News and opinions in the public domain and TWC2’s response

10 11, 2015

A Singapore company at the heart of fisherman trafficking — New York Times

2019-08-30T16:32:23+08:00November 10th, 2015|Media Coverage, News, Our Stand|

The New York Times has an exposé on Step Up Marine, a manning agency operating out of Singapore's Chinatown, and its network of recruiters in neighbouring countries. Young men are deceived and entrapped into horrendously abusive jobs on fishing trawlers, including Eril Andrade who died at sea. Court papers in the Philippines point the finger clearly

2 11, 2015

Qatar makes banked salaries mandatory, pulls ahead of Singapore

2019-08-30T16:32:23+08:00November 2nd, 2015|News, News Flash, Our Stand|

Qatar's new regulations requiring employers to pay migrant workers via bank accounts will take effect in November 2015.  This puts the country ahead of Singapore, where our Ministry of Manpower is not addressing a widespread weakness. Here, employers can choose to pay employees in cash, and it is fairly common for employees to report that whilst

30 10, 2015

Caretakers and domestic workers: Taiwan splits the job

2019-08-30T16:32:23+08:00October 30th, 2015|News, News Flash|

TWC2 has recently learned from a migrant worker organisation in Taiwan that the regulations there make a clear distinction between a domestic worker and a caretaker. The job of domestic workers is to look after young children. They are employed by families with at least one child under the age of six and are forbidden to

29 10, 2015

Call for proposals: Labour Court research project

2019-08-30T16:32:23+08:00October 29th, 2015|Articles, Facts, research, analysis, Happenings, News, News Flash|

TWC2 is seeking collaborators to help us undertake research on Singapore's Labour Court system at the Ministry of Manpower, specifically procedures and practices relating to the salary and injury claims of migrant workers. Research will include a review of legislation and legislative history governing salary and injury claims in Labour Court and an overview of

2 10, 2015

Singapore accedes to the UN Anti-Trafficking Protocol

2019-08-30T16:32:24+08:00October 2nd, 2015|News, News Flash, Our Stand|

Statement by Transient Workers Count Too On 28 September 2015, Singapore acceded to the United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (UN TIP Protocol), often known as the Palermo Protocol. This is the key international legal instrument for combatting trafficking. Though just over 15 years old, it has

28 09, 2015

TWC2 urges stop work orders when haze PSI crosses 200

2019-08-30T16:32:24+08:00September 28th, 2015|News, Our Stand, Press Releases|

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 50 micrograms

25 07, 2015

Cleaners found living in bin centres

2019-08-30T16:32:26+08:00July 25th, 2015|Media Coverage, News|

The Straits Times carried a feature report 18 July 2015 about Bangladeshi estate cleaners living in trash collection centres, commonly referred to as 'bin centres'. Reporters visited eight such places across the island. The news story can be found by clicking the thumbnail below: Among the bin centres visited by the newspaper were two within

14 07, 2015

MOM gives excuse that workers can always request for wages through bank

2019-08-30T16:32:27+08:00July 14th, 2015|News, Our Stand|

Following TWC2's letter in the Straits Times Forum, 17 June 2015, Ensure pay is banked, offer mobility, the Ministry of Manpower's response was published on 23 June 2015 Electronic payments mandatory upon foreign workers' request Mr Alex Au suggested that the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) mandate electronic payment of salaries for foreign workers, and allow

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