- Yeu Yong Yeo Employers who intend to short-change workers normally will not let workers keep documents on wages. Do you understand this MOM?
No need to read any of the other comments. Yeu Yong Yeo hits the nail on its head. On paper everything looks good. There shouldn't be a problem that cannot be solved before people go on strike, protest, riot or even immolate themselves. If you travel north to China, its Constitution and Laws also pretty much suggest the same and better. However I cannot forget pictures and video clips of angry Chinese rioting and burning police cars.
Regulations and laws have no teeth if there is plenty of room for them to be subverted. Turning a blind eye, a deaf ear with some sophistication. If the people seemingly fail to see or understand no injustice is done. Big mistake.
Such employers must be severely punished. Add SMRT to the list too.
This government fail to grasp that just as we are extremely unhappy to see our aged poor forced into cleaning toilet and clearing trays to make ends meet, we are also angry about other forms of bullying of the weak and poor.
At the end of the day, if we add up the real cost of using so many foreign workers, we would be better off taking on painful measures in raising productivity and innovating our business systems. So much for a government with a legendary reputation for strategic long term thinking.
Update: Dec 8, 5am
Glad Tan CJ had this in his post:
In some instances, the workers can have misplaced expectations or in some cases unreasonable demands. However, I do recognize that in general, the relationship tends to be weighted against the workers
It gives him credibility. Not just workers even local PMETs. As a result our initial position in the cloud of uncertainty is to give the workers the benefit of the doubt first and proceed from there. It appears that MOM under TCJ is doing the same. What was Gan Kim Yong doing before?
Link to CNA article.
MoM statistics on foreign workers and employers who provided these FTs work are computerized and can be readily accessed by authorized personnel armed with identification information on individuals already captured by the network.
ReplyDeleteFTs out of the information loop could be illegal workers doing extra work so that they can help out during the forthcoming lunar new year. (Just round the corner given the Christmas and New Year slow periods on productivity, etc.)
MoM has its work cut out, so to speak, if officials there are aware or had seen the miseries of Chinese construction workers conned of their salaries by construction firms inside China.
May I suggest throwing the book at all those who made the lives of legitimate foreign workers miserable, whoever these miscreants are - construction companies; labor brokers; MoM officials or members of parliament with grassroot leaders (who happen to own construction firms) found guilty in our courts of Law.
Excellent article. Thks for writing this. You speak my mind.
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