Type of issue: repatriation agents
10
12, 2020
Half naked man running in the night
Workers in a nearby dorm were surprised to see him running in for help. No shirt, no sandals... just plain fear.
20
03, 2019
How two bosses reacted to their workers filing salary claims
The same evening that volunteer Liang Lei was doing interviews for his story Why do injured workers flee company housing and do they feel safe enough to return?, two other workers came to TWC2 with housing-related woes. But their stories also shine a light on the way employers try to bully workers into submission. Borhan
21
07, 2017
Blackmail attempt at airport
Here's an account of an incident at Changi airport as a TWC2 volunteer accompanied Nagelli Mahendar Reddy to see him off. By Silvester Goh Last night, 29 June 2017, I accompanied injured worker Nagelli Mahender Reddy to Terminal 2 to catch his flight home to India. Flight TZ502 to Chennai was scheduled to depart at 10:45pm. Check-in
18
12, 2016
Held in windowless room, Shahjahan faced forced repatriation. TWC2 rescues him
800 By Kimberley Ng Kept in a windowless room with three company representatives patrolling outside and the imminent threat of forced deportation looming over his head, Molla Shahjahan called TWC2 for help. At 11 on the morning of 7 June 2016, Shahjahan had just been discharged after three nights’ stay at Alexandra Hospital following a debilitating
15
05, 2016
Do I stay and press my case, or give up and go?
By Mark Lamb Thursday, 5 May 2016. "An emergency" whisks through the room where we're convening to discuss communication plans for Transient Workers Count Too. My barometer perks up but it is no time for self-interest as this appears to be a serious matter and one of immediate urgency. In a calm but pressing voice,
29
04, 2016
Kamal climbs out of window, 12 floors up, to get help
Kamal gingerly opened a window, hoping it wouldn't make a noise. Heart pounding, he stepped out, trying not to look down. He was twelve floors up Block 601 Jurong West. With certain death should he miss a step, he made his way to the ground, never before so careful in his life. Hailing a taxi,
28
11, 2015
“My friend [will] never walk again,” worker tells volunteer
"He crushed and crumpled the leaflet in his fist and threw it away," said the young volunteer, visibly distressed by the rejection she had just encountered. "He said, 'All this no use. My friend [will] never walk again.'" Most of the time, when our volunteers fan out on our monthly outreach event, they are received
4
09, 2015
Surviving on borrowed money and three shirts
By Daniel Ling “Driver put all my baju (clothes) in bag, tell me, ‘Boss say, tomorrow go Bangladesh for two month. [If] you no go, boss work permit cutting’”. Hossen Murad, 26, was still recovering from a serious workplace injury. Amid mounting medical bills here, his employer had sought to pressure him into returning to
17
12, 2014
Injured Hossian hidden away in locked container
By Fuxiong In the minutes following his three-metre fall, with his right shin and back in pain, Hossian Ramzan was carried by two "tamil man" on the instructions of a company supervisor to a shipping container, "to rest". "Then they lock the door." It worried him, but at first he gave them the benefit of
20
07, 2014
Falling 3 metres, Homun feels he’s a marked target, part 1
By Elizabeth Zhou Getting injured is a foreign worker’s greatest nightmare. Monday, 5 May 2014. The evening was humid. Sweat gathered on his forehead and trickled down his side-burns. Homun adjusted his helmet and readied himself for a bit more work. It was almost time to go home. Then he plunged three metres, and found