Our Stand

25 02, 2018

A look back at job mobility policies 2011 – 2017

alex2019-08-30T16:31:07+08:00February 25th, 2018|Articles, Facts, research, analysis, News, Our Stand|

There has been a gradual liberalisation over the last few years allowing construction workers to transfer to new jobs. This paper takes stock of evolving government policy in this area. Transient Workers Count Too has argued for a long time that retaining workers with experience in Singapore will be good for our much-hoped-for improvement in productivity.

10 02, 2018

Victims of unpaid salaries have hard time getting transfer jobs

webmaster2019-08-30T16:31:07+08:00February 10th, 2018|Articles, Facts, research, analysis, News, Our Stand|

One of the more encouraging things that Transient Workers Count Too has noticed in the past few years is that now, nearly all victims of unpaid salary are given a chance by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) to look for new jobs in Singapore without first having to return home. The significance of the above may be

29 01, 2018

TWC2 president speaks at Singapore UN Association’s UNASMUN

webmaster2019-08-30T16:31:07+08:00January 29th, 2018|Articles, Happenings, News, Our Stand|

TWC2 was invited to speak at the 2017 United Nations Association of Singapore Model United Nations (UNASMUN) preparatory conference which took place at the Singapore Institute of Management from 19-22 December 2017. At the conference, TWC2 President, Dr Noorashikin Abdul Rahman, presented an overview of the working and living conditions of migrant workers in Singapore

24 01, 2018

Asean consensus on migrant labour: gaps between reality and Singapore’s commitments

webmaster2019-08-30T16:31:08+08:00January 24th, 2018|Articles, Facts, research, analysis, News, Our Stand|

In November 2017, Asean heads of government signed an 'Asean Consensus on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers'. The terms of the document were not binding, and every article within was made subject to national laws. Despite such inauspicious beginnings, Transient Workers Count Too has taken a microscope to the document.

19 01, 2018

MOM booklet sweeps forward, then stumbles

webmaster2019-08-30T16:31:08+08:00January 19th, 2018|News, News Flash, Our Stand|

Arriving in our mailbox earlier this week was a new booklet published by the Ministry of Manpower, titled '6 Simple Steps to comply with Employment Laws'. This is indeed a good initiative; from here on, employers will have fewer excuses not to do things in accordance with the law. The six 'simple steps' featured in

17 01, 2018

Rafa and the line between white and black

Volunteer Writing Team2019-08-30T16:31:08+08:00January 17th, 2018|Articles, Our Stand, Stories|

By Isaac Ong, based on an interview in November 2017 "This is my wrong but I don't want pay [you] money. Even if I go jail, [even if] I no company, but I still don't want pay money", Rafa (not his real name) was told by his boss. 49-year-old Rafa is practically a veteran of

20 12, 2017

MOM wrong to accuse us of ‘inaccurate’ and ‘untrue’ account

webmaster2019-08-30T16:31:08+08:00December 20th, 2017|Articles, Facts, research, analysis, News, Our Stand|

On 5 December 2017, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) put up a note on their Facebook page accusing TWC2 of publishing an "inaccurate" account. This was in relation to the story we had posted on 12 October 2017 titled "Fraud committed using ministry letterhead". We stand by our story. We consider MOM's accusation against us

19 11, 2017

Bridging the academic-NGO divide: Making research relevant to migrant workers and their front line supporters.

webmaster2020-09-24T18:10:07+08:00November 19th, 2017|Articles, Facts, research, analysis, Happenings, News, Our Stand|

Nick Harrigan (extreme right) moderating a panel discussion at another event This is a speech given by Nicholas Harrigan, a member of TWC2's research subcommittee, at the 'Health of Migrants and Refugees Workshop' in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on 10 November 2017. This workshop was hosted by United Nations University - International Institute for Global Health. Attendees

10 11, 2017

Basic salary stated in IPA is “prima facie” the applicable basic salary, rules the High Court

webmaster2019-08-30T16:31:09+08:00November 10th, 2017|Articles, Facts, research, analysis, News, News Flash, Our Stand|

In a landmark judgment released 1 November 2017, the High Court has ruled that the basic salary stated in the In-Principle Approval for a Work Permit (IPA) "would constitute prima facie evidence" of the correct basic salary rate, unless the employer can prove otherwise. The bar for proving otherwise was also set very high. This

9 11, 2017

TWC2’s top three recommendations

webmaster2019-08-30T16:31:09+08:00November 9th, 2017|News, Our Stand|

In late June 2017, Channel NewsAsia asked Transient Workers Count Too for a commentary article with the suggested theme of "whether we think migrant workers are an integral part of Singapore society, following reports of how many have to head back given the slowing economy." The article we submitted (in early July) is below. After we