How much to pay a helper

[barbiegirl]

Agree with aussiegal :agree:. Same idea here but we do in a different way, we pay minimum wage to our helper, and we give her extra money/small gifts on special occasions, and it works well, our helper is happy with this.

 

[LeahH]

Paying an employee a wage that is reflective of the work they are doing and the value they bring to your life is not 'going overboard' - regardless of the amount.

I worked as a Nanny/au pair for two years and was paid well above the minimum by a wonderful family I lived with and was thankful for it. My domestic helper's remit is much the same as mine was - just a different 'job title'

Everyone has a sliding scale that determines how much they are prepared to pay for goods and services - I value the massive contribution that my helper makes to my family life and pay her in line with this.

As Barbiegirl says, there is no official scale. This is what I'm comfortable with and I'm certainly not alone - a large number of people I know take a similar approach.

 

[aussiegal]

If only men thought the way you do LeahH us wives would all be earning a lot of money as we undoubtedly make our families lives a lot easier

In defense of all of us plebs who only pay $4 or 4.5k/month (!) my two cents is that whilst it's nice to pay someone (any employee) who is good at their job at the higher end of the wage scale i would never pay anyone more than that or even the very top. It's unnecessary and in the long term if too many people do this it could lead to wider problems. Your helper will come to expect it from future employers and will also tell all her friends who will then wonder why they are not getting this amount. They might start to feel resentful, won't do their job quite as well, will keep an eye out for better paying jobs etc. Many people can't actually afford to pay more than minimum wage but need a helper so that they can work etc. What happens when they are unable to afford decent help for their home?
And what about the helpers who aren't all that good? They'll expect the same money regardless as no one thinks they are rubbish at their job.

Most people in any case favour good working conditions over slightly more money and i've spoken to many helpers who've said the same thing. I too worked as an au pair and believe me i didn't do it for the money despite being paid more than what was expected. Not really hard when you know how little the job pays. I loved the family i worked for, i loved the kids and i liked the other perks that came with the job, holidays in great places, unexpected presents etc.

I don't think it's appropriate or even nice to suggest that by paying a helper more than most of us do (and i think most people here pay the very reasonable amount of between 4 and 4.5) that you are in any way better than us or value more than us 'the massive contribution' helpers make to all of our lives.

 

[barbiegirl]

In HK, as far as I know, most families hire helpers are to take care of babies/children and to do household chores, this is their basic job nature, and it is also the reason for the existence of helpers. There is no offical scale, but government has set a minimum wage as a reference, so they think it is a reasonable wage for a domestic helper who are provided with accomodation and food. Like I said, we should pay a reasonable wage according to the job nature, minimum wage is good enough to hire a helper to carry out ordinary household chores and babysitting/childcare, as this is their basic job nature. Some families who require helpers to look after members with special needs may need to pay more for a helper with this kind of experience. To pay higher wages are up to the employers, but I think it should be kept within a reasonable scale. I agree with that bonus or extra money like red packets are a better option to show your appreciation to a good helpers.