"You see my IPA," says Shipon as he leaves through a whole sheath of papers. "It say here my salary one month $650." The 'IPA' is the In-principle approval for a work permit and contains the terms of employment that the employer declares to the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) at the time of applying for
A tower crane accident left two construction workers dead, Monday 30 September 2013. Bangladeshi Ronju Ahmmed, 28, and an unnamed Thai national lost their lives when the crane crumpled down. It had been lifting an excavator when the accident happened. Concrete blocks making up its counterweight fell onto the worksite. The Straits Times reported (1
The Sunday Times did a full page feature (22 Sept 2013) on Cambodian maids joining the Singapore work force. The first few have arrived and an estimated 400 is expected to be here by the end of the 2013. The story indicated that they can expect a monthly salary of $450, and should be able
By Keith W "Now I get less," says Prashath Ranthulan (not his real name). "Other worker, they take $3,000 and go back [home]. Agent give, but tell worker [if] take money, cannot go MOM." He was the only one to turn down the hush money. Why? "I want to complain MOM. I don't want other
Transient Workers Count Too will be moving our office to another address during the week of 9 to 13 September, 2013. Our new address, located within the same building, is: 5001 Beach Road, #09-86 Golden Mile Complex Singapore 199588. Our previous landlord wanted the old unit back, so we had no choice but to look
In a Yahoo Singapore story titled 'Hidden slums of Singapore revealed' Andrew Loh describes conditions he witnessed in places where migrant workers are housed. He visits some of these places and has a video of what he saw: He writes: On the second floor lies the narrow doorway to the dormitory. Step inside and you
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
Preliminary findings from a study of workplace injuries and ill-health in 2011 reveal that slightly more than half of total costs fall on workers themselves, when quantified into dollar terms. Since low-wage foreign workers tend to be the ones doing the dangerous jobs, they suffer injuries and ill-health disproportionately. Now they -- the least able
This commentary by John Gee, immediate past president of TWC2, was carried in Today newspaper on 22 July 2013: --- It is just before 9am on a Sunday and there is an elegantly dressed woman in the lift, but she is carrying a large bag that does not go with her outfit. She steps out
A moratorium has been declared on sending Filipina domestic helpers to Singapore starting 2 September 2013. This news was carried by Channel NewsAsia (CNA) and the Straits Times (23 July 2013). CNA said 150 maid agencies in the Philippines, members of a trade association, want employers in Singapore to bear more of the cost of
