Reality Time, Au Pair Thailand

I found out sometime ago, Au Pair Thailand is bull shit. For you Host Families who have gotten them, you’ve been taken for a good one year ride.

First, for the most of us who have never heard the word Au Pair in our entire lives….

An Au Pair is a young person between 18 and 30 years who becomes a temporary member of your family. Usually, it's a young girl (90 percent) but more and more often, young boys are taking the opportunity to improve their language skills and get acquainted with a new culture.

In exchange for free board and lodge, a private room and pocket money (in the western European countries between 200 and 280 Euros per month (140 and 170 pounds), the Au Pair will take care of your children and help with light housework including vaccuming, dusting, preparing the table for meal times and emptying the dishwasher. The costs for flight and language courses are usually paid for by the Au Pair.

Screening is an important key to a successful placement and exchange experience. Au Pair in America utilizes a multi-tiered screening process to ascertain an applicant’s appropriateness for the program.

Applicants are interviewed in person by a trained interviewer. We also monitor the interviewer's performance and applicants complete evaluations about their interviewers. During the interview, the interviewer assesses the candidate’s suitability, ability to speak English and educational level.

Now if you still want to believe in your Au Pair (if you happen to be one of those Host), I suggest that you find the next hyperlink that brings you to other blogs. Especially on the multi-tiered screening process, what I am about to write, is the truth of the workings here in Thailand. During one period of my time here, I was in contact with a bunch of Au Pair candidates (con artist) before they got sent off. I, saw the truth, you the Host Family do not.

About Au Pairs, the following are just marketing materials.

All applicants who meet the program’s minimum requirements complete a four page application detailing occupational histories which are child care experience, educational achievements, interests, hobbies and other personal information. They write an essay describing life in their home country and reasons for wanting to become an Au Pair or companion in the United States. Each applicant is also required to submit photographs showing herself with the children in her care, her family and friends.

All Au Pair in America applicants will have successfully passed a background investigation, which includes verification of schooling, references, psychometric test and a criminal record check (where available within the scope of the laws of a given country).

Applicants provide at least three written references, one of which must be a child care reference. An academic reference is required for all EduCare applicants. Three references will be confirmed by telephone. References from relatives are not accepted as primary references.

Applicants are required to submit a medical report completed in part by a physician. Each medical report is reviewed, and any areas of concern are investigated prior to their arrival in the United States.

Now the truth about some of them…

Occupational History
Some worked as sex workers or coyotes (bar top girls you see in night clubs). But they of course, unless in the wrong state of mind, will never write about the truth. These girls are very good at men hunting and are always looking out for the next golden tortoise to bring them away from what they are. They don’t want to return to the old life when they get back to their home country. So, observe and you will know they are working to that objective as primary, looking after your children is secondary.

Child Care Experience
None for most. Surprise now why the one you have in your household is clumsy at changing the diapers and sometimes does not show any relationship between what you read and what she does? Some agencies here will require the candidate to attend a set number of hours of child care training. But the truth is and always will be, that particular requirement is “close one eye”.

Personal Information
Oh, she so loving, she so caring. It’s only written. It’s like applying for a job and one will never write that she drinks with men and dance her gyrating hips in g-string all night, sleeps in the day, persuade money to part from men, …… and more, believe me, much much more.

An essay describing life in their Home Country
Again, only pretty pictures and lovely flowers are painted of course. Majority of them come from poor family background and lifestyle which you cannot comprehend. Families are normally broken and upbringing has always been tough. They find ways to survive, it may not be acceptable to you. But again, you never will know her true lifestyle.

Reasons for wanting to become an Au Pair
Reason as already elaborated in Occupational History. Some that had gone landed “farang” boyfriends in a matter of weeks. Could be gullible guys from your neighborhood, strange people they meet in clubs during weekends and worse, your plumber while you are away in the day. A number of them Au Pair had already been reported to have disappeared from the Host Family. Dissolved into the population and gone underground, you aided in their passage to America, they smile and thank you in silence.

Submit photographs showing herself with the children in her care, her Family and Friends
I was astonished when they started to call up everyone they know so they could borrow the children of their friends, relatives and whomever they know to take fake snapshots.

Passed a Background Investigation
Meaning that they provided a self selected list of people for the agency to call. And in preparation, all the parties that will be called had been pre-empted and been told what to say.

References from Relatives are not accepted as Primary References
Family circles are very big here. Relatives WILL be called but the relationship not revealed.

Applicants are required to submit a Medical Report
Mediocre. I myself paid just THB200 to get one simply signed from the any clinic around my neighborhood as part of the process for a job interview. Your Au Pair may be an incubator of undesirable diseases. Your child is with her everyday of the year.

Interviewer assesses the candidate’s suitability, ability to speak English
I doubt the interviewer’s language intellectual level. The candidates I spoke to, I had to spend more then a minute trying to figure out what they were trying to say. Oh be warned, they are quite bad with reading the labels on the gadgets in your house, simple gas stove will become exploding gas stove because labels are in English.

..and as a side note…. About Driving your Kids Around
Well, there is this chance that they all be smashed into smithereens on the freeway and you can’t differentiate which parts are car and which parts are children. Acquiring a driving license in Thailand does not require proper prior driving lessons. So if you happen to get one of those bullshit Au Pairs, there is zero common sense at work while driving your kids around. They will just drive into the path of a speeding trailer because they have got no driving logic. They just pretend they know how to drive since they wrote it in lie to score points in their profile.

Enjoy your ride some you trusting Host, it will be a long one.