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Another house of cards collapses
One by one, the men came through the door of the Ministry of Manpower until they were 46. Then their employer, whose name the men recalled as Farouk, stood up to address them. As recalled by Shahbas, "Boss he said, afterwards talking MOM, no talking alibaba." In plain English: The
Samad wants his $1,000 back
Samad Hossain didn't think it was a critical problem when, one year into his job as a construction worker, his employer began deducting $300 a month from his earnings. It was explained to him that the deductions, spread over four months (October 2010 to January 2011) and totalling $1,000 (only
One who will not be dancing
(It doesn't start until 30 seconds in) Coming across this beautiful video, your correspondent was reminded of Jitu, whose story is here at Left for dead, Jitu finds his feet again -- except that that was written before another piece of bad news hit. Early November 2011, almost exactly a
Twice abducted by repatriation agents, Asadullah goes home poorer than when he arrived
Among the one million medical tourists spending some one billion dollars on medical services this year was the Bangladeshi Minister of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment. His ministry was established in December 2001 for the purpose of ensuring the welfare of the expatriate workers and the enhancement of the overseas
Asadullah tells his countrymen to be careful about taking jobs in Singapore
Asadullah advises care when taking on jobs in Singapore In this short video, construction worker Md Asadullah Late Md Hasan Uddin speaks to his fellow countrymen in Bengali, advising them to be extra careful when seeking jobs in Singapore. The video was made in December 2011 when Asadullah was repeatedly
Speaking of domestic workers: legal isn’t always moral
By Jason Shut the blog down; it's illegal – so went opponents of SingaporeMaid.blogspot.com. The controversy erupted when the Straits Times reported on the blog, run by a full-time mother who goes by the online moniker ‘Tamarind’. The blog was meant for netizens to share negative experiences they have had
A life cut tragically short, a brother seeks answers
By Spiegel When young Sohelrana, a Bangladeshi carpenter, contemplated a return to Singapore in hopes for second fruitful working stint, he thought his younger brother, Roni Miya, should follow. Their father, a farmer, has kept his family of eight in good fiscal shape, but Sohel and Rony still harboured hopes
Constructing cut grass
Before leaving their home country for Singapore to take up new jobs, Aman Ullah and Rafiqul Islam received a letter each from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM). Titled "In-principle Approval for Work Permit" and commonly known as "IPA", the letter stated their jobs, the name of their employer, their basic
Why is there no bed?
Would teenagers be able to understand the travails of working life? Especially those of migrant workers? At their age, they had never had any taste of work, nor would they have had much contact with migrant workers, except perhaps foreign domestic maids in their homes. These concerns weighed on Alex's
Thirteen months with a broken knee, part 2
Continued from Part 1. "Mustafa Plaza," Manik told the taxi driver. He figured it would be safest there with lots of fellow Bangladehsis around. He might get some help too. By September 19, just a few days alter, the $50 in his pocket was dwindling fast, and it was obvious