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Annual raise for maid and gardener


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We have always given a raise for good performance and showing up. Their costs keep going up like all of ours, so I think a raise helps them keep up with their expenses.

I just can't remember if we gave a flat fee raise or a percentage.

Just wondering what most people may  give as an annual raise for domestic help.

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39 minutes ago, sm1mex said:

Just wondering what most people may  give as an annual raise for domestic help.

What most people here give is what they want to give, or not give. As you can see from the comments that ranges from zero to whatever. So, whatever rings your bell.

 

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Let's be sensible and use the best guideline we have..that is what the government uses. Depending on your lifestyle etc., of course, different people will have experienced different increases their COL
Do not go on a guilt trip BUT  with the turmoil that is resonating NOB it would seem that "WE" in Mexico are not in compliance and just paying slave wages. So maybe when you think of the first number double it

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I rather resent being told that I should pay more simply because I'm not from here. We pay slightly more than the going rate. Every year, we raise it by the % of inflation, or more (rounding up). We also make sure we pay holiday pay, aguinaldos, etc, etc. and for any guilt you're trying to inflict on us, just remember that many say they prefer working for the ex-pat community simply because most of us ARE more than fair...not all, of course, so I don't know where you're getting the slave wages from. If we were that crappy, not one foreigner would ever have help. As it is, many of us do. A bit contradictory, no?

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10 minutes ago, sm1mex said:

We always pay aguinaldos  and vacation pay per the formula for the formula the government uses. My question is still since raises Are not mandatory what do people recommend. As I ask in my original post. 

As I previously mentioned, we use whatever the govt. gives as the rate of inflation. It can be anywhere from 3-5%. Other than that, no one can really answer for you because what works for us may not work for you (want to give less? more? exactly?)

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23 minutes ago, sm1mex said:

We always pay aguinaldos  and vacation pay per the formula for the formula the government uses. My question is still since raises Are not mandatory what do people recommend. As I ask in my original post. 

Our domestic help at lakeside earn more than teachers and police so the slave wages is just not the case.  The actually earn higher wages than 90% of Mexico.  If I had to pay the US wage equivalent I simply wouldn't have any help. They won't thank you for causing the jobs to disappear.  Actually I would just cut the hours back to what I could afford as would many folks I know. This area thrives because of the cost of living for foreigners. Most home owners simply use the inflation number as a percentage. A raise should be for better work not just attendance. Most workers do not get a COLA in the US.

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You give a raise for showing up?? How nice..  I pay the gardeners the going rate and right now they get by the hour the same as a mason so I m not anxious to give them a raise  especially since I have to keep an eye on them and  keep them in tract. If they were making 50 pesos an hour it would be different but at 70 they are getting overpaid in compataison to what does a mason.. So everyone is in a differnt boat..

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1 hour ago, bmh said:

You give a raise for showing up?? How nice..  I pay the gardeners the going rate and right now they get by the hour the same as a mason so I m not anxious to give them a raise  especially since I have to keep an eye on them and  keep them in tract. If they were making 50 pesos an hour it would be different but at 70 they are getting overpaid in compataison to what does a mason.. So everyone is in a differnt boat..

Totally agree. We pay 70 per hour for maid and gardener. A raise for coming to work? Not at my house. We do alot over and above for our staff.....nobody ever gave me all kinds of perks just for doing my job. I feel we pay very fairly.

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That one certainly gave me pause as well. A raise for showing up? Isn't that what an employee is supposed to do, show up to work? An employee who doesn't show up for work would be an employee I'd fire. Rewarding someone simply for showing up to work is a bizarre concept.

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Why are we talking about an ANNUAL raise for anybody? I have been a businessman for over 5 decades, both in the US and here, and never heard of such a thing. You pay a negotiated rate and give raises when the prison earns it. When I first settled full time here over 12 years ago, I had some not good experiences with maids and gardeners. A Mexican friend then recommended a family in Ajijic. They have been with me now for over 10 years. There is the mother and daughter and aunt (sister of the mother) whom i call the Tres Amigas. They come almost exactly on time every time, and just GET IT DONE. Then there is the father and son who take care of the large property here, again in a professional and prompt manner. I pay them maybe 20% more than the going rate here and a 2 week yearly Christmas bonus. They never complain and even in these difficult times have not missed a day they are scheduled...yes they come in masks, that are immediately discarded. During all this time I think I have given them maybe 3 raises, again keeping it over the normal rate. They are all happy, my dogs love them and I have never had to worry about my housecleaning or gardening since. Works for me!    

