Domestic helpers (ayis) earning more than university graduates

http://www.shanghaidaily.com/sp/article/2008/200803/20080306/article_351084.htm

AGAINST the backdrop of high unemployment among college graduates and lack of housekeepers, I suggest that more university graduates work as housekeepers.

According to a recent report in Information Times, the supply of housekeepers has failed to keep up with demand, with the gap in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, standing at 70,000.

Consequently, the pay for a housekeeper has been on the increase steadily, with some experienced people earning as much as 2,000 yuan (US$281).

By contrast, in Guangzhou the average monthly salary for a fresh graduate student is 2,100 yuan. While many may find their pay unsatisfactory, they are lucky to be employed at all.

Is there a proper way to solve the two problems at once?

Some of my friends' experience helped me find an answer to this question. Instead of working as a substitute teacher or temporary worker, they gave up their jobs after marriage and stayed at home, devoting all their time to domestic duties.

Apart from solving the two problems mentioned, there are other reasons why homemaking is a good choice for university grads.

For one thing, this can contribute greatly to family stability. For another, their resignation will leave a vacancy and opportunity for others who need a job badly. Unemployment disrupts the social stability.

Of course there are important limitations. While some can comfortably enjoy domestic bliss with high pay brought in by their husband or wife, some have to count every cent and penny to scrape along.

The government should improve the economic situation for those who choose to work at home as housekeepers or homemakers.

Many American women choose to stay at home after giving birth. The family rather than the individual is regarded as a unit when individual income tax is levied.

Well I've not nothing to say to that (make up your own opinions on this!) except that in Australia it's the exact same thing. I don't know figures but I'm willing to bet a full-time domestic helper or nanny would earn a heck of lot more than a university graduate, in any major!