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Manpower ministry receives about 600 complaints a month
In a blogpost to mark International Migrants Day, Acting Manpower Minister Tan Chuan-Jin revealed some statistics: MOM receives some 7,000 telephone enquiries and 2,500 emails per month on employment-related matters from both local and foreign workers. Some 600 statutory employment claims (e.g. non-payment of salary or overtime pay, unauthorised deductions
Construction workers at Yishun site down tools to protest non-payment of wages
Twenty Indian workers, employees of Sime Chong Construction, refused to report for work on Tuesday 18 December 2012 over two months of salary arrears, reported various media on 18 and 19 December 2012. Four other workers, from China, had earlier lodged complaints at the Ministry of Manpower on 7 November 2012
Only 150,000 dorm beds for over 700,000 workers
The lead story on the front page of the Straits Times (18 Dec 2012: Dormitory operators unite to raise standards) was about eight dormitory operators founding a new Dormitory Association of Singapore (DASL) in September this year. More interestingly, the story provided some numbers about dormitory beds in Singapore. It
Two Chinese workers climb crane to protest, now charged with criminal trespass
Two workers from China have been charged for criminal trespass after they climbed atop a crane to protest what they said was a case of salary non-payment. The Ministry of Manpower was quick to deny that they were owed any salaries and the men were arrested as soon as they
Five SMRT bus drivers charged for protest
Five ex-SMRT bus drivers have been charged for criminal offences. Bao Fengshan's case was heard on 3 December 2012. He was accused of "commencing the strike", pleaded guilty and was jailed six weeks. (Channel NewsAsia, 3 Dec 2012, 6 weeks' jail for SMRT bus driver involved in strike, by Dylan Loh)
Bangladeshi worker killed by falling rods
Mominul Islam, 36, died at his worksite on the morning of 16 November 2012. He was killed when steel rods fell on him. The Straits Times reported a co-worker describing the incident at 30, Tuas Bay Drive, as one where a "wire mesh" (probably a criss-cross assembly of rods) weighing
Two companies charged for not paying workers their salaries and receiving kickbacks
Two companies, Techcom Construction & Trading and Sunway Concrete Products, were charged in court for failing to pay their workers on time, reported the Straits Times on Friday, 16 Nov 2012. Sunway is the main contractor for Techcom. Techcom faces a total of 59 charges under the Employment Act for
Manager fined for obtaining gifts from workers for work permit renewal
In quite possibly the first case of its kind, a former factory manager was fined $8,000 and ordered to pay a further penalty of $4,030 for corruption. Toh Phoo Chye, 46, had obtained Nokia mobile phones from foreign workers in exchange for recommending to the management to renew their work
260 employers caught for exceeding overtime limits in last four years
Acting Manpower Minister Tan Chuan-Jin revealed in parliament 12 November 2012 that 260 employers were found to have contravened the limit of overtime work between 2008 and 2011. Of these, 56 employers were issued compositions fines by the Ministry while another 21 were prosecuted in court for more serious breaches.
Amended EFMA to take effect from 9 Nov 2012
The recent amendments to the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act (EFMA) will take effect on 9 November 2012, reported the Straits Times and Channel NewsAsia. Both reports highlighted the introduction of administrative penalties. A financial penalty will be imposed on administrative infringements. These are EFMA breaches that do not directly