DaySpace
DAYSPACE
“I’m really grateful for DaySpace. After my boss kicked me out of the company room, it gave me shelter and became my home.” – Migrant worker (name redacted) whom we housed at DaySpace
Since 2017, Dayspace has functioned as an emergency shelter, satellite office, and community space. Located on the upper floor of a shophouse in Little India, it can provide emergency shelter for up to 6 workers at a time. Spaces are only granted as a last resort, to workers who have been mistreated, or turfed out without warning.
It also functions as a satellite office on weekday evenings. Caseworkers use the space to connect with new and existing clients. These include workers who are still holding a job, but wish to seek advice after work hours. It is also a community space on Sundays.
Workers waiting to consult our caseworkers at DaySpace on a Thursday evening.
On Sundays, DaySpace is largely turned over to self-driven women who show up for their enrichment programmes. These programmes are organized by our affiliate groups of domestic workers, the Indonesian Family Network (IFN) and Filipino Family Network (FFN), who use DaySpace to hold meetings and learn new skills on their days off.
While the space is essential to our operations, its sustainability has been challenged over the years. We were notified by the landlord at the start of 2025 that the rent would be increased.
DaySpace provides critical emergency shelter for male migrant workers.
In order to save costs, we set about seriously exploring the possibility of doing without a space that has served us and the community well for so many years. We were, however, hard pressed to find available or affordable rooms in the vicinity that could still provide emergency shelter for a handful of male workers and also serve as an operational base for volunteers from TCRP. With that, we set about negotiating and limiting the new rental fee to an amount that, even though was 38% more than what we had been paying over the years, was still lower than the going rate in the area.
Rental costs in Singapore are not likely to go down. If you would like to support an essential community space and emergency shelter, please click here.
DaySpace – examples of workers who depended on us
Saravanan (name changed) was left to sleep and shower at East Coast Park after he filed a salary claim against his boss. Because he was working on an E Pass, he was denied support with food and housing by MOM. TWC2 provided him housing while he fought his salary claim. He was eventually awarded a Tribunal Order in his favour, despite the 18 forged payslips that his employer presented to the Court.
Shaparan was cycling back to his dorm for lunch in 2023, when he suffered a serious traffic accident. Due to the severe injuries he sustained, he was not fit to fly home to Bangladesh to continue treatment, and needed support during his recovery. TWC2 helped him move to DaySpace, as the company storeroom he had been staying in was unfit for his condition. He returned to Bangladesh when his health improved.
DaySpace – Sunday activities by affiliate groups
The Filipino Family Network (FFN) runs courses such as computer skills, dressmaking, aromatherapy, and guitar lessons, across two terms each year. Their courses are volunteer-led and organized, providing members of their community with a space to connect and learn new skills. The group also holds regular social activities that include yoga sessions, birthday parties, and Easter celebrations.
Find out more about FFN here.
The Indonesian Family Network runs their Skill Improvement programmes across two terms each year, and offers courses on the English language, computer skills, sewing, makeup, and macrame.
They also volunteer regularly at Willing Hearts, and hold other social activities for members of their community, such as zumba aerobic sessions and blood donation drives.
Visit their Facebook page here.
