One of the things that has broken my heart, especially in this region, is how we treat house helps. They sleep in the most disgusting places, they have no designated working hours, no day off (24/7 working expectation), they are paid so little and people are proud of that. They have to pay someone in order to go for leave, Maya Nzeyimana, a worship minister at Christian Life Assembly, shared in a Facebook post. Her post sparked a discussion around the necessity for people to treat their house help right. House helps are often invisible and time and again treated with disrespect by their bosses. Some are mistreated, denied food or worse, and even endure physical abuse. Years back when Justine first came to Rwanda and went to visit a relative, she was shocked to find a housemaid sleeping in the room she made meals from. Her beddings were right in the kitchen, just across the cooking stove, with a tiny-inch mattress that was laid on some random metallic board, she recalls. “I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I couldn’t imagine the danger the girl was in, let alone the heat in the night and the discomfort. Maids in that home always left after a few days, and I could see why,” she says. Regardless of their evident importance to families, it’s a few people who treat their house helps with love. Jasper Mugisha, a father, says it matters how parents relate with their nannies or maids; these are the people you leave your kids with, they are the ones who make your meals, treating them right is the logical thing to do. “Some maids end up being mean to their bosses not because they are bad, but because of the way they are treated. I am not siding with those who do harm to the extent of hurting the families they work for, my point is, we both have a role to play, let’s be kind to them by showing them love and treating them with respect,” Mugisha says. Diane Kayitesi, a housewife, believes that how you treat your maid says a lot about you as a person. “You can’t say you are a good person when your maid goes to bed hungry. Besides, it’s a replica, expect your children to be mistreated if you treat your maids with disdain,” she notes. Nzeyimana went on to share how some people are rich but don’t care where their employees sleep, but just yell their names early in the morning! If you do any of these things, this is what the word of the Lord says to you. Repent and stop this injustice. Just because they are poor and in need does not mean we should take advantage of them. There is a thin line between what happens and slavery. Today if the Lord convicts you, increase their salary, don’t make them work past 8pm (unless you request kindly), ask them which day they want to rest, buy them a better mattress and never accept a house that has a trashy servant’s quarter, she shared. “Treat them like family. Go to their family events. Most importantly, make sure you promote them!!! Yes, take them to school, help them invest etc. The Lord sees! The Lord hears! If you raise your hands in worship and perpetrate this, today is your day to repent and do better. Our standard is not this world’s, it is the Kingdom of God’s.” With all their hard work, as they attend to their role of managing the home; cooking, washing and feeding the little ones, it’s appropriate to consider maids or house managers with due esteem.
