Our Social Impact
We Are Caring was built to prove that helpers can find work without paying for it. From 2017 to 2025, it made nearly 8,000 hires with no placement fees or salary deductions for helpers. By the end of 2024, that meant about SGD 6 million that helpers kept instead of paying placement fees.
Our vision, mission and values
- Vision: providing fair employment opportunities for all.
- Mission: enabling the fair recruitment of domestic workers by providing debt-free job opportunities, while delivering the best level of service for families and helpers.
- Values: care, empowerment and transparency.
Milestones we are proud of
- Zero-fee recruitment from Indonesia. We opened a zero-fee, debt-free recruitment corridor from Indonesia to Singapore in 2021, with departures from Yogyakarta, and extended it to the whole of Indonesia in 2024. To our knowledge, no other Singapore agency offers debt-free, zero-fee recruitment from Indonesia today.
1. Enabling ethical hiring
| Year | Hires without fees for helpers | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 333 | Social Impact Report 2024 |
| 2018 | 663 | Social Impact Report 2024 |
| 2019 | 907 | Social Impact Report 2024 |
| 2020 | 923 | Social Impact Report 2024 |
| 2021 | 938 | Social Impact Report 2024 |
| 2022 | 1,174 | Salary dataset |
| 2023 | 963 | Salary dataset |
| 2024 | 1,026 | Salary dataset |
| 2025 | 1,024 | Salary dataset |
- Placement fees helpers did not pay: about SGD 6 million from 2017 to 2024, not counting 2025. This is our estimate: the average fees helpers report paying for each type of hire (transfer, from the Philippines, from Indonesia), multiplied by our hires of each type. No public data on these fees exists, because much of what helpers are charged is illegal.
- Retention: 73.29% of helpers stay with the same employer for at least six months, against an industry average of 62.81%.
- Families' rating: 4.2 out of 5 from 349 reviews on the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) Employment Agencies Directory, where only employers can vote.
Ministry of Manpower (MOM) figures: Employment Agencies Directory, 7 Oct 2025 – 7 Oct 2026;
Why zero fees matter
The Philippines does not allow placement fees to be charged to domestic workers. In Singapore, the law allows agencies to collect up to two months of salary from a helper for their local services. At We Are Caring, helpers pay nothing at any stage, in Singapore or in their home country.
2. Advocating for social change
We share our experience with students and researchers, and some of them join us on the ground.
- NUS College Impact Experience: in the 2025–2026 academic year, a team of six NUS College students worked with us throughout the year, organising community events with helpers to build a sense of community. A new team of six starts in October 2026.
- In the classroom: David Bensadon (EA personnel reg. no. R1552212) is a regular guest speaker for NUS College students taking the Polysemic Migration course, on Singapore's labour migration policies and how ethical businesses can make a difference.
- Other talks: a delegation from NYU Abu Dhabi led by Professor Anju Paul (January 2024), ESSEC Business School's Responsible Innovation Bootcamp (2024 and 2025), and the Social Impact Catalyst workshop at Singapore Management University (September 2024).
3. Influencing the recruitment industry
- Geneva, June 2024: a panel at IOM's Second Global Conference on the Regulation of International Recruitment, before more than 120 regulators and policymakers from 65 countries.
- Sharing practices with other agencies, through IOM: with agency networks from Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico (16 July 2024), and at a workshop with Indonesian employment agencies in Jakarta (5 December 2024).
- With other B Corps: sharing ethical business practices at Danone Day.
4. A community for helpers
- Regular Sunday gatherings bring together helpers of different nationalities. They meet, have fun together and feel part of a community, which matters a great deal to them.
- Celebrations through the year: Chinese New Year, Hari Raya, Thadingyut (the Burmese festival of lights), Singapore National Day, and potlucks. In 2024 alone, 15 events brought together more than 300 helpers.
- Practical workshops, about every two months: how to avoid illegal moneylenders and money mule scams, how to set up Singpass, and how to use the ScamShield app. CNA covered our money mule workshops.
- Caregiving Basics for Migrant Domestic Workers, a free online course we ran with Uplifters, supported by the DBS Foundation. It was completed by more than 250 helpers, 91% of whom said it improved their knowledge and confidence. The course has since ended.
Recognised for it
Certified B Corporation · raiSE Leading Social Enterprise · DBS Foundation grantee · NS Mark Gold (2024) · Income Insurance's Top Maid Agency award, every year from 2020 to 2026 · Sassy Mama Reader Awards 2024, winner, Maid Agencies · Expat Living Readers' Choice Awards 2024, Silver, Best Maids & Nanny Services. All certifications
FAQ
How many helpers has We Are Caring placed without fees?
Nearly 8,000 hires from 2017 to 2025, all without placement fees or salary deductions for helpers.
How much have helpers saved?
About SGD 6 million in placement fees from 2017 to 2024, by our estimate. That money stayed with helpers and their families instead of going to agencies.