Must-read Foreign Domestic Helper interview notes! Interview Questions and Babysitting Situational Questions

1. Prepare well before the interview.

• Avoid video interviews; face-to-face interviews are preferable.
• Personal residences should be avoided for interviews to protect personal privacy
• Choose a quiet public place for the interview, such as an Employment Agency.
• Make a list of questions and select those that address your family's core needs.
• Prepare your family background information, weekly schedule, expected work scope, meal plans, and salary expectations. Mention these details during the interview to avoid overlooking important information.
• Foreign domestic helpers are required to bring their passports, previous employment contracts, letters of recommendation from previous employers, and training certificates to verify their work experience.

2. Be honest about home care needs

During the interview, please clearly state the number of family members, whether you need to take care of the elderly or young children, the number of pets, the living space, and whether you will install cameras. If there are any family rules, you should also state them to avoid misunderstandings and help reach a consensus on life.

3. Clearly state salary and holiday arrangements.

In addition to stating the job requirements for domestic helpers, the interviewer should also clearly state the domestic helper's salary, meals, rest space, and weekend arrangements, so that the domestic helper is aware of all the job benefits.

4. Test their actual language skills

Since domestic helpers have the opportunity to pass the interview through rote memorization, employers can pick up books or other objects and ask the domestic helper to describe them in English on the spot to test their actual language communication skills.

5. Make good use of situational questions

Some domestic helpers memorize standard answers during training, making them impeccable during interviews. Therefore, employers should avoid asking closed-ended questions such as yes/no questions. Use situational questions to allow domestic helpers to answer when they are not prepared, thereby understanding their work attitude, personality, and crisis management capabilities.

6. Two-way communication

Employers may have questions about domestic helpers, and domestic helpers may also have questions about employers and their families. Allowing some time for the domestic helper to ask questions allows both parties to better determine if the job is a good fit.

Although the interview is short, employers can observe a domestic helper's personality traits from her responses. Employers can use the following 5 core traits as a reference when setting open-ended questions and decide whether the domestic helper is suitable for their family based on her responses.

1. Integrity

Ask questions about the domestic helper's background and personal information to see if their answers are inconsistent with their resume and contract.

2. Communication and Emotional Management

In addition to listening to the answers during the conversation, you can also pay attention to the worker's eye contact and tone of voice.

3. Adaptability and Crisis Management

When answering situational questions, pay attention to how the domestic helper handles unexpected situations and whether she has problem-solving skills.

4. Hygiene habits and work attitude

Ask questions about housework to test whether the domestic helper is clean and willing to accept the employer's work assignments.

5. Patience and experience in childcare/elderly care

If there are children or elderly people in the family, it is important to ensure that the domestic helper knows how to care for them and communicate with them, and can understand the tedious care work.

The interview process for hiring workers is crucial. Below are some interview questions from different angles for your reference. Employers can choose to ask questions based on their needs.

Skill

• What dishes are you best at cooking? If our tastes are different and you need to learn how to cook new dishes, how would you learn and adapt?
• （你擅長煮什麼菜式？如果我們的口味不同，希望你學煮不同菜式，你會怎樣學？）

• Have you obtained any qualifications or received any specific training?
• （你有沒有考獲什麼資格或是否曾經參加任何特定培訓？

• What are you relatively best at: housework, childcare, or cooking? Why?
• （你認為自己較為擅長做家務、照顧孩子還是煮飯？為什麼？

• What skills do you have? For example, first aid, sewing, changing light bulbs, etc. If needed, would you be able to do these tasks while working?
• （你有什麼技能？例如急救、縫衣、換燈泡等？如有需要，你可以在工作時執行嗎？）

Personal background and work experience

• Why do you want to come and work in Hong Kong? Does your family know about this, and do they support your decision?
• （你為什麼會來香港工作？你的家庭成員知道並支持你的決定嗎？）

• How many years of experience do you have in taking care of infants, children, the elderly, or pets?
• （你有多少年照顧嬰兒、兒童、長者或寵物的經驗？）

• Why wasn’t your previous job renewed? What was the real reason you left?
• （你上一份工作為什麼沒有續約？真正的離職原因是什麼？）

• Please share your working schedule and responsibilities, including weekdays and rest days, for your current employer or former employers. Is your work too demanding?
• （你可以分享與現時僱主或前僱主的工作時間表、職責，以及工作日與休息日嗎？你覺得工作內容有太辛苦嗎？）

• Do you have any references or contact details from your previous employers?
• （你有任何前顧主的推薦信或聯繫方式嗎？）

• If my house rules and cleaning standards are very different from your former employer's, are you willing to follow my instructions and change?
• （如果我對家務的標準和要求，跟你以前的僱主有很大不同，你願意完全聽從我的指示去修改嗎？）

Personal information and lifestyle habits

• Do you smoke, or do you have any other bad habits?
• （你有吸煙或有其他不良嗜好嗎？）

• Do you have any health issues or allergies?
• （你有沒有任何健康問題或過敏情況？）

• Do you currently have any outstanding debts locally or overseas? How would you plan your salary to manage them?
• （你目前在當地或海外有沒有任何未還清的債務？你會如何規劃你的薪水？）

Expectations for work

• What are your work expectations, or do you have any special requirements?
• （你有何工作期望或特別要求？）

• What are your expectations regarding living arrangements/conditions?
• （你對於居住條件有何期望？）

• Would you mind if there were surveillance cameras installed in the house?
• （你會否介意家中安裝監控攝像鏡頭？）

• How do you view communication with family members, and how would you handle disagreements?
• （你如何看待與家庭成員的溝通，又會如何解決分歧？）