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Why does this not surprise me.....12 years ago the peso was about 10 to the dollar ...lately and for awhile it’s around  20 ..so actually never minding inflation you’re cost of paying your  “ wonderful family “  has progressively gone down and you are now paying them less than you did 10 years ago.....congratulations you’ve made a profit...

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44 minutes ago, Ian Greenwood said:

Why does this not surprise me.....12 years ago the peso was about 10 to the dollar ...lately and for awhile it’s around  20 ..so actually never minding inflation you’re cost of paying your  “ wonderful family “  has progressively gone down and you are now paying them less than you did 10 years ago.....congratulations you’ve made a profit...

I think you skipped where he said "over the normal rate".

 

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19 minutes ago, Ian Greenwood said:

Why does this not surprise me.....12 years ago the peso was about 10 to the dollar ...lately and for awhile it’s around  20 ..so actually never minding inflation you’re cost of paying your  “ wonderful family “  has progressively gone down and you are now paying them less than you did 10 years ago.....congratulations you’ve made a profit...

Regardless,  we immigrants   from NOB continue enjoy the colonial  lifestyle here ( maybe at the expense of the local national community) and like it without feeling guilty about the appreciating dollar...they are happy, we are happy 

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5 hours ago, Ian Greenwood said:

Why does this not surprise me.....12 years ago the peso was about 10 to the dollar ...lately and for awhile it’s around  20 ..so actually never minding inflation you’re cost of paying your  “ wonderful family “  has progressively gone down and you are now paying them less than you did 10 years ago.....congratulations you’ve made a profit...

So........???

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8 hours ago, lakeside7 said:

Regardless,  we immigrants   from NOB continue enjoy the colonial  lifestyle here ( maybe at the expense of the local national community) and like it without feeling guilty about the appreciating dollar...they are happy, we are happy 

OOoooooo...let me know when my grape-peeler and person to fan over me as I splash by the pool arrive (pool? in my dreams!). Colonial? Really? No. Some of us are fortunate enough to be able to afford help. It's no more and no less than the locals. Some hire; some are hired. We worked hard for our "colonial" retirement and if that means having someone help with cleaning, like we did when we had our business, well, then so be it. I honestly cannot understand where this guilt tripping is coming from. And FWIW, I've known many to come down here who are pretty much on the bones of their bums...I think it's safe to say that not all expats are living high off the hog. 

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The value of any foreign currency to the peso is irrelevent. If you want to say it is ...then if the peso increases in value to the dollar to say 15...will you cut your workers wages 25%??

What you earn has nothing to do with it either.  Should a couple living an a minor pension pay less than someone who has a huge income?

Actually in this area maids & gardeners are paid more than in most areas of Mexico. GDL rate is much lower than here. 

As to COLA, many of us never had a COLA in our working lives.  One of my family works for the State of Jalisco. No raise in 10 years. Their raise was earned by moving up to a better position last year.

So each must decide what they think is right. I know one couple at lakeside who pay their maid $600 for the day, and the same maid works at another house for $350 for the day. 

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One of the advantages of having a property manager is that s/he manages dozens of properties and is familiar with what the going pay rates are. So I never have to worry about such matters.

Because I have great and loyal workers I always ask my manager to pay on the high side of normal. What are my hourly rates of pay? I will have to look it up. It may take a while as I am in Seattle some 8 blocks from the latest problem area. The protesters are not rioting these days. However they are peacefully occupying a local police station. Things are crazy in many of the larger cities in the US

 

Edit:  The maids hourly rate last year was $58.33 per hour for part time work

The full time gardener's salary last year was $57.83 per hour, 45 hours per week. His salary per hour would be greater if he were a part time employee, according to my property manager

Per the property manager, a part time worker makes slightly more per hour than a full time worker, because s/he has a hard time walking from job to job and finding clients that will allow that worker to work almost full time.

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2 minutes ago, daisy2013 said:

I seriously doubt anyone here has a maid, cleaning person yes but not maid. I talked to a person back where I lived and they were so impressed that people have maids.  I had to bring her up to date and tell her it is a cleaning persons not maid.

Maybe you should explain that to these people. “Merry Maids is an international franchisor which sells and supports residential cleaning services franchises throughout the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Merry Maids was founded in 1979, and joined with ServiceMaster in 1988. In 2007, the company had over 8,000 employees.” Wikipedia

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I guess I don't know the difference between a cleaning person and a made. I just know that I have someone who takes care of the garden and another who helps clean the house and I thought their titles were Gardener and Maid.

Could you please explain why a young lady helping to clean my house is not called a maid? All I know is that sine 1997 we have always used the word maid :)

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