Last July, the Foreign Domestic Worker Association for Support and Training (FAST) launched the Onboarding and Integration Programme (OIP) to help maids become familiar with important safety precautions and the unique work culture in Singapore.
The programme aims to increase maid retention in Singaporean households through skills training which include effective communication with employers, preparation of basic and healthy dishes, and commuting using public transport in the city.
2-day training program for maids pushed to be adopted in home countries
Best Home, an employment agency in Singapore, reported that 80 per cent of their agents who underwent the OIP in July have remained with the same employers since they started working in the country.
FAST is now coordinating with labour agencies in Myanmar and the Philippines in an effort to establish the OIP as part of the training requirement for maids from their home countries.
According to Mr William Chew, FAST’s executive director, foreign domestic workers (FDWs) will benefit from the training from their home countries in preparation for their actual work in Singapore.
The OIP will go with the one-day settling-in programme (SIP) required by the Ministry of Manpower, which covers topics such as safety at work, stress and relationship management as well as the basics of living in Singapore.