The Risks and Realities of Maids Caring for Babies at Night in Singapore

A growing reliance on overnight childcare at home

In apartments across Singapore, domestic helpers are asked to take the baby monitor to bed, settle night feeds, then wake again at dawn to prepare breakfast, send older kids to school, and clean. For some, nights stretch into days with little pause. Helpers like Ms Marie, who has spent nearly two decades working in Singapore, describe months when broken sleep left her exhausted and thinner, still expected to keep the household running. The routine is common in dual income households that have no spare room, no nearby grandparents, and a baby who wakes often.

Families turn to helpers because infant care runs on daytime schedules and most workplaces expect parents to be present in the morning. If one parent works shifts or travels, night duty quickly falls to the person who lives with the family. In practice, that often means the helper shares a room with the child or sleeps within earshot to respond to cries. What begins as a short term arrangement after birth can become the default for months, even after parents return to work.

Singapore has more than 250,000 migrant domestic workers, many from Indonesia, the Philippines, and Myanmar. They clean, cook, and care for children and seniors. A portion of these helpers are hired mainly for infant care, including nights. The arrangement gives families continuity of care at home. It also exposes the helper to the well known risks of sleep loss, all while responsibilities continue the next day.

What sleep loss does to helpers and children

Sleep deprivation is not just feeling groggy. Even one short night reduces attention, slows reaction time, and makes decision making less reliable. After several nights of poor sleep, stress hormones stay high and mood can swing. For someone who must lift a baby, prepare boiling water, or iron clothes, this creates real safety risks. For a caregiver who must respond calmly to a wailing infant, it erodes patience and increases the chance of mistakes.

Why fatigue raises household risk

Infants wake frequently in the first year. A caregiver who is up at 1 a.m., 3 a.m., and 5 a.m., then expected to cook and clean by 7 a.m., faces chronic fatigue. That raises the likelihood of errors that endanger both caregiver and child. Most helpers care deeply for the children they look after. Still, public records show rare but serious incidents when exhaustion and frustration boiled over. In one case in 2023, a domestic worker received a six month jail sentence after biting a baby who would not sleep. The vast majority of helpers never harm children, yet the risk from chronic sleep loss is plain.

Research on shift workers shows higher rates of anxiety, depression, and accidents when rest is irregular. In a home, that can lead to situations like dozing off while holding a baby or skipping simple safety steps. The baby may also be affected if the exhausted caregiver misses hunger cues or settles for quicker but less safe methods to soothe crying.

• Falling asleep while holding or feeding a baby, which raises drop and choking risk
• Mixing up medication doses or bottle temperatures when tired
• Poor hand hygiene during night feeds that increases infection risk
• Reduced alertness around stairs, hot surfaces, and sharp tools the next day

All of these risks grow when sleep loss becomes routine over weeks or months.

The rules in Singapore, and what they do not cover

Domestic helpers in Singapore are covered by the Employment of Foreign Manpower regulations, not the Employment Act. That means there is no legal cap on daily working hours and no mandated rest between shifts for live in arrangements. Employers must provide adequate food, proper accommodation, medical care, and at least one rest day each month that cannot be traded for money. The Ministry of Manpower, or MOM, advises employers to make reasonable working arrangements and to communicate openly about rest and duties.

Across many households, night childcare sits in a gray area. Parents may assume the helper is on duty at night and fully available in the morning. Unless there is an explicit plan for compensatory rest, the result is a cycle of short sleep and daytime chores. Helpers who raise the issue risk being labeled uncooperative. In the worst scenarios, they face termination or repatriation.

Because the home is also the workplace, boundaries get blurred. Some helpers share a room with a baby and are woken by every noise. Others sleep in living rooms where lights and movement break sleep. Without a minimum standard for quiet hours, sleep quality depends entirely on each employer.

When job descriptions and reality clash

Many agencies say they brief both sides on night duties before placement. Once a helper is inside the home, actual demands can shift. The baby may be colicky or teething. Another child may fall sick. The grandparents may visit less often than expected. A one to two hour night duty can turn into most nights for weeks. Few workers are given the next morning off to recover. Complaints are hard to voice when a transfer or early return home is a real possibility.

