A group of foreign domestic helpers was filmed neglecting their charges while they busied themselves filming TikTok videos.
Lianhe Wanbao reported on April 10 that a group of young foreign domestic helpers at Bukit Batok Street 25 was seen dancing at the playground daily, while the elderly and young folks under their care were left unattended.
Elderly men, small boy left unattended
According to the Chinese paper, five foreign domestic helpers would gather from Mondays to Fridays at Block 289C. Four of them would dance while a fifth person films them with a phone.
Courtesy of Lianhe Wanbao.
The folks who were left unattended included a wheelchair-bound elderly man who seemed to be in a daze, another elderly man with crutches, and a young boy in pyjamas who played on the playground by himself.
A resident told the paper that the helpers would gather in the morning and in the evenings.
Another 45-year-old resident, Lin, told Lianhe Wanbao that he once saw an elderly man yelling that he needed to go to the bathroom, but his helper insisted that he hold it in. In the end, he could not bear it and his helper had to bring him home grudgingly.
Helper sometimes too engrossed in dancing
The paper managed to find the elderly man in the wheelchair and his helper.
The 25-year-old helper, named Siti, said that she would meet her fellow domestic helpers whenever she brought her employer's father to and fro the nursing home.
She also admitted that sometimes she would be too engrossed in her dancing and forget about the elderly man.
Employer replaced the helper
Siti's employer, Mr Dong, was furious when he found out. He told Lianhe Wanbao:
"I always to remind her to keep an eye on my father. I never expected that she would do this and betray our trust."
He later arranged with the maid agency to engage a new domestic helper to replace Siti.
Top image courtesy of Lianhe Wanbao.