Hiring

Hiring refers to employing long-term or fixed servants and helpers. In old society, such employment relationships often had a strong element of personal dependency and were considered part of the family structure. Therefore, hiring long-term laborers or servants to enter the household was traditionally classified as a type of 'bringing in new members' (進人口), requiring the selection of an auspicious day. It was believed this would ensure harmonious relations between the new employee and the master's family and smooth work. Although modern society no longer holds the old master-servant concepts, when hiring long-term household help (such as live-in nannies), a few detail-oriented families still consult almanacs to choose a day suitable for 'bringing in new members,' treating it as a ritual arrangement.