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Toothache as existential crisis
By Xinlin Basir Ullah is a stout man with an easy smile. However, when he came to TWC2 last Tuesday, it was not a smile but a face contorted in pain that we saw. He had a bad toothache in his right jaw which had been troubling him for the
Injured worker goes home, loses 13 kg in 7 months
Asad is the man above. The picture on the left was taken in August 2011 before he left Singapore; even then he was slim, around 60 kg. The picture on the right was taken in March 2012, seven months later. He had lost 13 kg and looked ten years older.
Cloudy case — TWC2 draws the line
This is an uncommon story. It's a story about a case in which Transient Workers Count Too decided we couldn't help any further. Like any organisation, funds and volunteers' time are limited, and if we are uncritical, expending resources on less deserving cases, then more deserving ones go unattended. However,
Worker flees captors through jungle at night
Jahangir waited till all seemed very quiet outside the room where he was held. It was 11 p.m. He climbed out of his window and tip-toed across the grass to the fence. Summoning a burst of energy, he climbed and topped it in a single bound, half-tumbling into the jungle
Old dreams asunder, Ahsanur finds new hope
By Spiegel In Bangladesh, men who have returned from labours in distant Singapore often regale their young compatriots with glowing tales of a city of abundant opportunity, where hard work finds good reward. But for many seeking a better living and lured by the promise of this distant island nation,
No office, no website, yet $100,000 in illegal profit
46 men this week join a long list of foreign workers penalised by officialdom for being duped by local companies looking to make a quick buck. Yes, you read that right: They were penalised for being victims. Each has received a letter from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) banning them
Two years after worker’s death, his family struggles to survive on $5 a week
Shuma supports herself and her two children by taking in sewing, for which she receives about 300 Bangladeshi taka (less than $5) a week. While her husband was alive, he sent home an average of about 20,000 taka a month ($300 - $350 at the rate at that time). This
Cook dived into hot soup
Neatly dressed and courteously greeting everyone in the office as he made his way to Kenneth's desk, Yang (not his real name) was clearly not your typical construction worker from China. He could even pass as a fashion-conscious Singaporean, which is what happens when a young man has had six
Give them a break: maids deserve a day off
Following the debate that is swirling around Singapore on the government’s announcement of a day off for foreign domestic workers, I thought it about time someone went into bat for these girls and started talking more about what they do. Sitting here watching May (our maid) take my son off
Rashedul’s challenge
As the events were unfolding, TWC2 posted an update on Facebook. Our Facebook 'friends' responded with outrage. "I think every time the police throw any foreign workers who have just escaped from a fire back into the inferno should be heavily publicise by everyone on the Net," wrote Sing Tay.