Better outreach, legislation to address employment malpractices
- TODAY (21 January 2012) : Better outreach, legislation to address employment malpractices
- TODAY ( 14 January 2012) : More construction workers = more problems to deal with: TWC2
Better outreach, legislation to address employment malpractices
- TODAY, 21 January 2012
1. In his letter dated 14 January 2012, TWC2 President Russell Heng expressed concerns about the projected increase in foreign worker numbers.
2. From the Ministry of Manpower's (MOM’s) interactions with employees and employers, we have seen that most employers of foreign workers are responsible in fulfilling their obligations. From December 2008 to December 2010, the number of foreign workers rose from 1,057,700 to 1,111,800. Yet, employment-related cases lodged with MOM remained relatively stable except during the downturn years. Similarly, work injury cases over the same period also declined. This is the result of better outreach to employers to raise awareness of their obligations, our concerted effort to improve workplace health and safety, and more active enforcement in bringing errant employers to task. In 2011, 26 employers were convicted of Employment Act offences, of which 22 were for salary-related offences. Thirteen other salary arrears cases are currently before the courts. For kickback offences, 9 individuals and 1 company were successfully prosecuted in 2011.
3. Nonetheless, some workers may continue to encounter irresponsible employers. We urge them to lodge reports with MOM so that we could investigate and ensure that errant employers fulfill their obligations under the law. During investigations, the workers will be given access to temporary jobs where appropriate. Workers who are unable to provide for themselves and are denied help from their employers can approach MOM and they may be referred to non-governmental organizations such as the Migrant Workers' Centre.
4. Going forward, MOM will do more to address employment malpractices through legislation and education. We are reviewing the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act this year to strengthen enforcement, and hold employers and other stakeholders more accountable for the basic employment standards and well-being of foreign workers. We have engaged NGOs and stakeholders here for this review.
5. MOM also educates foreign workers on awareness of their employment rights and sources of help through various channels, such as the key employment information in the In-Principle Approval letters sent to them in their home countries prior to their departure for Singapore. We are currently piloting a series of pre-departure orientation briefings on topics such as employment laws and employment terms for Singapore-bound construction workers.
6. MOM is committed to ensuring that the rights and interests of all workers are protected and upheld. We will continue to engage all stakeholders including employers, unions, business associations, the embassies of source countries and NGOs on this front.
More construction workers = more problems to deal with: TWC2
- TODAY, 14 January 2012
The National Development Minister has said that, with the Housing and Development Board (HDB) accelerating its building programme, the number of construction workers needed for this is expected to increase to 30,000 this year, from 18,000 last year. The number could rise to 45,000 beyond this year. Transient Workers Count Too (TWC2) is concerned that systems are not in place to effectively handle the migrant worker problems that are likely to be a side effect of these numbers.
Last year, 100 to 200 workers came to us monthly with complaints about mistreatment, such as workplace injuries, unpaid salaries, unjust deductions, illegal deployment and job placement scams.
Workers are left to languish for months, sometimes for more than a year, while their cases went through the bureaucracy. Typically, they would have been terminated from their jobs because employers do not want to continue paying the levy.
Yet, the men are not allowed to engage in alternative work. They are left destitute and often homeless, depending on charity.
TWC2 has pointed out to the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) that the difficulty in coping with even the present number of workers lies in three broad failings.
First, current laws give too much leeway to employers or have many loopholes that disadvantage foreign workers and encourage employers to cheat or mistreat and then abandon them.
Second, existing laws are often not enforced, so employers believe that they will succeed when they try to escape their legal obligations to their workers.
Third, many administrative policies, for example, the preference for repatriation instead of retention and transfer of workers, worsen the problem. Labour churn may line the pockets of employment agents, but they hurt everybody else's interests.
There should be strong incentives to retain workers and stronger disincentives to terminate and repatriate them. Upskilling programmes would be defeated if workers are sent home too quickly, only to be replaced by a fresh batch.
Yet, without upskilling, Singapore would always rely on large numbers of low-skilled labour, with its attendant social friction. TWC2 has also been vocal about the need for the police to be more vigilant against repatriation agents' strong-arm tactics on behalf of employers and against the growing number of scams whereby workers are promised non-existent jobs.
We are concerned that news of the increasing need for workers for HDB projects would tempt scammers to expand their operations.
If the same percentage of workers are injured or mistreated when the number hits 45,000, there would be a significant increase in caseload.Ahead of the HDB's ramp-up in projects, we urge the MOM and other departments to look critically at the present inadequacies for dealing with injuries, employer-employee disputes and job scams.
We urge various government agencies and Members of Parliament to dialogue intensively with non-government organisations working hands-on at the front line of the issues, so as to quickly do what is needed to prevent a tsunami of migrant worker cases.