Many families employ domestic help either on a full-time, live-in or part-time basis. Helpers are employed primarily to do housework, cook and care for children and pets.
You can often find someone via word of mouth, on Facebook forums such as ‘Women in Cayman’, ‘Hope of Cayman’ or ‘KY Mommies’, or you can try an agency. Make sure to ask for and check all references.
There is also a list of reputable companies in Cayman that provide in-home carer services for those who require additional assistance, such as elderly or disabled people.
Hiring Through an Agency
Expect to pay approximately CI$16 per hour for a minimum of four hours if hired on a full-day or half-day regular, weekly basis. On a temporary basis, allow CI$18 or more per hour, and some charge a transportation fee of CI$6 per day. The convenience of using an agency is that they train the staff, pay their health insurance and pension, and will replace them if they can’t work for any reason.
Refer to Cayman Parent for more detailed information.
We recommend the following three agencies:
Hiring Someone Yourself
If you hire someone yourself, expect to pay between CI$405-CI$575 per week for 40-45 hours per week, before overtime, plus a housing allowance. For this salary, they would be expected to be able to drive your children, cook for them and help with cleaning the house. You will also need to take care of your employee’s health insurance and pension, give them at least two weeks paid vacation per year and pay them double time for working any public holidays. A good employer may also pay for one airline ticket home per year and give a Christmas bonus of between two weeks and a month’s salary. For part-time work, babysitting or overtime, the going rate is CI$12 per hour.
When hiring someone yourself, keep in mind that they may not be properly trained. Private staffing companies, such as Minerva Cayman, offer certified housekeeping training of household staff.
Things to Note:
If you hire a non-Caymanian helper on a full-time basis on your own, you must apply for a work permit. Paperwork and instructions can be downloaded from the WORC website (www.worc.ky). A police clearance, passport photos and a full medical are also required. Prospective employees may be required to take an English test as well. It is worth noting that WORC does not usually grant expatriates a work permit for domestic help, unless they show sufficient need, i.e. they have children who need looking after, in which case you will also need to provide certified copies of the birth certificate of each child to be cared for and think carefully about the information you provide in your cover letter.
A job vacancy for a nanny needs to be advertised on the WORC website, but a vacancy for a domestic helper does not need to be advertised. The work permit for a domestic helper costs CI$150 per year, while the cost for a certified nanny is CI$550. If you are an expat, you cannot submit your domestic helper’s work permit paperwork until your own work permit has been approved; it is illegal to make your employee pay for their own work permit; helpers are not allowed to have dependants on their work permit and the maximum time they will be allowed to stay on the Island is 10 years.
