By Pakistan Maid Services · · 3 min read
Why the interview matters more than the first week
When a placement goes wrong, families usually say the problem appeared after a few weeks. Looking back, it was almost always visible in the interview — in an answer that was vague, a question that was never asked, or an expectation on one side that the other side never heard.
A good interview is not a test of the candidate. It is the moment both sides find out whether the job described is the job that will actually be done. These seven questions are the ones that do that work.
1. Why did your last placement end?
Every answer is acceptable except no answer. A family moving abroad, a child starting school, a disagreement over hours — these are ordinary reasons. What you are listening for is whether the story is specific and whether it matches what the previous household tells you when you call them.
2. Who else lived in the house?
A maid who has worked for a couple in a flat and a maid who has worked in a joint family home with elderly parents and four children have done very different jobs, even if both call it “housework”. Ask about the size of the household, the number of floors and whether there were other staff. It tells you far more about her real experience than a list of duties.
3. What hours did you actually work?
Ask what was agreed, then ask what a normal day really looked like. The gap between the two is where most disputes start. If she was told eight hours and routinely worked twelve, she will be wary of the same thing happening again — and you should know that before you describe your own routine.
4. Are you comfortable with pets, stairs and guests?
These three come up in almost every home and are rarely discussed in advance. Some people are afraid of dogs. Some cannot manage three floors of stairs several times a day. Some households entertain every weekend, which means late nights and extra cooking. Ask directly; a candidate who says “no” now saves you a replacement later.
5. What would you do if you broke something, or saw something wrong?
This is a question about honesty, asked in a way that does not accuse anyone. You are listening for “I would tell you straight away.” Candidates who have worked in well-run homes answer this easily, because they have been in that situation and it was handled calmly.
6. What do you need from us?
Ask about the day off, whether she will go home on weekends or at Eid, whether she needs to call family at particular times, and — for live-in roles — what she expects of the room. A placement where her needs are unknown is a placement that will surprise you.
7. May we call your previous household?
Then do it — by phone, not by message. Ask the same things you asked her: why it ended, what the hours were, how she handled problems. If a candidate or an agency will not give you a reference number, treat that as your answer.
Before you say yes
Write the job down: duties, hours, the day off, the salary and the date it is paid. Read it through together. Everything you both agreed in the interview belongs on that page, because memories of a conversation drift and a written agreement does not.
Every candidate PMS introduces has already been CNIC-verified, police-checked and reference-called — but these questions are still yours to ask. They are how you find the right person, not just a safe one.