Debt from recruitment fees makes this harder. Some workers owe months of pay to repay loans taken in their home countries. That debt reduces bargaining power and pushes them to accept heavier workloads and night duty. Non profit groups that support migrant workers, including the Humanitarian Organization for Migration Economics (HOME) and the Center for Domestic Employees (CDE), say persistent overwork and lack of rest are top complaints for helpers who care for babies.

Clear agreements at the start reduce conflict. Families can specify where the helper will sleep, which hour each night she is truly off duty, and who handles each feed. They can also commit to time after night duty for a nap or lighter chores. Written house rules signed by both sides help align expectations.

Why families turn to helpers for nights

Singapore has a dense childcare market for daytime, yet few options past sunset. Infant care centers run on office hours. Waiting lists are common, and pickup is usually early evening. Overnight care and postpartum night nurses exist, but they are expensive for most families. When both parents must wake early for work, a resident helper looks like the only practical solution.

Space and family structure matter too. Many young parents live far from grandparents or have elders who are not able to manage nights. Apartments can be small, with a single extra room that already serves several roles. Twins, babies with reflux, and infants with medical needs add complexity and stress. In these homes, asking the helper to hold the night shift becomes the easy default.

There are also better examples. Some families pay above market rates for defined infant care and give planned time off after nights. Others share night duty and keep the helper out of the nursery except for emergencies. These arrangements show that fair rest and safe care can fit within home budgets when expectations are clear.

Practical ways to protect rest without raising costs sharply

It is possible to keep babies cared for at night and give helpers real rest. The key is to plan before exhaustion sets in, write down a schedule, and stick to it. Families can start with small adjustments that cost little but reduce risk for everyone.

Set clear schedules and limits

Decide who is responsible for which hours and put it in writing. Give the helper a true off switch so she can sleep without listening for every sound. Agree on how emergencies are defined and who will handle them.

• Choose fixed windows when the helper is off duty at night, for example midnight to 6 a.m. except during illness
• On nights when the helper responds to feeds, give at least seven hours of sleep during the following 24 hours
• Rotate nights between adults in the household where possible
• Use a baby monitor to reduce unnecessary door knocks and whisper signals
• Keep bottled milk and supplies ready before bedtime to shorten each wake period

Adjust day work after a night

A helper who was up at night should not be expected to sprint through a full list of chores the next morning. Agree on lighter tasks or a later start after nights.

• Schedule a protected nap period the next day and avoid heavy lifting or ladder work
• Batch chores like ironing and deep cleaning for days after full sleep
• Plan simple breakfasts on nights after difficult evenings
• Respect the weekly rest day and avoid asking for childcare during that period

Support, oversight, and training

Short refreshers on infant care, safe sleep practices, and stress management help both parents and helpers. Regular check ins give space to adjust the plan. Make it clear that asking for rest is not defiance. Create a private channel for the helper to raise concerns safely.

What agencies, civil groups, and the state can do next

Agencies can require written terms on night duty before placement, including where the helper sleeps and how day rest will work after nights. They can follow up in the first month to check if the plan is in use and intervene early when fatigue is severe.

Non profit groups already run helplines and case work for distressed helpers. More funding would let them expand outreach and mediation. Public education campaigns can explain why chronic sleep loss harms safety and how employers can plan better.

Policy steps are available. Authorities could set a minimum block of daily rest for live in workers who perform infant care, or make compensatory day rest after night duty a standard term. Regulators can tighten oversight of recruitment fees so debt does not lock workers into unsafe schedules. Families would benefit from more flexible work options and childcare subsidies that cover varied hours, so parents can shoulder part of the night load themselves.

Employers also have a direct role. They control schedules, make the house rules, and decide how rest days are treated. A little structure and empathy goes a long way. A helper who sleeps well is safer with the baby, kinder in the long night hours, and far more effective during the day.

At a Glance

• Night childcare by helpers is common in dual income households with infants
• Chronic sleep loss raises safety risks for both caregiver and child
• There is no legal cap on work hours or mandated rest between shifts for live in helpers
• Employers must provide at least one rest day each month and reasonable work arrangements
• Mismatched expectations and recruitment debt make it hard for helpers to refuse extra night duty
• Clear written schedules, compensatory day rest, and shared night duty reduce risk
• Agencies, civil groups, and the state can strengthen guidance, enforcement, and support
• Families that plan for rest find infant care is safer and more sustainable