Where to hire a cleaning lady

(Emmanuel)
Hi Kelly and Lara, We are new in town and we are wondering if you could recommend us a company to hire someone to do the cleaning at out apartment, we do not want one living here, we would like her/him to come 2 or 3 times a week. Any reliable company or person that provide the service? Cheers

The Answer
( Lara ) Hello Emmanuel and welcome to Jakarta!! There are a few options for you here. If you stop in to JICC (Jakarta International Community Center) located in South Jakarta @ Jl Kemang Dalam X No E6A. (62 21) 7179 2813 / http://www.jicconline.com they have a staff registry which takes place every Monday and Wednesday from 10 am to 12 pm. The staff there are prescreened and with references. Another option is to put an ad out with Mary Ann Wiley, a long standing member of our community who is also a caterer. As a professional courtesy, she runs the Jakarta version of the Craig's List (items for sale/looking to purchase, staff reference letters). Her email address is mary.a.wiley@gmail.com or wileychj@rad.net.id
Also on the cleaning service, Santa Fe does offer that service. :). If you send her your ad, she will post it almost immediately. Finally, have you picked up a copy of the Jakarta Shopper's Guide? If not, I would like to recommend that you do. You may purchase them at a few bookstores around town. This book is a must for newcomers. Let us know if you run in to any snags :).

(Kelly) Hi Emmanuel, In Indonesia with the cost of labour being so affordable most people employ a full time maid. If you only want a part-time maid I would first suggest 2 things.

1. Check if your apartment offers a servicing option. Some do but it would probably be cheaper to hire your own staff, but more convenient for you if they do.

2. Ask around people you meet living at the same apartment block. Quite often people are willing to share a maid as their circumstances have changed and not longer require full time staff. e.g. children have left home etc.

There are yayasans out there that train domestic staff for hire but I find these are usually only used by locals looking for staff. Most expats will hire their maids through word of mouth or from references left at various associations. ANZA (Australia & NZ Association) and BWA (British Women's Association) have staff registers. These are just a drop off point for expats leaving town to leave their staff references or staff looking for jobs to drop off old references. No reference checks are made this is left up to the prospective employer. A lot of staff are hired through these sources.

JICC (Jakarta International Community Centre) offer a service where they will help you and interview staff on a certain day each week.

You will find it easy to find live-out staff as these days most domestic staff prefer to live-out. Finding someone to work only 2 to 3 days per week will be the difficult part. Most staff cannot afford to live on a part-time wage so they would always be looking for a full time job.

My advice would be to find a maid to share with someone at your apartments or hire a full time maid. Expats usually pay a salary for a full time maid from approx Rp1,300,000-2,000,000 per month. (inclusive of travel allowance). You would normally also provide basic food like rice, noodles, water, coffee and tea plus a small cooking facility. Check out this staff salary survey for more info; www.expat.or.id/info/2008-AWA-HouseholdStaffSalarySurvey.pdf
Check out this website for useful staff info;
www.expat.or.id/info/info.html#Staff
Good luck and just be aware finding the right staff member can sometimes happen easily and other times it may take several attempts to get the right person but once you find the right person it makes life here so much easier.

Other contacts
ANZA PH 7179 3042 Mon-Fri 9am-1pm (Please phone for address details)
BWA PH 719 5283 Mon-Fri 9am-12noon (Please phone for address details)
JICC PH 7179-2813,