Domestic help in Brussels
It is quite normal to have a housekeeper in Belgium, in particular for part-time assistance. Live-in help, on the other hand, is not common at all. Housekeepers cost around 10€/hr. It is essential to use a registered service as it is illegal to use unregistered people and penalties are high, especially in the event the person has an accident in your house/apartment. To encourage the use of registered house-keeping services, the Belgian government uses a system of dienstencheques. Essentially, you pay for services by buying a 10€ voucher for only 8€, and the government pays the other 2€. Dienstencheques can also be used for other payments like babysitters and can be bought at http://www.dienstencheques-rva.be.
Below are some housekeeping agencies:
- http://randstad.be/en/ – Interim agency where you can find many services including housekeepers.
- http://www.tempo-team.be – Interim agency where you can find many services including housekeepers.
- http://vedior.be – Interim agency where you can find many services including housekeepers.
You can also find help online and newspaper classifieds:
- The Bulletin – A weekly newspaper, The Bulletin is the most popular English newspaper in Belgium and can be found at newsstands around the city as well as online http://www.thebulletin.be.
- Het Laatste Nieuws – Flemish daily newspaper with the largest circulation in the country of around 290,000. It can be found at most newsstands and online at http://www.hln.be.
- Het Niuewsblad – Another popular Flemish daily newspaper, Het Niuewsblad has a circulation of around 210,000. You can find it online at http://www.nieuwsblad.be.
- Le Soir – A liberal daily, this newspaper is the most popular in French. It can be found online at http://www.lesoir.be/.
- La Libre Belgique – La Libre Belgique is the second most popular Francophone paper in Belgium. You can find it online at http://www.lalibre.be.
