Beijing Merryhome Consulting & Service Co. Ltd.--How to Hire a Local Ayi?

Ayis can work either part-time and full-time. Part-time Ayis may work for several families a day while full-time Ayis work 8 to 10 hours a day, depending on the amount of housework and may live in your house.
With an hourly pay ranging from RMB15 (2USD) to RMB25(3.3USD) or more (the price may differ from place to place), you may find a dutiful part-time Ayi to accomplish most of your daily housework, and cook good Chinese food for you every day.

In general, if you stay in a two- or three-bedroom apartment, a part-time Ayi for three or four hours a day will enough. However, if you have a villa or large house and have a family, one or two full-time Ayis will be necessary. Some people may even hire three -- one for cooking, one for cleaning and the other for children and pets. Those full-time Ayis will cost you RMB1,800 to RMB3,500 a month, depending on their roles.

Normally, Ayis should have two rest days a week, no matter whether they are part-time or full-time. If you have a party or special event on their rest day, especially at the weekend, most Ayis will help you to prepare for such an event. Dont forget to thank them for their help, as this goes beyond their usual obligations.

Both part-time and full-time Ayis may have holidays at least once a year -- usually during Chinese New Year or the golden weeks in May and October. They may have a week-long holiday at Spring Festival (Chinese New Year) and two or three days off for May Day and National Day in October. As most Ayis come from rural areas, they will return to their hometown for their holidays. If you hire a Shanghai Ayi, she may be willing to shorten her holiday. However, again, this would go beyond the call of duty.

Warning! Some Ayis have been known to use fake ID cards and commit crimes ranging from petty theft to kidnapping in some very rare cases. Thus, you should ensure your Ayi is qualified by using a reputable agency.

Most Ayis are unable to speak any English. An English-speaking Ayi, which is not easy to find, will cost considerably more. So, you should know how to communicate with your Ayi. Learning some useful Chinese phrases or sentences will help. By the way, your kids may learn more Chinese, especially her hometown dialect, than you from your Ayi.

Generally, Ayi are skilled and competent but you should be patient if teaching her to meet specific demands.

It would be better to write a schedule for your Ayi every day. However you should make sure your Ayi understands your instructions and rules. If you have a Chinese assistant or secretary, who is willing to be your part-time interpreter or translator, use this.

Ayis should be covered by workers compensation insurance or you should compensate them for lost working hours. Many insurance companies in the city have specific insurance for the service industry.

the service hour depends on the conditions of client’apartment and needs. It always takes a worker 3-4 hours to clean up a 130sqm room per day. You can choose this kind of service if you want your apartment looks brand-new.

You can choose this kind of service If there are kids or elder family members to take care, or there are quite a lot housework to do in daytime. Service hour 8 to 10 hours per day。

Working and Living in client’s home per day. and the worker has 4 or 8 holidays per month. You can choose this kind of service if there are kids or elder family members to take care both in night and in daytime or there are quite a lot housework to do both in daytime and night.