What goes around comes around. The good people of Makkah have been reminded of this saying now that there are only a few weeks until the grace period expires on July 3.
Just until a few weeks ago, families in Makkah were using every means to lure Indonesian maids. They had offered higher wages sometimes up to SR 3,000 per month, especially during the holy month of Ramadan. Despite the higher wages, maids continued to run away from their sponsors.
The grace period has changed all that. The maids are making compromises just to remain in Saudi Arabia, by transferring their sponsorship. And for that they are even willing to work for half the amount of what they used to.
Taghreed, a housewife, said, “What we are seeing now is a far cry from what we used to see a couple of years ago. In the past the maids used to impose very tough conditions, which families had to give in to. Sometimes, some families couldn’t afford their demands or the type of work they were willing to do.”
Al Anoud, a teacher, agrees. “Many families are now dictating their conditions. Some maids have gone back to their original sponsors (families) to regularize their status. But it is the families now who are imposing a number of conditions. The most important one is that a maid cannot run away. Some families have extracted the approval of the maids to work for half-pay,” she said.
Families were surprised at how forthcoming the Indonesian maids have become. Some even canceled their vacations in order to have the family accept and sponsor them. They told the families they would go for vacation when they are allowed to do so.
There are now brokers who conduct the negotiations with the families. These are the very same brokers who used to facilitate the running away of the maids to gain a few extra bucks.
New facts of life for Indonesian maids
