MOM’s response to two TWC2 articles

Two TWC2 articles - "Worker asks for reimbursement of medical bills, sets off chain of events” and “From too much noise to an uneasy silence” - cited the case of an injured foreign worker “Rajan” (not his real name). We would like to clarify the following points raised in both articles:

Claim: Injured workers need to prove the accident happened in the course of work

Fact: This is not true. The claim will be admitted as long as there is no contrary evidence from the employer or other workers. MOM’s advice is for the worker to alert his co-workers and supervisors and report the accident as soon as possible. Doing so will reduce unnecessary disputes to the claims.

Claim: It is not easy to submit injury claims and the procedure is time-consuming

Fact: Submitting work injury claims is a straightforward process. In the event that the employer did not report the work accident, an injured worker can also report work-related accidents to MOM via iReport - a 24-hour online reporting system. Thereafter, the injured worker just needs to complete an application form, which is available in English, Chinese, Tamil or Bengali, for the work injury claim. MOM and our interpreters are on hand to guide injured workers through the process.
Educating workers on their rights and obligations under the Work Injury Compensation Act is part of MOM’s regular outreach and these are taught to workers during the orientation course when they arrive in Singapore.

The article also alleged that “Rajan’s” employer did not fulfil his obligation to report the accident to MOM and tried to cover up by attempting to repatriate him. If these allegations prove to be true, we will take enforcement action against the employer.

If TWC2 genuinely wants to help “Rajan”, they should surface the actual case to MOM. We continue to remind all workers to come to MOM early to avoid long drawn cases and improve successful resolution of claims.