All items filed under News
Committee of Inquiry issues report on Little India riot
Ambulance set ablaze. Photo: Straits Times The Committee of Inquiry on the Little India Riot made its Report public on 30 June 2014. Much of the report deals with the particulars of the incident (that occurred after 9pm on 8 December 2013) which do not have much relation
Video: Singapore’s foreign muscle
There is an increasing interest among social media groups in featuring foreign workers, the important roles they play in Singapore and the hardships they suffer. Here is one from SPAM media:
Memorandum on required training for construction sector workers
By John Gee In 2011, when looking into the costs Bangladeshis face in coming to work in Singapore’s construction industry, one of the expenses about which the research team asked workers was that of training. They quickly discovered that, though the workers had to pay significant amounts to training centres to gain skills
Construction companies and bosses in court for kickbacks and other employment offences
A director of a construction company was fined $20,000 for taking money from his foreign workers. Demanding and accepting such kickbacks is illegal. Lin Pinghe 54, took the money from twenty workers from China in 2011, reported the Straits Times in its story on 3 June 2014 (pictured above). He
Civil society statement on racism and xenophobia
We, the undersigned, are alarmed by the recent surge of racism and xenophobia in Singapore. They threaten the human rights of all (especially migrants) and the health of our political conversation. The key to addressing the economic frustrations felt by many Singaporeans is to amend the economic policies and structures
TWC2 calls for comprehensive bill on labour trafficking
TWC2 calls for practices of labour trafficking suffered by low wage migrant workers in all sectors of employment and foreign fishermen who dock in Singapore or on transit in the country to be addressed in the “Prevention of Human Trafficking Bill”. In a 17-page document submitted via email on 18
Why the right to seek another job is important
A key plank in Transient Workers Count Too's advocacy is that of untying a work permit holder from his employer, and allowing him (or her) job mobility. Naturally, even as he seeks alternative employment, only employers who have the requisite work permit quota will be able to employ him. We
Our accounts reflect our frugality
In 2013, over 90 percent of TWC2's spending went towards charitable activities, benefitting our clients in a relatively direct way. We spend little on overheads, reflecting a philosophy of frugality we are proud of. Total expenditure in the year was $481,139, leaving us with a surplus of $254,755 from the
How ‘law’ fails migrant workers
At the Migrant Awareness Week organised by students in the law school of National University of Singapore, 3 - 7 March 2014, a whole host of activities were on the calendar. For the forum of 3 March, TWC2 vice-president Alex Au (pictured above with HOME's Celine Dermine on his left)
MOM does not abandon workers, says ministry director
The director of the Foreign Manpower Management Division, Kevin Teoh, told the commission of inquiry looking into the Little India riots that his ministry does not abandon workers. This was after TWC2 president Russell Heng had hold the committee in earlier testimony that workers "basically have to resort to charity to