“The market for part-time housemaids is booming these days. With the stoppage of recruitment from certain southeast Asian countries, the doors are wide open for those who are willing to work part-time,” the owner of a recruitment office told Arab News.

He said competition among Saudi families to obtain the services is high, with many Saudis willing to do iqama transfer and pay salaries that by far exceed the farthest dreams of the housemaids.

Under the part-time arrangement, the housemaid, whose salary did not exceed SR800  a month in the past, will be paid SR150 for eight hours of work at the rate of SR19 an hour.

“Despite the high wages there is great demand for part-time housemaids,” said Jumana Muhammad, a teacher in Asir.

She said the need for house helps makes employers willing to pay no matter how high the price is. “The important thing is to have a housemaid in the house,” she said.

Muhammad recalled that the housemaid she had recruited from Indonesia insisted on going back after the expiration of her contract. “I tried to bring another one but recruitment from Indonesia was stopped. I need a housemaid to stay with my children during my absence and also to help me in the household chores,” she said.

Muhammad said she was finally able to obtain a housemaid on a part-time basis. “The housemaid comes in the morning before I leave for school and leaves early evening. I pay her SR2,500 a month, and give her a weekly holiday,” she said.

Salma Al-Shahrani, a government employee, said in the past housemaids who would work part-time were Ethiopians, but now women of other nationalities also prefer the system because the wage is higher and the workload is less. She said the housemaids who do not want to work for their sponsors would go back to the recruitment office looking for day-to-day hiring.

Al-Shahrani noted that the Saudi families usually prefer to hire Indonesian and Filipino housemaids through the part-time system. “The increasing demand for Filipino housemaids has made many nurses to work as house helps after their hospital hours, especially as Saudi families are willing to pay any amount they ask,” she said.

A housewife, who did not want to be identified, noted that despite the rosy pictures drawn by recruitment offices, the results were a far cry as the performance of the housemaid deteriorates the moment she comes to know that she can make more money working on a part-time basis.

Part-time services are usually obtained through female intermediaries who are mostly foreigners.

Aiesha, an Indonesian intermediary, fixes the hourly pay at SR19. “This is good money. Both the housemaid and the Saudi employer are happy,” she says.

According to Aiesha, the employer should give her a weekly off starting from Wednesday off to Friday evening. The employer also has to pay her taxi driver. “These are our conditions for providing you with a part-time housemaid. Take it or leave it,” she said.

The owner of a recruit office in Asir said they had many work visas for recruitment of housemaids from Indonesia but they are all on hold now since recruitment from Indonesia has been stopped.

“Many Saudi employers have requested the money they paid because they think the housemaid will never arrive. This has caused us huge losses,” he said.

He said when an employer becomes desperate of getting his own housemaid from Indonesia, he goes for part-time recruitment.

Many Saudis have begun tempting housemaids to transfer their iqamas to them by offering huge salaries. “This may cost a lot, but still many Saudis are willing to pay,” said the recruitment agent.