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Better dormitories, part 2
Actions and demands by the government strongly impact the economics of dormitories. Improving minimum standards from 4.5 to 7.5 sq metres per head does not have to mean substantial cost increases.
Better dormitories, part 1
The current minimum of 4.5 sq metres per person is too low a standard. It should be 7.5 sq metres. There shouldn't be barracks-style dorms anymore, but apartment-type accommodation with a max of 8 persons per apartment.
Nearly 300 men at risk of eviction and homelessness get rent money from TWC2
We laid out $85,000 to help some migrant workers keep a roof over their heads. These workers, having lost their jobs, are in more difficult situations than those in dorms. Includes video story from TRT World.
Covid-19: Tales from the ground, part 2
Workers tell us of their experiences during the lock-down. Here is a miscellaneous collection of their direct experiences -- about insufficient toilets, insufficient food and all sorts of inconveniences due to the lockdown.
How many employers are there?
Here's a figure: There are 66,000 employers of S-Pass and Work Permit holders as at April 2020. And workers with bank accounts now number 521,000, which seems to be 77.5%. Numbers exclude FDWs.
Manpower Ministry’s advisory on circuit breaker still unclear
In a media statement dated 13 April 2020 (links to short version and long version) we pointed out that an entire section of the Ministry of Manpower's Advisory on salary and leave arrangements during Circuit Breaker was not only unclear, but seemed to bless salary reductions for foreign
The dorms are not the problem
An essay based on a talk given by Alex Au at a Labour Day webinar organised by Maruah in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic that badly affected migrant workers in Singapore.
Lockdowns and merry-go-rounds
Medical needs for non-Covid situations risk being neglected. Two stories from two workers stuck in dorms. The hospitals are fine, but seeing a doctor in the dorm or filling a prescription... facepalm!
A self-cultivated Achilles heel
As Covid-19 infections among migrant workers hit new highs, John Gee takes stock of the bigger picture: What is it about Singapore's migrant labour policy that makes this crisis a self-inflicted one, and where do we go from here?
Covid-19: Tales from the ground, part 1
Workers tell us of their experiences during the lock-down. Here is a miscellaneous collection of their direct experiences -- about getting fever, the long wait for test results and not getting wifi.