Singed contract then changed our mind about helper - what do we do?

G

gstlhk2012

New member
We recently met a nice FDH and, after speaking to her previous employers, hired her on their recommendation

At the subsequent meeting after submitting her contract to immigration she failed to show up - she sent a text (no call) to say she was sick shortly before the meeting - could we do it another day.

We'd planned our whole day around the meeting and even arranged it close to her residence to save her money (more than an hour away form us). We spent ages getting our young family ready for the journey only for it to be cancelled at the last minute - if she was sick she could have told us hours earlier as this was mid-afternoon.

We took this as a sign of things to come and we have reluctantly decided that perhaps she she isn't the right person for us.

We don't know what to do next. We feel really bad to let her down, but at the same time we really don't want to take the risk of hiring someone unreliable to take care of our child.

After we tell immigration will she have to leave HK immediately or will they give her more time? We feel bad terrible pull out on her if this ruins her prospects in HK. At the same time we cant hire her just because we feel bad for her. Is there anything we can do to buy her some more time?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
 
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perhaps she left it late in the hopes she would feel better by the time you arrived? i know, that has happened to me before. i have an important meeting but wake up very sick. i put off calling because i hope that i'll feel better in a few hours only to find that i don't feel better, i feel worse!

i'm not saying you can't change your mind, but this seems a little extreme if it's just your first issue with her. you're not giving her much of a chance, i don't think.

sorry, personally, i think you are being extremely harsh in your decision.
 
carang said:
perhaps she left it late in the hopes she would feel better by the time you arrived? i know, that has happened to me before. i have an important meeting but wake up very sick. i put off calling because i hope that i'll feel better in a few hours only to find that i don't feel better, i feel worse!

i'm not saying you can't change your mind, but this seems a little extreme if it's just your first issue with her. you're not giving her much of a chance, i don't think.

sorry, personally, i think you are being extremely harsh in your decision.
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Thanks. It wasn't just one incident. I was a little concerned with some troubles we had arranging our first meeting, she was then 30+ minutes late for her trial day. Not a great start - that should have put me off.

We pointed out the time and asked her about why she was late for the trial day, so we thought she had got the message. The last incident was the final nail, its got progressively worse each time and she isn't even working yet. She is a sweet person but obviously unreliable.

My decision not to proceed has been made to be honest, I'm just looking at how I can help her from here. Which I figure means giving her as much time in Hong Kong as possible.
 
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in that case, then you need to talk to immigration immediately. i think you may still be liable for notice/airfare.... i would contact them first thing in the morning!
 
ps> the maximum she will get is 14 days after termination... but if she hasn't been approved yet, then she'll likely have to depart very soon. nothing you can do about that.
 
I regret now that I signed a helper who came late to the interview and trial and was not good at cleaning. I thought she'd change. She is still now unreliable and not good at cleaning.
 
My current helper flubbed her first interview with us. There was some mix-up between the time / date, and I never did find out whether it was the agency girl's fault, or my helper's fault. Plus, my helper had her phone off that whole day that we were try to arrange to meet. (Later she said it was broken).

I almost dismissed her for being a flake. But I gave her a second chance, and she has been been excellent, and with us for more than a year. She's reliable, and her never once been late for work, called in sick at the last minute, or let us down.

I'm not in your shoes. But there is a possibility that you have a great person who just happened to have some really bad luck -- like a broken phone, or a sudden illness.
 
Gracey said:
My current helper flubbed her first interview with us. There was some mix-up between the time / date, and I never did find out whether it was the agency girl's fault, or my helper's fault. Plus, my helper had her phone off that whole day that we were try to arrange to meet. (Later she said it was broken).

I almost dismissed her for being a flake. But I gave her a second chance, and she has been been excellent, and with us for more than a year. She's reliable, and her never once been late for work, called in sick at the last minute, or let us down.

I'm not in your shoes. But there is a possibility that you have a great person who just happened to have some really bad luck -- like a broken phone, or a sudden illness.
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Glad it worked out for you. I've felt nothing but relief since changing our minds.

Being late once I could (and did) accept, twice is a push, but three times (out of a potential 3) is too many times. In the three meetings we spent almost as much time waiting for her to show as we did with her, no exaggeration. Then there was the no show.

Fortunately we have worked things out so she has plenty of time to find something else.

Thanks for the help/insights.
 
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Oh, wow. Late three times in a row! Then you're right. She's not responsible enough, or doesn't want the job enough.
 
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