MOM Pilots One-Stop Onboarding Centre For Newly-Arrived Migrant Workers

1. As more migrant workers enter Singapore to meet the needs of the economy, we will continue to improve on the end to end screening processes with the need to ensure that the risk of imported COVID-positive cases transmitting into the community is well mitigated and minimized while helping these new workers to settle in better. From 15 March 2021, all newly-arrived migrant workers from the Construction, Marine and Process (CMP) sectors from higher-risk countries/regions¹ will complete their regular Stay-Home Notice (SHN), additional 7-day SHN testing regime, medical examination and Settling-In Programme (SIP) at a one-stop pilot Migrant Worker Onboarding Centre (MWOC).
   
   
2. Today, newly-arrived CMP migrant workers need to serve 14-day SHN at hotels before they move to a designated facility for the additional 7-day SHN. Once they complete serving their SHN requirements, they can leave the designated facilities and go through their medical examination and SIP. From 15 March onwards, the workers will only serve SHN for a few days at hotels while awaiting the results of their On-Arrival Tests.  Workers who clear these tests will then proceed to the MWOC to serve their remaining quarantine period and complete their end-to-end onboarding process, such as medical examination and residential SIP, all under one roof.  The MWOC will be piloted at five dedicated Quick Build Dormitories (QBD) - Punggol, Eunos, Choa Chu Kang and two at Tengah.
   
   
3. The onboarding process comprises two key components – enhanced medical examination and residential SIP. The enhanced medical examination includes detailed record taking of medical history as well as screening for chronic diseases for older workers or those with health risk factors. This will enable early identification of health risks and aid effective downstream patient care. The residential SIP is an expansion of today’s SIP, which is conducted by the Migrant Workers’ Centre. Apart from learning about their employment rights and Singapore’s social norms, it also serves to inculcate appropriate health-seeking behavior, good hygiene habits, and good dormitory living and worksite practices.
   
   
4. The MWOC brings together various entry processes as one efficient, integrated, and seamless end-to-end process. For employers, this means greater convenience. For the workers, they will be able to start their employment in Singapore on the right footing. As the MWOC is a pilot, we will continually tweak our measures and processes to safeguard public health and benefit employers and workers.
        
   
   Frequently Asked Question

1. What will the process be like for a newly-arrived worker going through the Migrant Worker Onboarding Centre (MWOC), inclusive of the 3-day onboarding programme?

• A newly-arrived worker will be housed in a Stay-Home Notice (SHN) Dedicated Facility for the first four days of SHN as he goes through and awaits the results of his on-arrival tests.
  
  If the worker was previously infected in his home country and has since recovered (i.e. tested positive for the On-Arrival Serology Test and negative for the Covid-19 Polymerase Chain Reaction test “PCR test”), he will be exempted from the remaining SHN, additional 7-day SHN testing regime, and Rostered Routine Testing (RRT) requirements. The worker will undergo a 3-day onboarding programme which comprises the residential Settling-in Programme (SIP) and enhanced medical examination at the MWOC.
  
  If the worker is Covid-negative (i.e. tested negative for the On-Arrival Serology Test and negative for the PCR test), the worker will complete the remaining SHN period and the 7-day SHN testing regime at the MWOC. The 3-day onboarding programme will be conducted as part of the additional 7-day SHN testing regime.
  
  If the worker tests positive for the PCR test, he will be moved to community care facilities or National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID) for medical attention. After recovery, workers will go through the 3-day onboarding programme at MWOC.