Our Stand

1 11, 2013

Proposals submitted for “second phase” employment legislation review

webmaster2020-10-15T18:30:40+08:00November 1st, 2013|News, Our Stand|

In response to the Ministry of Manpower's call for public feedback on the "second phase" of proposed changes to the Employment Act (EA) and the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act (EFMA), Transient Workers Count Too submitted a 39-page document on 30 October 2013 arguing for a long list of needed improvements. Some proposals urge amendments

26 10, 2013

Ilo Ilo: parts of film don’t reflect life of a domestic worker

GuestContributor2019-08-30T16:34:16+08:00October 26th, 2013|Articles, Our Stand, Stories|

By Marifel Mosquera Teresita (Terry) is the newly hired helper of Lim Family from the Province of Iloilo in the Philippines. Like most of the women who come to Singapore as domestic workers, she is looking to better her life and climb out of poverty. The film is about her relationship and struggle with one

21 10, 2013

Singapore needs updated trafficking laws

webmaster2019-08-30T16:34:17+08:00October 21st, 2013|Media Coverage, News, Our Stand|

As published in the Straits Times Opinion pages on 21 October 2013, by John Gee. --- Why S'pore needs anti-trafficking laws District Judge Low Wee Ping was very forthright in his comments on Sept 12 when he sentenced four men who had sexual relations with a 17-year-old girl. "What you and similar offenders have participated

17 10, 2013

Our Stand: Work permit holders should be free to change employers and stay longer

webmaster2019-08-30T16:34:17+08:00October 17th, 2013|News, Our Stand|

Transient Workers Count Too believes that the present system wherein workers' work permits are tied to employers with little scope for transfer is an unhealthy state of affairs. TWC2 would like to see the system changed to one where the general rule is that work permit holders have a right to change jobs within their

17 10, 2013

Our Stand: Housing workers who are on Special Passes

webmaster2019-08-30T16:34:17+08:00October 17th, 2013|News, Our Stand|

This statement clarifies the stand of Transient Workers Count Too with respect to the provision of accommodation to workers who have been placed on Special Passes, as a consequence of a salary dispute, illness or injury. Specifically, the reference is to workers who had once been on Work Permits, or had been in line for

15 08, 2013

Baby dumping case: address more realistically sexuality issues among domestic workers

webmaster2019-08-30T16:34:19+08:00August 15th, 2013|News, News Flash, Our Stand|

A week-old baby girl was found abandoned on 8 August 2013. Police have now traced the mother to a foreign domestic worker, media reports said today, 15 August 2013. Chinese newspaper Wanbao reported: The maid hid her pregnancy from her employer, and later tried to hide her infant daughter in her employer's house, but was

21 06, 2013

Singapore government should issue mandatory ‘Stop work’ order

webmaster2019-08-30T16:34:52+08:00June 21st, 2013|News, Our Stand|

Media Statement: Transient Workers Count Too (TWC2) is gravely concerned that current bad haze conditions will affect the health of workers in many trades, e.g. construction, marine, sanitation, landscaping. TWC2 strongly urges the government to impose a mandatory Stop Work Order when 3-hour average PSI readings, issued hourly, exceed 200, or when PM2.5 readings exceed

31 05, 2013

Companies should publicise their labour standards and write them into contracts

webmaster2019-08-30T16:34:53+08:00May 31st, 2013|Media Coverage, News, Our Stand|

In a letter published by Today newspaper, TWC2 immediate past president John Gee proposed a means by which good labour standards can be propagated in Singapore. Companies should write labour standards into contracts with their subcontractors. Government-linked companies should lead the way, he says, among other suggestions. --- Today, 31 May 2013, Voices section Companies

11 05, 2013

Employer claims our article contains ‘too many . . . untruthfulness’

webmaster2019-08-30T16:34:53+08:00May 11th, 2013|Articles, Our Stand, Stories|

On 26 March 2013, we received an email from Wang Fatt Oil & Gas Construction Pte Ltd (a member of E S Goup Holdings), the former employer of Pastula Venkata Ramana, saying that several statements in our article about his case (link here) were incorrect. The company said in the email that the Ministry of Manpower "have

6 05, 2013

Response to complaint about our ‘demonise’ article

webmaster2019-08-30T16:34:53+08:00May 6th, 2013|Articles, Our Stand, Stories|

Transient Workers Count Too received a complaint about a post on this website about Singapore mums using blogs to vent about their maids. The blogger, Expat Bostonians, has written a rebuttal here. Her point was that she never intended to demonise domestic helpers and that it was unfair to her to be quoting from her