Thangga Thamarai says the agency was unable to find her a suitable maid.
SECURING the service of a live-in foreign domestic helper through an agency can be an arduous experience as M. Thangga Thamarai, 33, has learned.
Dissatisfied with six maids the agency provided her, she brought the matter up with the Johor Consumer Claims Tribunal in Menara Ansar.
Thangga Thamarai, a sales executive, told StarMetro as she and her sister worked in Singapore, they paid RM11,500 to an agency at Jalan Syed Mohamed Mufti in Johor Baru, on April 10, to engage a live-in maid on a two-year contract.
They had specified in the contract that they wanted a healthy, non-Muslim maid under 40 years old.
Thangga Thamarai said she had indicated to the agency that the maid was expected to do housekeeping in addition to caring for a toddler.
To work as a maid in Malaysia, one must be between 21 and 45 years old.
Thangga Thamarai said the agency sent an Indian national on April 10, claiming the maid was 38 years old with nine years’ work experience in Kuwait.
“Later, we found out she was 45, had health problems and her work permit was going to expire on May 10.”
Thangga Thamarai said her Tamil-speaking family also had communication problems with the maid who only spoke Telugu.
She added that the agency had told the maid that she would be paid RM1,700 monthly although the contract had stated it was RM1,500.
“I only paid her RM1,500 as per the contract and the agency sent her back to India on June 24,” she said.
A second maid, a 38-year-old woman from Batam, Indonesia, worked for the claimant from June 24 until July 24. However, she only had a tourist visa.
“I demanded that the agency take her back as I did not want to get into trouble with the authorities for hiring a foreigner on a tourist visa,” she said.
The third maid was a 32-year-old Sri Lankan who arrived on July 18 at 11pm.
“We found out that she was actually working for a family in Shah Alam, Selangor, and came to Johor Baru on her day off.”
Thangga Thamarai said the fourth maid was a 26-year-old Indian national who arrived on July 19 and worked for her family until July 21.
“Her work contract had expired and she was supposed to go back to India on July 22 but the agency forced her to work for us,” she said, adding that she paid the woman RM150 as a token for the three days’ work.
Thangga Thamarai said she was left without a maid and her three-year-old niece was taken care of by a neighbour until a 21-year-old Sri Lankan maid arrived on Aug 19.
However, this maid stayed only for a few days because she was very unhappy, given that the agency had promised her work as a restaurant helper.
Thangga Thamarai sent her back to the agency on Aug 21 and a 54-year-old maid from India was sent the next day.
“She spent most of her time sleeping, based on what we saw from the closed-circuit TV camera (CCTV) footage at home,” she said.
Thangga Thamarai sent her back to the agency on Aug 24 and demanded a refund of the RM11,500 payment but was refused.
Tribunal president Lee Chee Thim ordered the respondent to return RM10,062, taking into account administration fees and other related expenses, within two weeks.
Those in need of Tribunal assistance can call 07-227 1755 or 07-227 1766.
