Written Answer to PQ on Employers investigated for kickbacks

NOTICE PAPER NO. 2528 OF 2024 FOR THE SITTING ON 5 FEBRUARY 2024
QUESTION NO. 5382 FOR WRITTEN ANSWER

MP: Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang

To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) in each year from 2021 to 2023, how many cases involving employers receiving kickbacks from migrant workers did the Ministry investigate; and (b) of these investigations, how many led to (i) stern warnings (ii) charges and (iii) successful prosecutions against the employers.

Answer:

1. From 2021 to 2023, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) investigated about 210 cases per year for kickback offences. Over the three years, about 70 employers were taken to task annually, of which about 70% were issued with warnings or composition fines, and the remainder were charged in Court. Of those charged, about 90% were successfully convicted, with the rest still undergoing Court proceedings.