What can I do if my maid steals？
As more families choose to hire a maid to share household chores, some employers have found out or suspected their maids stealing.
What should the employers do if maid steals and how to prevent the stealing in advance. There are some tips and rules to follow.
What can I do if I found my valuable belongings missing
- To ensure the safety of the remaining property, please keep the remaining assets properly
- Check carefully with any place you are likely to put your stuff in.
- Check with your family members and your maid whether anyone know where your belongings is
*don’t blame or accuse the maid at the beginning, if it’s not the maid’s fault, that will ends your good relationship with the maid.
After confirm the belongings is missing
The employer should consider whether it’s necessary to report to police. If not necessary, keep the remaining valuable belongings in safe place afterwards.
If you are pretty sure that the maid stolen your stuff, that’s what u can do
1, You dismiss her and send her to her home country, pls discuss with employment agency especially the maid still has loan
2, Turn for employment agency for advice, see if they can provide any lodging service if you don’t want her to stay in your house any longer, but you are still responsible for her even she is at the lodging.
3, You can report to police about the stealing and follow the following procedures.
The police officer will take the maid to police station to investigate, the maid will be kept for 48 hours, after 48 hours, the employer need to pick her up from the police station
If the maid confessed her stealing.
- The policeman will try to find out whether the lost can be traced
- Employer need to take her from police station after 48 hours
- It will take two weeks for the police to decide whether to prosecute the maid based on the amount of money stolen and the severity of the case
* In the event of a lawsuit, the employer is responsible for bringing the maid to court. If the lawsuit ends in a sentence, the employer shall repatriate the person after the sentence is completed.
The employer is still responsible for the maid's basic supplies before serving her sentence.
**Please note that the decision to prosecute rests with the police, not the employer.
If the maid not been confirmed for the stealing
1, the employer still needs to get the maid back from the police station and then decide whether to continue the contract, send her home or let her transfer to other employer
2, If she still got remaining loan, make sure you discuss with your employment agency first.
*No matter what the final result is, the employer is still fully responsible for the maid’s basic life, including enough food and accommodation during this period. If she needs to go back to home country, employer should pay her air tickets.
If employer refuses to be responsible for the maid before repatriation, it will be regarded as a violation by MOM and may cause the following problems:
1. Violation of the Employment Management Regulations for Maid
2. Cannot hire new maid
3. Bear the corresponding costs or even fines
The following is a link to the MOM regulations:
From article of When the bond will be forfeited clearly states that failure to return the maid to the country is a violation of the regulations, and there will be a corresponding fine.
The following regulations stipulate the circumstances under which the employment relationship between the employer and the maid ends:
There is a specific explanation in the part of when employment ends. Not only to cancel the pass, but also responsible for the return ticket and related costs.
How to prevent the stealing in advance
1. It is recommended to prepare a safe or drawer which can be locked at home. Keep all your valuable belongings in them and make sure password is confidential.
2. Install camera at home. When something is missing, can check the camera for reference.
3. Know the maid’s situation well, does she have sister also working in Singapore, or have any boyfriend? If stealing happened, they might also know. And some will involve helping to transfer dirty money or stolen goods.
4. Try not to expose money outside. Some maid will be lured into committing crime. Therefore, it is also necessary for the employer not to the mention of the status of the valuable belongings with the maid and not to put the valuable belongings within the reach of the maid.
