S$2,500 (RM6,600) in fees. This year, the fees are about S$4,000, (RM10,600) or about eight months of a worker’s average pay.

The fees cover commission for agents in Singapore and overseas and other costs, such as for training.

“The problem of high fees is very widespread. It is common to find domestic workers paying eight or nine months of their salary in fees. If we don’t act quickly, the fees will keep going up,” she said. Part of the reason for the rising fees is that there is little regulation and enforcement in the maids’ home countries.

In Singapore, the law states that local employment agencies cannot charge foreign workers more than two months’ salary in commission.

Jayaprema said the AEAS, which represents about 350 of some 700 active maid agencies here, is proposing to cap the total amount of fees that the agencies can collect from the maids at two months’ pay. This will stop the Singapore agents from using the excuse that the high fees mostly go into the pockets of foreign agents, the association said.

A Manpower Ministry spokesman said: “AEAS’ proposal could be initiated as an industry-led effort, given that the industry would have to work out its arrangement on the collection of the overseas agency fees with their foreign partners.”

But, the spokesman added, the ministry will fine and revoke licences of employment agencies which overcharge workers. — The Straits Times/ Asia News Network

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Posted on 27 Feb 2015

 

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