By Janson Chang “I was the number one good worker,” says Sheikh Milon, betraying a hint of emotion for the first time in our conversation, beneath his otherwise rugged, unflappable exterior. “I worked six years, no MC. Company grow from 40 to 400 people. But after injury…” His voice trails off for awhile, before fading
In 2016, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) received about 9,000 complaints from workers over salaries. These complaints related to about 4,500 employers. This was reported in the Straits Times, 6 Feb 2017, in a story reporting on questions and answers from a parliamentary sitting. Manpower minister Lim Swee Say also mentioned that in the last
We'll call the worker 'Byoghu' in this story. He had worked before in Singapore and quite successfully. But when he returned for a second job, he soon fell ill. In the first two weeks on the job, he had a fever and was given medical leave. The employer decided to cancel his Work Permit on
As 2016 came to a close, TWC2 trawled through the website of the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) to see what prosecutions have been listed there through the year. MOM issues press releases whenever an employer has been sentenced in court. TWC2 found twelve mentions in MOM's website through 2016. The list is shown further down. What
Journalist Toh Yong Chuan had a short op-ed on page 2 of the Straits Times 24 Jan 2017 following his two reports of workers who could not collect on their Labour Court awards. See these stories on Islam Rafiqul and Sujan Ahmed. He argued that it was important to plug the gap in the law,
Just like Islam Rafiqul's case which was told in the Straits Times last week, Sujan Ahmed too is unable to collect the Labour Court award he has been given. Sujan's employer is simply refusing to pay up and the Ministry of Manpower suggested that he should apply to the State Courts for a Writ of Seizure
By James Mah “Go back home”. Such remarks can be heard infrequently in Singapore, uttered by locals frustrated at the sight of migrant workers on public transport when buses and trains are jam-packed. Most of the time, these comments would be said from the stress of the moment, without any malicious intent. This was not the
Most interns who spend 6 - 9 weeks with TWC2 are asked to wrap up their internship with an essay on a specific topic. Law student Pranay Arvind Suryavanshi spent his mid-year vacation 2016 with us assisting with casework and the Labour Court Research Project. In the process, he came across many foreign workers who
By Sarah Tong Kashem was employed by one company but was sent to work for another, a scaffolding company. When he was injured, his employer took the position that the accident happened ‘off-site’, and so refused to pay for treatment. This is incorrect, but perhaps the boss didn't know the law. “Yah, he don’t know!”
Most interns who spend 6 - 9 weeks with TWC2 are asked to wrap up their internship with an essay on a specific topic. Nikie spent May to July 2016 with us assisting with casework and the Labour Court Research Project. In the process, she came across many foreign workers who had difficulty getting the medical
