Articles > Facts, Research, Analysis
Swindle, cheat and manipulate: so what can be done?
Since job scams arise from misrepresentation of the nature and terms of the job, a solution must lie in eliminating opportunities for deception. Workers must have direct access to employers' submissions and MOM's electronic records.
If even educated people from source countries know so little about Singapore, how can they be training workers for us?
At a conference session on upskilling, TWC2 saw the enormity of the challenge for Singapore as we try to raise productivity among migrant workers and fill our future care-giving needs.
What does “monthly deduction for others” actually mean?
It is increasingly common to see employers make quite substantial "monthly deductions for others" from foreign workers' wages, but what's the deduction for?
Are non-paying employers able to hire more new workers?
We mined our data and found 30 companies that hired new workers after having failed to pay salaries for previous workers. The new workers later came to TWC2 with salary problems
Impact of digital technology on social protection and human rights
TWC2 submitted a report to the UN on the ways in which digital technology has affected the rights and social protection of migrant workers
Recruitment cost up to 22 months’ salary for shipyard workers
When a worker has paid a huge amount to get a job, he cannot afford to lose that job and will thus be vulnerable to unreasonable, exploitative demands by the employer. How huge is huge?
Push, pull and the runs of choice
Beneath the veneer of workers saying they come to Singapore to get better pay and a chance of a better life, are there other factors that influence the decision to migrate for work? How much volition is there?
Overstayers’ median period of evading arrest only two months
Work pass and Special pass holders made up about 40% of overstayers arrested in 2018, with tourists forming an even larger number. But they hadn't managed to evade the authorities for long.
What plagues migrant workers?
Dating from 2014, this featured article is a review of the inequalities inherent in the employer-employee relationship with respect to migrant workers in Singapore. Citing cases Meera Rajah came across while volunteering with TWC2, she shows how these imbalances manifest in workers' lived experiences.
Remittance highways and byways
Many low-wage workers from Bangladesh continue to use an informal remittance system to send money back home despite it being an unregulated system. Why do they choose that?