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Failure to report accident complicates Harun’s access to treatment
By Hong Ying Harun Rashid Or has not had the treatment doctors recommended since his accident on 25 August 2015. While trying to understand why, the Ministry of Manpower's own processes come into the picture. As much as he is being victimised by a callous employer, he may also be disadvantaged
Injured workers hit face-on with doctor and housing issues
Medical treatment and housing -- two issues that workers, after an injury, find themselves grappling with. They shouldn't have to, and it is troubling to any outside observer that soon after an injury, perhaps still in pain with mobility difficulties, anyone should find himself with these additional complications. For a little insight as
The ‘stupid boy’ with an ipad
By Elizabeth Zhou Sagor Mohammad and Abu Bakar (pictured above) are Bangladeshi nationals working as construction workers in Singapore. Not their first time here, both work permit holders are seasoned and familiar non-citizens[1] of Singapore with a close and allied network of friends and “family” -- relationships they have forged
Surviving on borrowed money and three shirts
By Daniel Ling “Driver put all my baju (clothes) in bag, tell me, ‘Boss say, tomorrow go Bangladesh for two month. [If] you no go, boss work permit cutting’”. Hossen Murad, 26, was still recovering from a serious workplace injury. Amid mounting medical bills here, his employer had sought to
Accused of salary non payment, employer gets inventive. MOM sees through it
By Keith Wong Hossain feels vindicated. He came out of a meeting at the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) yesterday with a 'settlement paper' signed by his employer in which is stated that he will be paid his salary arrears no later than a week from now. The amount of approximately $5,700
Shipyard work is not for dreams
By Joanna Korycinska $6,500 is the amount Hossain Jakir (above, right) paid upfront to secure a job in Singapore. It took him two and a half years to recover this 'investment' before he started earning anything he could send home. With the median wage in Singapore this year at $3,770,
Can’t fault the employer, yet there is a trust deficit
When workers first approach TWC2 for help, an experienced volunteer would run through a checklist of questions with him. We do this because even though workers are quite able to describe the particular problem they need help with, they may not realise that there are other issues that require attention. For
Four men, picked at random, speak of low pay and hardship, part 2
Continued from Part 1: By Rabin Kok I am happy for Ishaq. However, Nitai Chandra Sarker, my next interviewee, reminds me that many workers are far less lucky. Nitai does not sport a smile – only a blank, wistful look. Like Islam, he too paid 400,000 takas (about S$7,000) just
Four men, picked at random, speak of low pay and hardship, part 1
Rabin is a new volunteer doing his first interviews. At his first volunteering session, he was not expected to go for an in-depth story. Instead he was tasked to do quick interviews with a random pick of workers in order to gain a broad familiarity with the issues and the
Kickbacks are illegal, but how to eliminate them?
By Seema Punwani You must spend money to make money. Even Forbes magazine propagates this theory and it has probably inspired several entrepreneurs. A worker living across the Indian Ocean in Bangladesh who has limited formal education and sparse knowledge of English has in all probability not come across this famous quote.