• Do you have any specific requests for your days off? If you do not have Sundays off, would that be acceptable?
• （你對放假日子是否有特定要求？如果不放星期日可以嗎？）

Situational questions about caring for the elderly or children

• What would you do if the elderly person you’re caring for suddenly feels unwell and there’s no other adult at home?
• （如果家中長者突然感到不適，而家裡沒有其他成年人在場，你會怎麼做？）

• If the child or elderly person you’re caring for refuses to take their medicine, gets angry at you, and also refuses to eat, how would you handle the situation?
• （如果照顧的兒童或長者拒絕服用藥物，還對你發脾氣、拒絕進食，你會怎樣應對？）

• If you saw our child arguing with another child at the park, what would you do?
• （如果小孩在公園玩時，與在場的兒童發生爭執，你會如何處理？）

• What challenges have you faced while taking care of infants/children/elderly/pets, and how did you resolve them?
• （你遇到過哪些照顧嬰兒/兒童/長者/寵物時的挑戰？當時是如何解決的？）

Baby care experience

• Do you have experience caring for babies? What age range have you looked after, and what were your responsibilities?
• （你有照顧 BB 的經驗嗎？照顧過多大年紀的 BB？當時的工作內容是什麼？）

• Would you be willing to share a room with the baby? Are there any conditions or arrangements you need?
• （你是否願意與嬰兒同房，有任何條件嗎？）

• Have you faced any challenges while babysitting before? How did you handle them?
• （你以前有遇到過湊 BB 的困難嗎？你當時如何解決？）

Complex instruction execution scenario questions

• Please listen carefully. I need you to do these tasks in order: first, take the frozen meat out of the freezer and put it in the fridge; then wash the dishes; and finally wash the vegetables and place them on the table. Can you repeat the steps back to me in order?
• （請留心聽，我需要你按順序完成：先把凍肉從冰箱拿出來放入雪櫃，然後清洗碗碟，再洗好放在桌上的蔬菜。你可以重複一次嗎？）

• If you’re cooking in the kitchen and the phone rings, but at the same time the toddler falls in the living room and starts crying, what would you do first? Why?
• （如果你在廚房煮飯時電話響起，同時家中幼童在客廳跌倒大哭，你首先會怎樣做？為什麼？）

Integrity test

• If you accidentally damage something valuable while cleaning, what would you do?
• （如果你在打掃時不小心損毁家中昂貴物品，你會怎樣做？）

• If you find some cash on the table while cleaning the living room and no one is around, what would you do?
• （如果你打掃客廳時發現桌上有幾張鈔票，而當時無人在家，你會怎麼做？）

• If I give you money to buy groceries and, at the end, there’s $20 left over, what would you do?
• （如果我付錢讓你去超級市場買菜，最後剩下了 $20，你會怎麼做？）

Emergency response and safety awareness

• If you cut yourself badly while cooking, what would you do?
• （如果你煮飯時不小心割傷自己，你會怎麼辦？）

• If you’re home alone and the doorbell rings, and a worker is outside—but the employer didn’t mention anyone would be coming—what would you do?
• （如果你一個人在家時門鐘響起，門外是一名工人，可是僱主沒有提及會有人到訪，你會怎麼辦？）

If the domestic helper's duties include caring for infants, consider asking questions in the following different childcare scenarios to comprehensively assess their attentiveness and crisis management abilities:

Infant care and nursing skills

• If you have baby-care experience, could you demonstrate how to hold the baby properly and how to help the baby burp?
• （如果你有照顧嬰兒的經驗，可以示範一下如何正確抱 BB 以及幫嬰兒掃風嗎？）

• How would you prepare baby formula? And if the baby has started drinking but doesn’t finish the bottle, what would you do?
• （你會如何準備奶粉？如果 BB 飲剩，你會怎麼處理？）

• How would you help the baby build a routine, like feeding, sleep, and playtime?
• （你會如何協助 BB 建立規律作息時間，例如餵奶、睡眠、玩樂時間等？）

• If the baby keeps crying nonstop at night and you’ve already fed and changed the diaper, what would you do next?
• （如果 BB 在半夜不停哭鬧，但你已經餵了奶、換了片，你還會怎麼做？）

• If the baby is difficult, very mischievous, or keeps not listening, how would you handle it?
• （如果 BB 不聽話或非常頑皮，你會怎麼處理？）

Infant safety and hygiene knowledge

• How would you ensure the baby’s safety when the baby is sleeping alone in the crib?
• （你會如何確保 BB 一個人在 BB 床睡覺時的安全？）

• Before handling the baby, what hygiene steps would you take?
• （在接觸 BB 之前，你會採取什麼衛生措施？）

• If the baby has a food allergy, what would you do?
• （如果 BB 有食物過敏，你會如何處理？）

• Do you know how to recognize health signs—like stool color, skin condition, and the baby’s mood or alertness? If you notice anything abnormal, what would you do?
• （你知道 BB 大便顏色、皮膚狀況、精神狀態等代表的健康徵兆嗎？發現異常時你會怎樣處理？）

Emergency response capability

• If the baby is accidentally injured at home, what would you do?
• （如果 BB 在家中意外受傷，你會怎麼處理？）

• If we’re not at home and the baby needs to see a doctor because they’re unwell, how would you handle it?
• （如果僱主不在家，BB 生病需要看醫生，你會如何處理？）

• If one day includes cooking, caring for the baby, and cleaning, how would you manage and divide your time?
• （如果一天的工作包含煮飯、照顧 BB 與打掃，你會如何分配時間？）