Our Stand

10 08, 2018

Re attempts at salary reduction, MOM ties itself in knots

webmaster2019-08-30T16:31:03+08:00August 10th, 2018|Articles, News, Our Stand, Stories|

Based on details collected from casework in May and June 2018 When Rahman Safiar went to the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) to get his Work Permit processed, he was in for a shock. It was not even two weeks after arriving in Singapore for a new job with a promised basic salary of $1,600 per

5 08, 2018

Unreported work injuries: more than a matter of statistics

Volunteer Writing Team2019-08-30T16:31:03+08:00August 5th, 2018|Articles, News, Our Stand, Stories|

By Liang Lei, based on interviews in June 2018 It is common knowledge that timely diagnosis and treatment of injuries go a long way in minimizing pain and speeding up recovery. In Singapore, the Work Injury Compensation Act (WICA) seeks to enable that, by allowing employees injured at work to file claims for, amongst other

1 08, 2018

Policy brief 2018, no. 2: Require mandatory reporting of injuries to MOM by healthcare providers

GuestContributor2019-08-30T16:31:03+08:00August 1st, 2018|Articles, Facts, research, analysis, News, Our Stand|

In the second of four policy briefs for 2018, Transient Workers Count Too recommends that healthcare providers should have a duty to report to the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) when a migrant worker is issued more than three days medical leave or is hospitalised for 24 hours or longer. This should be in addition to

27 07, 2018

MOM jealously guards their non-transparency, yet slams us for not knowing why they do what they do

webmaster2019-08-30T16:31:03+08:00July 27th, 2018|News, Our Stand|

On 20 July 2018, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) posted a note on Facebook (Link) saying they wished to refute two claims that we made in the article Jaynal lost hs case at ECT; was the tribunal’s decision sound? which can be found at this link. This is our response to MOM’s statement ("refutations") First of

11 07, 2018

TWC2 supports disallowing reduction of salary from IPA

webmaster2019-08-30T16:31:03+08:00July 11th, 2018|News, News Flash, Our Stand|

In the 9 July 2018 parliamentary sitting Minister for Manpower Josephine Teo floated the following idea: MOM is considering the possibility of disallowing downward salary revisions altogether. While this will provide workers with more certainty of their wage for the entire duration of their stay in Singapore, it could also lead to possible early termination

9 07, 2018

On emotional health

GuestContributor2019-08-30T16:31:03+08:00July 9th, 2018|Articles, Facts, research, analysis, News, Our Stand|

By Debbie Fordyce In trying to help injured and out-of-work migrant workers, we at TWC2 find ourselves dealing with a multitude of issues piling onto the same man at the same time. Some of them, such as injuries, are easier to see than others. Others, such as non-payment of salaries, are straightforward enough to grasp.

9 07, 2018

MOM accuses us of “inaccurate or false information” — here’s our response

webmaster2019-08-30T16:31:03+08:00July 9th, 2018|Articles, News, Our Stand, Stories|

This is TWC2's response to a statement by the Ministry of Manpower over "inaccurate or false information" in our recent stories. The statement was dated 6 July 2018 and carried on the government's "Factually" website. From time to time, differences will occur between what TWC2 records workers to be saying in our interviews, and what MOM

1 07, 2018

Policy brief 2018, no. 1: Electronic payment of salary should be mandatory

GuestContributor2019-08-30T16:31:04+08:00July 1st, 2018|Articles, Facts, research, analysis, News, Our Stand|

In the first for four policy briefs for 2018, Transient Workers Count Too sets out the case for electronic payment of salaries for Work Permit holders. The paper points out that "Electronic payment of salaries through bank transfer provides a 'paper trail' to demonstrate compliance with payment requirements and reduce wage disputes," and notes that

23 06, 2018

Rashadul goes home with only pocket change

webmaster2019-08-30T16:31:04+08:00June 23rd, 2018|Articles, Our Stand, Stories|

Based on an interview in April 2018 Despite giving us a broad smile, Rashadul's life has changed for the worse. For example, his broken knee means he will never be able to squat again. The best he can do now is to kneel on his one good knee, which at least is good enough to

17 06, 2018

When court orders are worthless: the Zach Engineering case

GuestContributor2019-08-30T16:31:04+08:00June 17th, 2018|Articles, Our Stand, Stories|

Longform by Gautam Joseph with contribution by Choo Wai Hong Timeline Dec 2014 Two workers at Zach Engineering summarily dismissed after employer has disagreement with Ministry of Manpower (MOM). Mar – Jun 2015 Two workers rehired by Zach Engineering, three other Bangladeshi workers join. Oct 2015 Fifteen workers paid only food allowance. Indian workers fight