Type of issue: job placement, recruitment and costs
7
08, 2020
Loan amount goes up, up and away
Shafiqul borrowed 200,000 taka from a bank to finance his recruitment cost. He now owes 250,000.
5
08, 2020
Chokder’s three jobs: win, draw, lose
We ask Chokder to tally how much he paid job agents through the three jobs he's had. If not for these hefty fees, he would have savings to support his family after his injury.
27
07, 2020
Recruitment reform — what needs to be done
A short explainer about how corrupted the recruitment system has become for migrant workers and the two key measures needed to reform the eco-system.
18
07, 2020
“Have you got the $2,000 ready for me?”
$2,000 is cheap as far as recruiters' fees go, but just as easily lost. Razzak's story is unfortunately as common as dirty money in the migrant labour market.
6
07, 2020
A nice lady in a coffee shop
Carpenter Babul had had good experiences with Singaporean bosses, unlike employers from India or Bangladesh, whom he felt didn't care for their employees. A nice lady boss came along and offered him a job...
23
05, 2020
Swindle, cheat and manipulate, example no. 4
A hopeful guy from India contacted TWC2 by WhatsApp to ask if the job offer he had in hand was real. It didn't take us long to tell him the bad news.
1
05, 2020
The dorms are not the problem
An essay based on a talk given by Alex Au at a Labour Day webinar organised by Maruah in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic that badly affected migrant workers in Singapore.
12
04, 2020
Broken promises, broken thumb, broken finances
Through Adnan's story, a detailed look at a migrant worker's financial stress. It all started with having to pay a heft recruitment fee.
7
04, 2020
Through a shady broker, certified welder ends up with $220/month job
Shipyard worker is duped into a job paying only $220 a month. Illegal recruiters flourish despite the law because enforcement is poor.
30
03, 2020
Swindle, cheat and manipulate: so what can be done?
Since job scams arise from misrepresentation of the nature and terms of the job, a solution must lie in eliminating opportunities for deception. Workers must have direct access to employers' submissions and MOM's electronic records.