‘Mukhang nurse, hindi kasambahay’: Job posting for domestic helper draws flak

March 3, 2023 - 2:41 PM
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Domestic helper
Image by cookie_studio on Freepik

“Mukhang nurse, hindi mukhang kasambahay.”

A job posting about a stay-in domestic helper gained the attention of Filipino Reddit users for the unusual requirements for its applicants.

Reddit user u/LangKwentangReplies on February 28 shared a screengrab of the post from a Facebook group dedicated to job hunters in a city in Metro Manila.

The Redditor highlighted the employer’s comment about the applicant’s physical appearance on the discussion website.

“Kasambahay na ‘hindi mukhang kasambahay,'” the caption on Reddit reads.

The post has been upvoted at 97% so far.

The job posting requires the applicant to only “maintain” the house and not do heavy housework like cooking, doing the laundry, and ironing clothes.

“Mag-alaga lang ng baby, saglit lang, kasi gusto namin na nasa amin [siya] most of the time. Hugas ng plato, ‘di din, madalas kasi nanay ko naghuhugas,” the employer said.

“May kusa sana, not more than 40 ang age. ‘Yung ‘pag kasama sa labas, mukhang nurse, hindi mukhang kasambahay. ‘Yung [puwede] mapagkamalan na kamaganak lang namin,” the employer added.

The domestic helper will have his/her own room, “free wi-fi access, toiletries, and other basic needs.” He/she will also have a day off every Sunday.

The starting salary is P6,000.

The applicant should present a barangay and NBI clearance, valid ID, and a COVID-19 vaccine card.

Facebook_kasambahay job posting
(Screengrab of a job posting on Feb. 28, 2023 from Facebook)

While the post did not receive criticism on Facebook, it was a different story on Reddit, where Pinoy users called out the employer for adding the applicant’s physical appearance among the criteria.

“I wonder lang ano itsura [nang] nag-post nito (unamused face emoji) ka-imbyerna,” a Redditor commented.

“Teka, ano ba [itsura] ng mga nurse? Gusto ata nito mukhang overworked-underpaid tapos walang sapat na tulog e, hahahaha. ‘Yung sahod, doblehin sana para nurse na nurse talaga ang datingan,” another online user said in the platform.

“I wonder kung ano ba ang itsura ng kasambahay? I would reply with sarcasm, ‘Ano ba muna itsura niyo? Baka mas mukha pa kayong kasambahay [kaysa] sa’kin?’ para alam nila feeling,” wrote a different Redditor.

“Ginawa pang-aesthetic ang yaya (loudly crying emoji) ta’s 6k [6,000] lang,” another Pinoy commented.

“‘Di ba naisip ni ateng na baka [siya] ;yung nakakahiya kasama? Ganda ka, teh? Kuripot pa,” wrote a different Redditor.

A domestic helper is an individual who works in a household or an employer’s home to help maintain it. These include maids, cooks, nannies, and all-around helpers.

Their physical appearances are usually the least of the concerns of employers who primarily bank on their skills and how efficient they are as house workers.

Jobs that are more likely to consider such criteria include those in the modeling and showbiz industries, among others.