Kingston - Post Report Question and Answers
What is the availability and cost of household help, and what types of help are typically employed by expatriates?
Plenty of underemployed cleaners, cooks, nannies, drivers, gardeners, etc, who will take what you offer. Don’t be cheap. We paid well above the local rate and it was still embarrassing. - Nov 2024
Helpers are widely available. Some are housekeepers, some nannys, some hybrids. They are expensive but not compared to the US. Jamaican minimum wage is very low here so diplomats pay above (and should!). 7,000 jmd a day for helper plus nanny is standard. It's a little less if just nanny or just helper. People also pay for cooks 5-7000 a pop. The Jamaican work ethic is different than we are used to. Helpers generally require a lot of detailed instruction and prodding b/c they will generally do the minimum. I don't mind b/c I'm happy to have the help, but it can be frustrating if you are used to a higher standard. It may take you a couple of helpers to find the right fit. - Oct 2024
You will likely pay 5000-6000 JAMD per day for a helper. Some helpers will prepare meals for you. Helpers will do laundry, iron shirts, etc. You are expected to pay your helper a Christmas bonus. - May 2022
It's inexpensive, and we pay a top rate to our helper. We supported our helper all through COVID. This is important when there is a problem...be it a pandemic or hurricane, I feel it is important to support your employees even if they cannot attend work. In my opinion, many people live on a knife-edge of economic instability. Our helper is trustworthy and works hard. It's also possible to find nannies, swim coaches who come to your pool, fitness coaches, etc. - May 2022
Most people will hire a housekeeper for 1 or 2 days per week. People pay around US$30 - $40 for a day's work. If you are in a house, you will likely need to pay someone to help garden. We pay someone US$15 every two weeks to mow our grass. - Jan 2020
Household help is readily available and most people are happy with their helpers. It has taken a few families, though, a bit of trial and error to find the right person. The embassy rate is a bit higher than the local rate. - Aug 2018
Many expats, especially those with kids, employ a "helper" full time for around US$500 - US$600/month. Part-time helpers are also available. - Jun 2018
Helpers are affordable. $20-$35 USD per day for somebody to come clean. Child care is a bit more but still very affordable for full time help, $500-$700 USD per month depending on number of children and the helpers experience. - Mar 2017
Relatively cheap--US$500 to 600 a month for full time. - Apr 2016
Domestic help is readily available and relatively inexpensive. Most people pay in the area of US$20 per day for their helpers. - Dec 2014
Very affordable. Our full-time helper works 50 hours per week for roughly US$120. - Oct 2014
About US$400 a month is the norm. - Mar 2014
Embassy families usually pay about US$25/day for domestic help and US$35/week for gardeners. We overpay SIGNIFICANTLY compared to locals. Nannies get about US$400/month usually. - Dec 2013
Very reasonable. Around $1500 - $2500 JM per day, or $8,000 - $13,000 per week for full time. - Aug 2011
They are available and the rate is from $2k JA to 3k JA. It's open for negotiation. - Sep 2010
Very cheap and always available. - Jul 2010
Available and fairly cheap - May 2010
Very inexpensive and readily available. It is VERY important to get a personal reference, as trustworthiness in worth its weight in gold. - Nov 2009
Domestic help can be cheap. There are always helpers and nannys always looking for a job. Finding a trustworthy, hard worker can be a little harder to find. - Jan 2009
Available and cheap. - Jan 2009
Cheap, US$20-$ 25 a day depending on the size of the home she has to clean. - May 2008
