By James Mah “Go back home”. Such remarks can be heard infrequently in Singapore, uttered by locals frustrated at the sight of migrant workers on public transport when buses and trains are jam-packed. Most of the time, these comments would be said from the stress of the moment, without any malicious intent. This was not the
By Katia Barthelemy Photos by Dipti Nagpaul-D'Souza, a journalist with The Indian Express One of the nice aspects of volunteering with TWC2 is the reward you feel contributing a bit to restoring migrant workers’ faith in Singapore. The tougher side is that more often than not, you are only confronted with real bad stories and cases. That makes
"The police was at the gate of the shipyard that day, checking all workers arriving at work," Nagelli Mahendar Reddy tells TWC2. "I think someone had informed them that there were illegal workers." Unfortunately, Nagelli was one of the 'illegals'. He did not have a work permit. He and a few others from the same
By Sarah Tong Kashem was employed by one company but was sent to work for another, a scaffolding company. When he was injured, his employer took the position that the accident happened ‘off-site’, and so refused to pay for treatment. This is incorrect, but perhaps the boss didn't know the law. “Yah, he don’t know!”
By Poh De Sheng Farid is a Bangladeshi national who has had the uncommon experience of having worked at shipyards in both Bangladesh and Singapore. He was able to offer a comparison of the conditions workers face in Singapore vis-à-vis Bangladesh. Back in Bangladesh, Farid shared a house with six co-workers in the city of
Islam Saiful speaks with a volunteer while he takes his dinner at TWC2's Cuff Road Project By Yi Ning On 18 March 2016, Islam Saiful fell about three metres at his worksite, landing on his back and leaving him with agonizing pain. This was just the start of his problems. He was told that
By Poh De Sheng Moorthy, an Indian national, is the sole breadwinner for his family, which consists of his wife, young daughter and parents. He came to Singapore a year and a half ago after being promised a basic salary of $429 per month by a local recruiter in India. However, what seemed like a
By Vivek R It was a rainy day in Jurong Shipyard on Chinese New Year’s eve 2016. The worksite was particularly slippery as rain water coalesced with sand to turn the working grounds into slurry. But with the company falling behind on contract schedule, the work must go on. The day looked ominous but Muthamilselvan
By Kan Ren Jie On 23 June 2016, Ataus Samad Rifat, 28, was suddenly fired from his job. "Go back home. Your work permit has been cancelled. We have already bought ticket." The ‘madam’ (the female administrative staff) at his office then proceeded to take his work permit from him. That was how Ataus described
Not your typical worker's meal By Seah Bei Ying Most of us have seen some Bangladeshi workers having their packed lunches in void decks in heartland areas. Where the lunch come from? Did they buy curry and rice from the nearby coffee shop for their everyday meals? If yes, then how much did their costs
