High demand spurs high income. With the easing of the one-child policy and the coming baby boom, both demand and income are surging for maternity matrons in China. Maternity matron ranked third on the 2016 list of high-paid urban services, according to 58.com, China’s largest online marketplace. Maternity matrons enjoy an average monthly income of 10,952 RMB ($1,587).

However, with soaring prices, a dearth of professional training and little consumer protection, the maternity matron industry has reached a bottleneck. In an interview with People’s Daily, Lu Ruili, the CEO of Rui Li Maternity Matron Care Center, said that she hired a maternity matron through a domestic helper company when she became a new mother. Unfortunately, the maternity matron was inexperienced, and often cooked the same non-nutritious dish for days on end.

“I think really good maternity matrons don’t work that way – at least they are equipped with knowledge of nursing, nutrition, and healthcare. Psychological counseling and an understanding of nutritious meals would be a plus,” Lu said. “That’s why I started my own business, to win the market by providing a more professional service.”

This “more professional service” is still lacking a national unified standard, however. Rui Li Maternity Matron Care Center divides charges into six different levels. Monthly costs range from 3,800 RMB to 15,800 RMB. A “baby-care assistant” is the cheapest, while “chief maternity matrons” earn the most.

“The evaluation of maternity matrons is based on educational background, work experience and customer feedback,” Lu said. None of the assessments or divisions is supervised by any official association.

The Chinese government has released two national standards to regulate the domestic service market since Feb. 1. Industry insiders told People’s Daily that the introduction of new national standards only gave a direction; mandatory implementation is also essential.