₦airaland Forum

When it comes to the issue of employing  house maids i'm scared stiff, ah! I don tire for dia wahala! The first ever maid I employed prior to my first delivery claimed to be 23years old. Blessing started off quite well  the first few weeks but I started noticing changes after I put to birth, her job description was basically cleaning the house and nothing more. She doesn't cook nor do my laundry, she doesn't even look after my little baby. 


Problem started when she felt her duty was to watch African megic(africa magic), oh yes! That's how she pronounces it, some chores will be half done and some untouched. Even when I send her to get the house chores done, she does them haphazardly so she can watch her beloved African megic. In a bid to take it easy with her not come off too controlling I didn't ban her from watching it but when she started grumbling and talking back at me when I complain of a poorly done job I knew she needed to leave Before she becomes my boss.

Shortly after my first maid left I got a new one. I decided she wasn't going to live with me, she started work few days into the month of October, she was dedicated and never bothered if there was a tv or not in the house. Trouble started when she started bringing her entire community clothes to wash in my house since I have a constant and steady water supply. I'm not against her using my water or clothe line but she took her laundry more serious than her work in my home. 

When I paid her December salary, she announced she wasn't returning after xmas break, upon further inquiry she said she wanted to get married. I was devastated but had no choice than to let her go. 

My husband decided I look for one from my hometown, I quickly sent a word to few relatives to get a matured girl for me  as I am strongly against child labour. A fifteen year old girl named Agi(short for Agnes) was sent to me after the festive season, I got her acquainted with her new home and nature of the job the following day after her arrival. She was so excited she was in the city...lol. she was dedicated to her work and was willing to do anything to further her education. We had an agreement with her parents.  she was going to rewrite her Senior secondary certificate exams which she failed at the first attempt. I enrolled her in extra mural classes which she attends every evening. Problem started when she started coming home late and upon investigations she was getting too comfortable with the street security guards. It didn't end there‎ her folks where bombarding us with heavy financial demands. The dad will call today and ask for money for his leaking roof. How much is it? I'll ask baba. 
N30,000 my daughter.
Haba! Baba do you want to re-roof your entire house? DH(darling husband) and I will send him the money. 
Mama not wanting to be left out will call almost immediately. 
"My daughter, I am the only one without the recommended lace and wrapper for christian mothers meeting, God alone will bless you if you send me N20,000 to purchase it". ‎Oh no! Here we go again....Gosh! we send her the money again to make it even. Agi's  siblings ain't left out as well they practically turned to us as there personal lord and saviour. We just had to bundle Agi back to her villa Before she runs us into debit mode.

While trying to figure out where next to get a maid my close friend came crying to me one faithful day, what happened? Oga gave maid belle. What?!?! This my friend in question has issues conceiving, you can imagine how devastated she was.  I consoled her and that alone got me scared again on a whole new level. I began to‎ hear even more scarier stories from fellow church members on how maids initiate kids into occultic activities and even sexually defiling kids. An old friend of mine once told me in confidence he was disvirgined by his maid when he was 10yrs and they kept having sex till he was 17yrs. That's utterly disgusting I must say.

I weighed the pros and cons of having a maid, the cons outweighed the pros and that's how I resolved never to have a maid again. I invested more on labor saving machines/equipements  and DH helps when and where he can as well. Not easy though with my multitude of kids...whew! Family planning that has always failed women since the days of Abraham. I'll gist you guys on that in my next post.


Cheers guys! you can also mail me your stories on your motherhood journey and i'll post them. ‎
Till I come your way again, bye!.
 ‎
Drop your views in comment section please :-

Depends on how u treat em...

Dear Op,
Why not keep your posts in one spot! it'll make them easier to follow especially since the subject evolves around the same thing more or less.
As to the maid matter. To each his own and the dynamics of every family is different. You mentioned your husband assists with chores, that's good but not very common place in these parts i.e Naija. The income level of the family also matters i.e affordability of labor saving device.

Some people have had it seamless with various maids over the years while for some orisirisi story... so again To each his/her own!!

kossyablaze:
Depends on how u treat em...

I tend to agree with you.however while some people are wise,some are other wise.All my maids received the best of treatment, as if they were my own kids. The difference will still be there, but my wife and I try not to widen the gap.problems will normally arise.it all depends on your tolerance level to either continue with them or fire them.

I once had a maid that burnt my daughter when she was just 2 and half.I felt like killing her,but going by the circumstances of how it happened, We gave her a benefit of doubt and still kept her.but it wasn't long she fumbled and got fired.

Another house maid I had,hmmmn normally we allow them watch T.V but not the african magic channels,coz thats what they understand. The day they discovered African magic,was the day meat started burning, leaving the kitchen all smoked up.

Try ur best to tame them accordingly, if they don't succumb,fire them..yeh its Herculean to keep on doing that..but familiarity will always breed contempt. I know of a friend whose dad contracts maid annually, then sets them off on a petty business and recruits another.

Must you have a house maid? The way some house maids are treated nowadays is just bad. It could even be refered to as modern day slavery. Some families subject these young boys and girls to the most humiliating and dehumanizing conditions and still expect them to behave normal. Ask yourself this; would I be comfortable sending my kid to leave with a total stranger, even if not as a maid?. They are not a necessity and they are not always evil, some will only mirror how you treat them in the long run. If you do not build their trust, they will become scared and hide a lot of stuff from you - Danger. Its even funny how anyone could expect a teenager to act older than her age just cuz she is a maid. Anyways, just my thought.

Mutuwa:
I tend to agree with you.however while some people are wise,some are other wise.All my maids received the best of treatment, as if they were my own kids. The difference will still be there, but my wife and I try not to widen the gap.problems will normally arise.it all depends on your tolerance level to either continue with them or fire them.

I once had a maid that burnt my daughter when she was just 2 and half.I felt like killing her,but going by the circumstances of how it happened, We gave her a benefit of doubt and still kept her.but it wasn't long she fumbled and got fired.

Another house maid I had,hmmmn normally we allow them watch T.V but not the african magic channels,coz thats what they understand. The day they discovered African magic,was the day meat started burning, leaving the kitchen all smoked up.

Try ur best to tame them accordingly, if they don't succumb,fire them..yeh its Herculean to keep on doing that..but familiarity will always breed contempt. I know of a friend whose dad contracts maid annually, then sets them off on a petty business and recruits another.

Try your best to tame them accordingly are they wild animals?